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.
TribBlog: 13 Months of Sunset
Posted inState Government
The Brief: April 23, 2010
If good things come to those who wait, the Texas Forensic Science Commission must be expecting a spectacular meeting today.
Posted inState Government
The Ditch: The Axman Cometh
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.
Posted inState Government
Who You Callin’ a Trial Lawyer?
In the early days of the general election campaign for governor, the Perry team has been shouting it from the rooftops at the start of every press release, no matter the issue at hand: “Liberal trial lawyer Bill White …” The Democratic nominee rejects that label, which has morphed into an epithet during years of poisonous tussles over tort reform. So is he one or isn’t he? More importantly, does it matter?
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Spies Like Us
Sign up for state agency e-mail alerts from, say, the Comptroller or TCEQ and they’ll let you know when meetings are being held and when proposed rules are ready for review. But click a link in those e-mails and they have the ability to see who looked at which rule and which web page and who didn’t look at all.
Posted in
T-Squared
T-Squared: Why We Publish Government Employee Salaries
Because they’re already public. Because we’re about transparency, open government, and greater access to information. Because you have a right to know how your tax dollars are being spent. Etc.
Posted in
Energy
TribBlog: Claytie Responds [Updated]
An attorney for Clayton Williams Jr.’s Fort Stockton Holdings details how the company plans to mine even more water out of the Rio Grande watershed than the billions of gallons it already takes out.
Posted inState Government
The Brief: April 22, 2010
Happy Earth Day! How about celebrating at the first ever meeting of the House Select Committee on Federal Legislation?
Posted in
Criminal Justice
A Watershed Case
On the surface, it’s about an oat-and-peanut farm and two South Texas men who wanted enough water to operate it. But underneath lies a century-old tug-of-war over who really owns the water beneath the land.
