Voters in Central Texas, Dallas and Plano will get to vote for the third month in a row in May, in special elections for the Texas House and Senate. Three officeholders — Sen. Kip Averitt, R-Waco, and Reps. Terri Hodge, D-Dallas, and Brian McCall, R-Plano — resigned before their terms were up. Today was the deadline for candidate filing.
Texas Senate
Posted in
Criminal Justice
The Senate’s Biggest Spenders
The 31-member body spent nearly $16 million last fiscal year on travel, staff and office expenses, according to records from the office of the Secretary of the Senate. Overall spending by individual senators ranged from $206,000, by Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, to $637,000, by Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston.
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Health care
HHSC Chief Testifies on Health Care Costs
Is the health reform price tag in Texas $1.4 billion… or more like $24 billion? State Sen. Robert Duncan, R-Lubbock, asks HHSC Commissioner Tom Suehs to explain why his agency’s estimate is so much higher than a federal estimate.
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State Government
2010: Flo Says No
State Sen. Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, is no longer a candidate for U.S. Senate and says she’ll refund about $1 million to her contributors.
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State Government
2010: Birdwell’s Eligibility in Question
Residency requirements tripped up Brian Birdwell’s previous effort to enter the Texas Legislature, and it looks like they will again.
Posted in
Demographics
A Border Runs Through It
At the heart of America’s symbiotic relationship with Mexico is a long-standing and sometimes tense agreement over an issue more far-reaching than homeland security and immigration: water.
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State Government
2010: Officially, Sibley’s In
Former Sen. David Sibley, R-Waco, wants his old job back. The senator-turned-lobbyist has been hinting for a couple of weeks and now says he’ll be a candidate for his former seat now that Kip Averitt is resigning.
Posted in
Demographics
Let the Counting Begin
Census Bureau questionnaires arrive at 8.4 million Texas homes this week. “Fill that sucker out,” the bureau’s regional director says, “so we don’t have to come and knock on your door.”
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State Government
2010: Averitt Resigns
Sen. Kip Averitt, R-Waco, resigned from office Monday, a week after winning the GOP primary for reelection to a seat he no longer wants to hold.
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State Government
2010: Sibley, Standing By
Former state Sen. David Sibley, R-Waco, is talking to people about getting back into the Legislature when Sen. Kip Averitt, R-Waco, gets out. But he’s not out yet, and there are two exits.
