Confused about the budget? Trust us — you’re not alone. Later this week, the House votes on several key pieces of legislation. We’ve created a flow chart to help keep track of the process.
82nd Legislative Session
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Lawmakers Want Fewer Tickets for Students
Last year, Texas police issued 300,000 students for offenses like chewing gum, truancy and cursing. The Senate Criminal Justice Committee today discussed a bill that would mean far fewer citations for youngsters in schools.
Posted in
State Government
Supporters: Gaming Would Generate Needed Revenue
Allowing gambling in Texas could boost the economy, create thousands of jobs and help lawmakers close the state’s looming budget gap, gambling advocates told lawmakers in a House committee meeting today.
Posted in
State Government
Jack Pratt: The TT Interview (audio)
An interview with Jack Pratt of the Texas Gaming Association.
Posted in
State Government
Jack Pratt: The TT Interview
Jack Pratt, chairman of the Texas Gaming Association, has tried for years to convince Texas lawmakers to let voters decide whether to allow casinos in the state. He’s back again, proposing a combination of casinos, “racinos” (racetracks with slot machines), and Indian casinos that he and his economists say would bring more than $1.2 billion into the state treasury every year. We asked Pratt about the new proposal, the political environment, and the odds.
Posted in
Economy
Jack Pratt: The TT Interview
The head of the Texas Gaming Association, who’s trying to convince Texas lawmakers to legalize casinos, on what’s different this year, what he says to people who just don’t like gambing, and how his likes his chances.
Posted in
Health care
Senate Committee Endorses Rural Hospital Hiring Doctors
Rural hospitals are one step closer to being able to directly hire doctors — something they say is necessary to attract new doctors to rural areas, but is not currently allowed by Texas law.
Posted in
Economy
An Unexpectedly Important Bloc on Budget: Freshmen
Behold the mighty freshman Republicans of the Texas House of Representatives. They’re supposed to be quiet, to bow to their tenured colleagues, to stay out of the way. But here they are, quietly and deferentially exercising some clout on the only piece of legislation that absolutely has to pass: the state budget.
Posted in
Guides
Texplainer: What Is a “Point of Order”?
Calling a point of order is a parliamentary delay tactic, but it can be a deadly one.
Posted in
Economy
House, Senate Budget Battle Looming
This week, we saw signs Senate budget writers may be willing to spend more than their counterparts in the House. Meanwhile, a new analysis of the House budget’s possible effects on Texas jobs raised eyebrows.
