The Senate Transportation Committee on Wednesday voted 8-1 in favor of a proposal to dedicate some of the sales tax collected on automobile sales to improving roads — but not before several lawmakers expressed reservations.
Robert Nichols
Posted in
Energy
The Brief: Feb. 25, 2015
Texans in this month’s University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll made clear that the property tax is their least favorite. The only other tax to be disliked by voters more than it is liked is the business margins tax.
Posted in
Energy
The Brief: Feb. 5, 2015
House Speaker Joe Straus leaned toward the familiar in filling open spots at the top of the chamber’s top-tier committees.
Posted in
Transportation
Patrick, Nichols: Put Car Sales Tax Toward Roads
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Senate Transportation Chairman Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, unveiled a plan Wednesday to boost transportation funding by dedicating some of the sales tax already collected on car sales to road work.
Posted in
Energy
The Brief: Feb. 4, 2015
The ability of Austin tech firm 21CT to secure a $20 million Medicaid fraud software contract through a no-bid program run by the state’s Department of Information Resources drew intense scrutiny from Senate budget writers on Tuesday.
Posted in
Energy
The Brief: Jan. 16, 2015
Gov. Rick Perry’s formal farewell Thursday afternoon to the state Legislature dominated headlines with writers trying to discern from his speech what the future holds for him.
Posted in
Politics
TribLive: A Conversation With Nichols and Clardy
Full video of my 10/23 TribLive conversation with state Rep. Travis Clardy, R-Nacogdoches, and state Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, on the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University.
Posted in
Health care
The Brief: Oct. 22, 2014
Criticism by state leaders of the Obama administration for failures in the response to the Ebola virus omits mention of the tools at the state’s disposal that were not used.
Posted in
Economy
Liveblog: Transportation at The Texas Tribune Festival
We’re liveblogging the sessions from the 2014 Texas Tribune Festival’s Transportation track. The sessions include panels on road funding, high-speed rail, future transportation planning and the new urban mobility.
Posted in
Transportation
Texas Road Funding Troubles Nab Spotlight
Funding for transportation could draw an unusual amount of attention in coming months as federal highway dollars threaten to dry up and Texans prepare to vote in November on a measure to increase road funds.