Grassroots Advisory Panel Creates Drama for Patrick
The panel of conservative activists that is advising Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is putting him in a tricky spot as he navigates leadership politics under the dome. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick during inaugural parade up Congress Ave. on January 20th, 2015]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Senate Announces Budget Negotiation Team
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has named the Senate lineup of budget negotiators who will meet with House counterparts and hash out a final version of the two-year state budget. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick after votes on first reading of SB #11 March 18th, 2015]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Legislative Tensions Peak at Leadership Breakfast
A weekly leadership breakfast went sour Wednesday as the state's top three officials complained to one another about legislative packages and the tensions between a House and Senate that have just weeks left to complete their work. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks during Texas Public Policy Foundation's grand opening of new building on April 21st, 2015]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Senate Committee Backs Hazlewood Program Changes
Amid concerns raised about the rising costs of a college tuition program for military veterans, a Texas Senate panel on Wednesday backed a plan that would tighten eligibility rules. Full Story
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Analysis: Legislative Dance Partners Stepping on Each Other's Toes
The Texas House and Senate are ignoring each other's work, slowing progress on bills like open carry and border security legislation. They're ruffling feathers, too. Full Story
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![Texas House Ways and Means Chairman Dennis Bonnen, R-Angleton, talks over amendments to border security legislation on March 1, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
House Backs Bill Pushing "Right to Try" Experimental Drugs
The Texas House on Tuesday tentatively passed House Bill 21, the “right to try” bill that would allow terminally ill patients to try experimental drugs that have passed at least the first of three FDA trial phases. Full Story
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Credit: Todd Wiseman -
Ethics Legislation Headed to Senate Floor
A heavily watered-down ethics reform bill will soon be taken up by the full Senate. Lawmakers on Monday rejected an amendment that would have required legislators to publicly disclose their tax returns each year. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Analysis: Abbott's Caution on Display in Tax Fight
Texans grew accustomed to the swagger and bombast of Rick Perry, a governor who didn’t shy from confrontation with the Legislature and upended the notion that his office was inherently weak. Newly elected Gov. Greg Abbott, ever cautious and lawyerly, is cutting a different path. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott at a Tax Day press conference on April 15, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Analysis: A Senate Trying to Regulate Its Own Spending Habits
The Texas Senate wants to limit growth in the state budget — by adding a fifth spending limit to state law. Full Story
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![State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, speaking at the Texas Public Policy Foundation legislative orientation session on Jan. 7, 2015.]()
Credit: Robin Daemmrich -
Senators Approve Partial Consolidation of Health Agencies
The Texas Senate on Wednesday tentatively approved a measure to partially consolidate the state’s massive health and human services system. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman / Jessica Schaefers -
Shark Fin Ban Back on the House Menu
A proposal to ban the trade of shark fins in Texas sailed through the Texas House on Wednesday, but it faces choppier waters ahead: the Texas Senate, where similar legislation foundered in 2013. Full Story
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![A bowl of shark fin soup with crab meat at Ho Ho Chinese BBQ in Austin.]()
Credit: Ryan McCrimmon -
Senate Votes to End Renewable Energy Programs
The Senate on Tuesday approved legislation that would close the book on two programs that helped fuel the state’s years-long surge in wind energy production. Full Story
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![A wind farm near Abeline, TX, April 5, 2011]()
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Texas Senate Approves $211 Billion Budget
Senators on Tuesday voted 30-1 to approve the state's two-year budget. It will now go to conference committee to be reconciled with the House version. Full Story
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![Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, lays out the property tax relief portion of Senate Bill 1 for final passage in the Senate on March 25, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Senate OKs Bill That Would Tighten Spending Cap
The Senate passed a bill Thursday that would tighten the state's constitutional spending cap and make it tougher for future legislatures to break it. Senate Bill 9, by Sen. Kelly Hancock, passed with a vote of 19-12. Full Story
![State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, speaking at the Texas Public Policy Foundation legislative orientation session on Jan. 7, 2015.]()
Credit: Robin Daemmrich -
Analysis: Something More Conservative Than Cutting Taxes?
As the House and Senate engage in what state Sen. Kevin Eltife calls "a bidding war" over cuts to sales and property taxes, the Tyler Republican is sticking to his guns: He thinks lawmakers should look at neglected projects before they cut taxes. Full Story
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![State Sen. Kevin Eltife, R-Tyler, speaks during an interview with Texas Tribune CEO and Editor-in-Chief Evan Smith on April 9, 2015.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Senate Bill Targeting Bullet Train Project Advances
On a 5-4 vote, the Senate Transportation Committee approved a bill Wednesday that would hobble a private company’s plan to build a $12 billion high-speed rail line from Dallas to Houston. Full Story
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![The Japanese Shinkansen is a high-speed trail used by JR Central in Japan. A private company is planning to build a rail line between Dallas and Houston using the same trains.]()
Credit: Norihiro Kataoka -
Senate Committee Moves $211.4 Billion Budget Forward
Senate Finance Chairwoman Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, said she expected the Senate version of the budget to be debated by the full Senate next week, “probably Tuesday.” Full Story
![Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, lays out the property tax relief portion of Senate Bill 1 for final passage in the Senate on March 25, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Analysis: Two Tax Plans, but Only One Comes With a Distinct Sales Pitch
The Texas Senate has touted its plans for cuts to property and business taxes publicly. The House has some alternatives, but it is way behind in the race to build public support. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announces the filing of SB1 with a series of property and business tax cuts for Texans on Feb. 24, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Contracting Overhaul Sails Through Senate
Amid an ongoing scandal over how the state awarded a multimillion-dollar contract to a private company, the Texas Senate on Tuesday unanimously approved a bill that would overhaul the state’s contracting processes. Full Story
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![Senate Finance Committee Chairwoman Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, confers with Sen. Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa, D-McAllen, during a March 11, 2015, committee hearing on state contracting issues.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Senate Passes Patrick's Tax Cut Package
The Texas Senate on Wednesday approved Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s multibillion-dollar tax relief package to cut property and business margins taxes, tossing the ball into the House's court. Full Story
![Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, lays out the property tax relief portion of Senate Bill 1 for final passage in the Senate on March 25, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich
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