There aren’t any maps yet, but now there are two Texas redistricting lawsuits. The Mexican American Legislative Caucus has filed suit to block the use of what it calls flawed census data in drawing new political maps for legislative, congressional and State Board of Education districts.
Austin
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State Government
Update: The Texas Budget Cycle
Confused about the state’s budget process? Trust us — you’re not alone. Check our flow chart to help understand where we are in the process (highlighted in yellow) and what steps are next (highlighted in gray).
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Criminal Justice
Supreme Court Stays First Pentobarbital Execution
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a 30-day stay for death row inmate Cleve Foster, who was scheduled tonight to become the first Texas inmate executed using the state’s new three-drug lethal injection cocktail.
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Guides
Texplainer: Are All Committee Meetings Televised?
Generally, committee meetings are open to the public and recorded — one way or another.
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State Government
Video: House Gives “Pork Chopper” Bill Early OK
The aptly nicknamed “pork chopper” bill — which authorizes hunters to shoot feral hogs and coyotes from helicopters — passed a preliminary vote in the Texas House today, 137-9.
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Criminal Justice
Appeals Court Denies Request to Delay Execution
The 3rd Court of Appeals today denied two death row inmates’ request to stop the state from using a new lethal injection drug.
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Criminal Justice
ACLU: Texas Law Protects Lizards More Than Humans
Texas laws more strictly regulate euthanasia of animals than the lethal injection of death row inmates, according to a report released Sunday by the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Texas and the Center for International Human Rights at Northwestern University Law School.
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Economy
House Budget Shrinks Spending, Slashes Services
The Texas House started with a $164.5 billion budget and ended with the same total. But lawmakers spent the better part of a weekend making changes inside the budget for 2012-13 before giving it their approval, 98 to 49.
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State Government
VIDEO: Lawmakers Debate “Western Civilization”
In an ugly debate late Friday night, Rep. Wayne Christian proposed requiring that colleges and universities getting state funds should make sure that at least 10 percent of their courses “provide instruction in Western Civilization.”
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Criminal Justice
Judge Denies Death Penalty Drug Challenge
Travis County District Court Judge Stephen Yelenosky this afternoon denied the request of two death row inmates to temporarily halt executions with Texas’ new lethal injection drug. Lawyers for Cleve Foster and Humberto Leal said they would immediately appeal the judge’s decision.
