Gus Mutscher, Texas House speaker who resigned amid the Sharpstown stock fraud scandal, dies at 90
Mutscher served as speaker from 1969 to 1972 before leaving amid the pay-for-play scandal, though he was later cleared on appeal. Full Story
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![Former Texas House Speaker Gus Mutscher.]()
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DPS sent at least 3,000 driver’s licenses to organized crime group targeting Asian Texans
A Chinese crime operation bypassed the password clues of Texas.gov by using stolen identity information to fraudulently obtain replacement driver’s licenses. Full Story
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![Steve McCraw, Department of Public Safety Director, speaks at a press conference with Gov. Greg Abbott and nine other governors regarding the southern border at Anzalduas Park in Mission on Oct. 6, 2021.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
A Texas lawmaker wants voters to decide whether legislators deserve a raise
State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin, has proposed an amendment to the state constitution to raise legislator pay and tie it to teachers’ pay, saying it would give lawmakers a living wage and allow a broader range of Texans to serve. Full Story
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![State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin, speaks at a Texas House Progressive Caucus press conference at the Capitol on Sept. 20, 2021.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Texas superintendent resigns after student finds his gun in school bathroom
The incident comes as lawmakers debate how to make schools safer after the Uvalde massacre and favor measures like arming more educators. Full Story
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![A M&P Shield handgun, small enough to be ideal for conceal carry, in Austin on April 23, 2021.]()
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Gov. Greg Abbott says Texas will revamp economic development program after property tax incentive expires
Abbott told business leaders in Arlington on Wednesday that Texas is already suffering from the end of the tax-break program, recently losing a “massive” computer chip factory to New York. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a Site Selection’s Governor’s Cup award announcement at the Texas Governor's Mansion in Austin on March 1, 2022.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
What you need to know about education savings accounts, the voucher-like program championed by Gov. Greg Abbott
Texas is the latest state to pitch a version of the program, which lets parents who opt out of their local school districts use tax dollars to pay for private schooling. Full Story
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![Isabel Suarez works on homework prior to the start of the school day from her home in Pflugerville on Dec 9, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott promises to be “heavily involved” in push for education savings accounts
In an interview with the Tribune, the governor also backed criminalizing some health care treatments for transgender kids and shrugged off the idea that he’s in a conservative policy rivalry with Ron DeSantis. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott addresses the House floor on the opening day of the 88th Legislative Session at the state Capitol in Austin on Jan. 10, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Why three longtime Texas lawmakers are now eligible for an extra $140,000 a year
A few of Texas’ most veteran lawmakers may have seen their part-time legislative compensation skyrocket from $7,200 to nearly $150,000 annually, thanks to a law passed quietly at the end of the 2021 legislative session. Full Story
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![From left: State Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston, State Reps. Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston, and Tom Craddick, R-Midland.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune; Todd Wiseman/The Texas Tribune; Bob Daemmrich -
TribCast: Takeaways from Gov. Greg Abbott’s State of the State speech
In this week’s episode, Matthew speaks with Texas Tribune politics reporters James Barragán and Patrick Svitek about Abbott’s prime-time address. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott calls for legislative action on school choice, property taxes and fentanyl in State of the State
During his biennial State of the State speech, the Republican governor named seven emergency items that lawmakers can vote on immediately. Full Story
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![Texas Gov. Greg Abbott gives a speech in the Senate chamber of the Texas Capitol on the opening day of the 2023 Legislature.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Democrats to chair fewer Texas House committees amid GOP pushback
House Speaker Dade Phelan selected Democrats to chair eight of the 34 standing committees, down from the 13 he appointed at the start of the last legislative session. Full Story
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![Opening Day action of the 88th Texas Legislature at the Texas Capitol showing Texas Governor Greg Abbott addressing the House chamber.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Sports-betting advocates return to Capitol with narrower bill, new Republican author
The Texas Sports Betting Alliance threw its weight behind new legislation Monday to let voters decided whether to legalize online sports betting. Full Story
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![From left: Rep. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, and Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, discuss a property tax bill on the Senate floor on July 14, 2021.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune -
Texas veterans vow to protect the state’s hemp market as one state lawmaker hopes to crack down
The new delta-8 hemp products, which are widely available, can produce a high similar to marijuana’s. State Sen. Charles Perry said he and his peers never intended for such products to reach the market. Full Story
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![Dave Walden, wearing a Veterans of Foreign Wars cap demonstrates how the CBD vending machine works by purchasing a product, in Leander on Nov. 1, 2022.]()
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Texas Legislature gears up to tackle long-standing and fresh issues in public education. Here’s what you need to know.
Lawmakers are looking at ways to keep teachers in the profession, make schools safer, give parents money for private schooling and censor conversations about sex and gender. Full Story
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![Students get onto a bus following classes at Lufkin High School in Lufkin on Jan. 27, 2023. Public school officials in rural areas like Lufkin face budget challenges because of proposed school choice legislation, which provides taxpayer-funded alternatives to sending a child to a local public school.]()
Credit: Callaghan O'Hare for The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ private and rural schools again brace for a showdown on school choice
Rural school leaders in Texas have been able to stave off the legislative priority of some of the state’s most prominent Republicans. But private school officials hope this year will be different. Full Story
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![Jacey Eagle, a freshman, takes a test during advanced biology as students attend classes at Lufkin High School in Lufkin, Texas, U.S., on Friday, January 27, 2023. Public school officials in rural areas like Lufkin face budget challenges because of proposed school choice legislation, which provides taxpayer-funded alternatives to sending a child to a local public school.]()
Credit: Callaghan O'Hare for The Texas Tribune -
Here’s what you need to know about the fight over property tax cuts in the Texas Legislature
Republicans are wrestling over how much of the state’s nearly $33 billion budget surplus to spend on property taxes. Democrats have their own ideas about what to do with the cash. Full Story
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![An Aerial image of a suburban neighborhood in San Marcos on October 18, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Two years after Texas’ voting rights showdown gripped the nation, lawmakers again push dozens of elections bills
State policymakers have mapped out familiar territory early in the legislative session, with Democrats seeking to expand voting access and Republicans pledging to make elections more secure. Full Story
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![State Rep. Jessica González, D-Dallas, speaks at a press conference at Mt. Zion Baptist Church near the state Capitol in Austin after Democrats broke quorum in opposition to Senate Bill 7, a sweeping GOP voting bill. May 30, 2021.]()
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Help us identify what matters most to Texans during the 2023 legislative session
We would like to know more about what you’re seeing in your community to help guide our reporting during the 88th legislative session. Full Story
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![House Sergeant Robbie Breslin standing guard in the back hallway of the House chamber of the Texas Capitol on opening day of the 2023 Texas legislative session.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune -
In Texas’ first post-Roe legislative session, there’s a new political power dynamic on abortion
While Democrats and the far-right edge of the Republican Party remain focused on abortion, leaders in both chambers have not yet spent much time discussing the issue this session. Full Story
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![Anti-abortion advocates at the Rally for Life march at the Capitol in Austin on Jan. 27, 2018.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles for The Texas Tribune -
New Texas foster care report shows both improvements and continued deficiencies
In a fifth report tracking the state’s efforts to remedy its embattled foster care system, federal monitors documented persistent risks to Texas children ahead of next week’s court hearing. Full Story
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![The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services building in Austin.]()
Credit: Laura Skelding for The Texas Tribune