A shift in the public debate over the relationship between oil and gas production and earthquakes happened Tuesday with a new study in Texas and a turnabout by the Oklahoma government on the issue.
Rodney Ellis
Posted in
State Government
Ethics Legislation Headed to Senate Floor
A heavily watered-down ethics reform bill will soon be taken up by the full Senate. Lawmakers on Monday rejected an amendment that would have required legislators to publicly disclose their tax returns each year.
Posted in
Public Education
Senate Gives Initial OK to School Scholarship Plan
Scholarships funded by state business tax credits would help some low-income parents send their children to private schools under a measure tentatively approved by the Texas Senate Monday.
Posted in
Economy
Senate OKs Bill That Would Tighten Spending Cap
The Senate passed a bill Thursday that would tighten the state’s constitutional spending cap and make it tougher for future legislatures to break it. Senate Bill 9, by Sen. Kelly Hancock, passed with a vote of 19-12.
Posted in
Transportation
Nichols’ Car Sales Tax Plan Moves to Senate Floor
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.
Posted in
Politics
Video: Houston & the Lege: Previewing the 84th Session
Full video of our 2/12 lunchtime discussion in Houston on the major policy debates of the 84th Legislature — and what they mean for the state’s largest city and surrounding communities.
Posted in
Energy
The Brief: Oct. 2, 2014
On the day after the country’s first case of an Ebola infection appeared in Dallas, the focus has turned to the hospital where the patient was initially sent home with antibiotics before being admitted a second time for treatment.
Posted in
Higher Education
For Community Colleges, a Chance to Grant More Four-Year Degrees
Ahead of the 2015 legislative session, momentum seems to be building for more chances to earn four-year degrees at community colleges in Texas.
Posted in
Higher Education
Cigarroa, Board to Confer About Powers’ Future
University of Texas System Chancellor Francisco Cigarroa will confer with the system’s board of regents on Thursday about how to handle University of Texas at Austin President Bill Powers’ refusal to resign this year.
Posted in
Politics
The Brief: Jan. 8, 2014
The Tribune’s Morgan Smith has a must-read piece on what’s next for the education reform group funded by tort reform champions that left a big imprint on policy debates during last year’s legislative session.