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Texas Legislature

The latest Texas Legislature news from The Texas Tribune.

  • TribBlog: 13 Months of Sunset

    By Ross Ramsey

    For a certain kind of animal — i.e., the Policy Wonk — this is a gift: Sunset reports on insurance and utility regulators and on the capital city's transportation authority hit the internet this morning. Full Story 

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    Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller

  • The Ditch: The Axman Cometh

    By Ben Philpott, KUT News

    The last time there was such a huge shortfall was in 2003, and lawmakers back then did a little bit of everything to patch up the hole — but mainly they slashed state spending. In the final part of his series on our budgetary woes, Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at what cuts could be in store this time. Full Story 

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  • The Ditch: How We Got Into It

    By Ben Philpott, KUT News

    Even though we fared better than other states, lawmakers face a budget shortfall of $10 billion or more when they return to Austin in 2011. Ben Philpott — who covers politics and public policy for KUT News and the Tribune — looks at the shortfall and proposed solutions. Full Story 

  • Rick Perry: The TT Interview

    By Evan Smith

    A Newsweek/Texas Tribune exclusive: The governor talks about the Tea Party, his beef with the federal government, health care reform, the state budget, redistricting, and whether he plans to run for the White House himself. Full Story 

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    Credit: Bob Daemmrich

  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Ross Ramsey

    Grissom on the fall of Norma Chávez; M. Smith and Ramsey on the runoffs, the results, and the aftermath; Hu on the Tea Party's birthday party; Thevenot and Stiles on the path between schools and prisons; Ramshaw on prosecutors' reaction to helping hands from Austin; Hamilton on self-appointed lawyers; Galbraith on property rights and power lines; Aguilar and Grissom sit down with the mayor of Juárez to talk about his crime-ridden city; Kraft on telling the stories of Texans and other Americans who died in Vietnam; Ramsey on slots and horses and casinos; and Hamilton goes on a field trip with Jim Hightower to hear the history of populism. The best of our best from April 5 to 9, 2010. Full Story 

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  • TribBlog: New GOP Group "a Little Undemocratic"?

    By Evan Smith

    Karen Hughes, a communications advisor to Speaker Joe Straus, told our TribLive audience this morning that it was "a little undemocratic" of the newly formed Independent Conservative Republicans of Texas not to invite every Republican in the House and Senate to join. Full Story 

    April 15, 2010. Karen Hughes speaks in Austin, TX.
    Credit: Bob Daemmerich

  • Night of the Insurgents

    By Ross Ramsey and Morgan Smith

    Voters routed state Reps. Delwin Jones and Norma Chavez on Tuesday, turned back former Rep. Rick Green's bid for a spot on the Texas Supreme Court and handed victories to at least three candidates who appeared to benefit from the Tea Party insurgency in Texas. Full Story 

  • 2010: Insurgents Take Lubbock

    By Ross Ramsey

    Charles Perry is on his way to the Texas House, having defeated Rep. Delwin Jones, R-Lubbock, and fellow Republican John Frullo won the GOP nomination for an open seat in his predominantly Republican district. Perry has no opposition in November. Frullo will face Democrat Carol Morgan. Full Story 

    Charles Perry
    Credit: Ross Ramsey

  • Runoff Day: A Spectator's Guide

    By Ross Ramsey

    Today’s elections in 18 Texas primary races, all but two involving Republicans, probably won't change the overall temperature of the statehouse or our delegation to Congress. The partisan makeup of those places isn't at stake until November. But for three House incumbents and challengers in two other races — for the State Board of Education and the Texas Supreme Court — how the vote turns out is a big deal. Full Story 

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    Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller

  • What are the Odds?

    By Ross Ramsey

    Start with a shortfall and a Legislature that doesn't want to raise taxes, then dangle budget-balancing money from "volunteers" — a.k.a., gamblers. With that strategy, promoters think they've got their best shot in years to legalize slot machines while adding $1 billion a year to state revenues. Full Story 

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  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Evan Smith

    Grissom on her two hours in Juárez, Grissom, Ramshaw and Ramsey on four of the runoffs on Tuesday's ballot, Ramshaw on the religious experience that is voting for Dallas County's DA and an energy regulator's play for a job at the entity he regulates, Mulvaney on the Texas Senate's biggest spenders, Aguilar on whether — as U.S. officials claim — 90 percent of guns used in Mexican crimes really flow south from Texas, M. Smith on the continuing Texas Forensic Science Commission follies, Stiles on how inmates spend their money behind bars and how counties are responding at Census time, Hamilton on the creative accounting and semantic trickery that allows lawmakers to raise revenue without hiking taxes when there's a budget shortfall, and Hu on Austin's first-in-the-nation car-sharing program. The best of our best from April 5 to 9, 2010. Full Story 

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  • Fee for All!

    By Reeve Hamilton

    Every candidate vying for a legislative seat knows what lies ahead in 2011: a budget shortfall of at least $11 billion, probably higher, and state agency cuts to save as much of that amount as possible. But new revenue is a possibility as well, even if lawmakers are expert at the old sleight of hand, employing creative accounting and semantic trickery to avoid stepping on that political third rail, the tax hike. Full Story 

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  • 2010: What's on the Special?

    By Ross Ramsey

    Voters in Central Texas, Dallas and Plano will get to vote for the third month in a row in May, in special elections for the Texas House and Senate. Three officeholders — Sen. Kip Averitt, R-Waco, and Reps. Terri Hodge, D-Dallas, and Brian McCall, R-Plano — resigned before their terms were up. Today was the deadline for candidate filing. Full Story 

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  • The Senate's Biggest Spenders

    By Erin Mulvaney

    The 31-member body spent nearly $16 million last fiscal year on travel, staff and office expenses, according to records from the office of the Secretary of the Senate. Overall spending by individual senators ranged from $206,000, by Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, to $637,000, by Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Matt Stiles

  • The Runoffs: HD-83

    By Ross Ramsey

    Delwin Jones, who was first elected to the Texas House in 1964 after two unsuccessful attempts, says he has handed out 765,000 promotional emery boards since his start in politics. His tenure and those files weren't enough to win a bruising primary outright last month, though, and the veteran legislator now finds himself in a runoff against Tea Party organizer Charles Perry, who's capitalizing on voter anger at incumbents. Full Story 

    Rep. Delwin Jones (standing) talks to voters in a Lubbock diner.
    Credit: Ross Ramsey