When the Texas Legislature met in 1971, only two senators and 10 representatives were Republicans. Now it's 20-11 in the Senate and (after the elections are settled, with our assumption about party shifts) 98-52 in the House. Here's how it looked in between the 62nd and 84th regular sessions.
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Just like that, Joe Straus is the experienced one at the top of the state leadership, but conservatives in the Senate feel empowered to set the power dynamic between the two chambers to their liking.
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Also, House officials say the supplemental bill for Medicaid is shrinking, and the state archives will receive Gov. Rick Perry's records.
Full StoryFor this week’s nonscientific survey of insiders in politics and government, we turned our attention to the startup of the 84th Legislature, its committees and its leadership.
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Key meetings and events for the coming week.
Full StoryThe 84th Legislature started Tuesday with Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, easily winning re-election to a fourth term. A challenger from the conservative wing of the GOP, Scott Turner, made news by pushing for a record vote for speaker, the first time that's happened in 40 years. The final tally was 128-19 in favor of Straus.
Amid growing furor over a Medicaid fraud detection contract awarded under problematic circumstances, a state senator, Houston Democrat John Whitmire, asked via letter for Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner Kyle Janek to resign. Gov.-elect Greg Abbott, meanwhile, returned a $10,000 contribution from the CEO of 21CT, the company that had been awarded the contract.
The House on Thursday released a $202.4 billion base budget for the upcoming two-year budget cycle. It would raise spending by 0.4 percent and leave $13 billion unspent. The base budget is a starting point for negotiations.
A Brownsville federal judge heard arguments Thursday on a request to halt a White House immigration policy that could affect hundreds of thousands of Texans living in the country illegally.
Newly installed Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller declared amnesty for parents to bring cupcakes and other baked goods to their children's schools. That prompted a rebuke from former Agriculture Commissioner Susan Combs, who said an exemption for bringing sweet treats to birthday parties at school has existed for 10 years.
Greg Neeley of Longview has been appointed by Gov. Rick Perry as justice of the 12th Court of Appeals for a term to expire at the 2016 general election.
Jeannie Ash has hired on as assistant district director for state Rep. Dan Flynn, R-Canton. She will be based in the Greenville district office. She previously served as district director for state Sen. Bob Deuell, R-Greenville, for nine years.
Royce Poinsett has hired on with the government affairs practice group of Gardere Wynne Sewell. He comes to the firm from Baker Botts LLP. He also counts previous stints as an adviser to Perry and House Speaker Tom Craddick.
Marcus Deitz has been hired by McGuireWoods as a partner in Houston. Most recently, he was a partner at Norton Rose Fulbright, where he focused on public finance transactions.
Eddie Aldrete of IBC Bank and Louis Malfaro of the Texas AFT have been selected to serve as officers for the National Immigration Forum. Aldrete will serve as vice chairman, and Malfaro will serve as secretary. Both have been on the forum board since 2013.
Deaths: Linda Bridges, 65, who was president of the Texas chapter of the American Federation of Teachers, a position she had served in since 2005.
Disclosure: IBC Bank is a corporate sponsor of The Texas Tribune. Texas AFT was a corporate sponsor in 2011-13 of The Texas Tribune. Eddie Aldrete was a donor in 2009-11 and 2013 to The Texas Tribune. A complete list of Texas Tribune donors and sponsors can be viewed here.
