The latest Griffin Perry news from The Texas Tribune.
The Texas Senate isn’t allowed to raise money. It’s right there in the state’s Constitution, which says all revenue bills must originate in the House. But there it goes, looking for “non-tax revenues” to put enough meat on the skimpy proposed budget to get senators to vote for it. Full Story
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The University of Texas System leadership has officially reassigned controversial new hire, Rick O'Donnell, to a new position — one that will only exist for a matter of months. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry was fined $1,500 by the Texas Ethics Commission for failing to report rental income from a house in College Station, and for filing incomplete information regarding debts on the same property, in personal financial statements required by state law. Full Story
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The state’s 1,030 school districts have — in total — $10.2 billion in reserves and another $2.1 billion in unspent federal stimulus money. Can they use that money to avoid draconian cutbacks? It's not that simple. Full Story
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The House Select Committee on Federal Economic Stabilization Funding has expired, and its outspoken leader failed to get re-elected. So, amid all the state's fiscal concerns, who is keeping an eye on the stimulus? Full Story
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The State Sovereignty Committee, which meets today to discuss bills related to federal health care reform, was likely formed for efficiency’s sake, and to create a kind of heat sink for contentious debate. Full Story
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This week on the TribCast, Ross, Reeve, Ben and special guest Jim Henson discuss the Rainy Day Fund, Hispanic Republicans, Tommy Lee Jones and a good deal more. Full Story
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The recent hiring of Rick O’Donnell as a special adviser to the board of regents at the University of Texas System has some observers — worried about the implications for the University of Texas at Austin — playing connect the dots. Full Story
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Prominent University of Texas alumnus Gordon Appleman says recent changes at the UT System Board of Regents "seemed important enough to where I ought to do something rather than sit by and watch it happen." Full Story
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The House Calendars Committee voted this evening to place the voter ID bill, SB 14, on the schedule for Monday. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry, who has 52,000 fans on Facebook, said Tuesday that his 2010 re-election campaign's use of social media could make history. Full Story
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As they talk of cutting pension contributions and raising premiums for state employee health care and mandating layoffs and furloughs at state agencies, what are lawmakers doing to their own compensation and benefits? Full Story
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Atter making their presence known during election season, the various Tea Party groups in Texas continue to steer the political agenda. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports. Full Story
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At today's TribLive conversation, Speaker Joe Straus stopped short of supporting the tapping of the Rainy Day Fund to cover the current biennium's $4.3 billion deficit, but he left the door open. Full Story
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High school and college students from across Texas came to the Capitol today to talk sex ed with lawmakers. Full Story
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We've updated our elected officials directory this week to include the names and e-mail addresses of legislative staffers in the 82nd session now that the House Research Organization has released a complete list. Full Story
In the House, what starts with substance — abortion sonogram legislation, in this case — often ends with procedure. Full Story
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No time to follow every twist and turn of the Texas Legislature? We've made it easier for you with our weekly recaps of the action under the dome. Full Story
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Texas lawmakers, out to protect their interests this session, appear to be ratcheting up their rhetoric. Politics as usual or a serious lapse in civil discourse? Full Story
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Urban luxuries — say, running water — aren’t guaranteed everywhere in Texas. The state Department of Rural Affairs helps rural Texans get basic amenities, but the agency is on Gov. Rick Perry's budget chopping block. Full Story
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