The Texas Senate on Wednesday approved Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s multibillion-dollar tax relief package to cut property and business margins taxes, tossing the ball into the House’s court.
Charles Schwertner
Posted inState Government
The Brief: March 25, 2015
GOP budget writers had help closing the books on the Medicaid program for the current fiscal year with help from an unlikely source — the Affordable Care Act.
Posted in
Health care
GOP Leaders Say They Won’t Expand Medicaid
Leading Texas Republicans on Monday asked the Obama administration for greater flexibility to administer Medicaid — a move that has gotten little traction in the past — while reiterating that they would not participate in an expansion of the program under the Affordable Care Act.
Posted in
Health care
The Brief: March 2, 2015
The Tribune’s Jay Root and Neena Satija filed a story over the weekend on the problem of deferred maintenance at state government buildings in multiple agencies. It makes for some grim reading.
Posted in
Health care
Revamped Cancer Agency Faces New Questions
A reinvented Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas says its darkest hour has passed, but the agency faces new conservative lawmakers unconvinced more money should be devoted to the agency.
Posted in
Politics
Senate Leaders Propose $4.6 Billion in Tax Breaks
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has announced a slate of bills he says will provide lasting tax relief to businesses and homeowners in Texas — to the tune of $4.6 billion. But there are signs he could face some opposition within his own party.
Posted in
Energy
The Brief: Feb. 19, 2015
Senate budget writers on Wednesday lit into Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner Kyle Janek, a former senator himself, in a hearing that concluded with another call for him to resign.
Posted in
State Government
Roundup: Guns, Tolls and Emergency Preparedness
In the Roundup: Lawmakers listen to hours of testimony on two pieces of gun legislation, toll bill snafus affect thousands of Texans, and a Senate bill would better prepare the state to handle infectious disease emergencies.
Posted in
Health care
The Brief: Feb. 12, 2015
The debate over the expansion of rights to carry guns onto university campuses and openly with a permit moves from rallies outside the Capitol to legislative hearings inside the building today.
Posted in
Health care
Senator Talks of “Lost Confidence” in Health Agency Watchdog
At the Senate Health and Human Services Committee’s first meeting of the legislative session, Chairman Charles Schwertner shared some tough criticism of the Health and Human Services Commission’s Office of Inspector General.
