Gov. Rick Perry delivered his sixth State of the State speech today, addressing a joint session of the Texas House and Senate, and selling the state’s fiscal troubles as an opportunity to make government more efficient.
82nd Legislative Session
Posted in
Economy
Senators Grill Education Agency Over Cuts
At the Texas Education Agency’s first appearance before the Senate since the release of a budget that reduces school funding by $9.3 billion, senators called for a “full picture” of the state’s spending on public education.
Posted in
State Government
Hartnett Expected to Recommend HD-48 Winner Friday
After three days of testimony and today’s closing arguments, state Rep. Will Hartnett, R-Dallas, is expected to recommend a winner of the disputed HD-48 seat on Friday.
Posted in
Public Education
Rob Eissler of the Size of Public Ed Cuts
The chairman of the House Public Education Committee on whether the cuts to public ed will be as bad as everyone says they’ll be.
Posted in
Public Education
A Conversation with Rob Eissler
For our latest TribLive conversation, I sat down with the chairman of the House Public Education Committee to talk about the coming cuts to public ed: how big they’re likely to be, the prospect of tens of thousands of teacher and non-instructional-staff layoffs and whether new revenue sources are on the table.
Posted in
Public Education
Rob Eissler on Public Ed Layoffs
The chairman of the House Public Education Committee on how many public school teachers, administrators and non-instructional staff members are at risk of being laid off as a result of the budget shortfall.
Posted in
Public Education
Rob Eissler on the Rainy Day Fund
The chairman of the House Public Education Committee on whether the Rainy Day Fund should be used, in part or in whole, to reduce the size of the budget shortfall.
Posted in
Public Education
A Trio of Bills on Student Ticketing
State Rep. Armando Walle, D-Houston, has filed three bills aimed at regulating the practice of ticketing students for misbehavior in public schools.
Posted in
Health care
Hammond: No Time to Be Penny-Wise, Pound-Foolish
We must continue to fight to ensure that we implement cost-saving reforms that reflect Texas’ commitment to prosperity and to economic growth. But our current budget shortfall isn’t a time to be penny-wise and pound-foolish.
Posted in
Politics
What They’d Do About the Budget Shortfall
We asked three big thinkers in the Capitol community — Talmadge Heflin, Eva DeLuna Castro and Bill Hammond — to tell us what they’d do if they had the power to take on the budget shortfall themselves.
