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Budget

The latest budget news from The Texas Tribune.

  • Nip and Tuck

    by Ben Philpott, KUT News

    In January, the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Speaker asked state agencies to cut 5 percent from their 2010 budgets. On Tuesday the three state leaders released a list of cuts — and revealed a few exemptions to their earlier order. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports. Full Story 

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  • How's Tricks?

    by Ben Philpott, KUT News

    Staring down a shortfall of as much as $18 billion, lawmakers could employ a handful of accounting tricks to kick some payments down the road, saving several billion dollars. How exactly would that work? This dramatization demonstrates how similar tricks could be used to lower a restaurant bill. Full Story 

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    Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller

  • TribLive: David Dewhurst, Full Audio

    by Evan Smith

    Full, unedited audio from Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst's appearance at our TribLive breakfast on Wednesday morning. Dewhurst discusses the coming budget crisis, the Arizona immigration law and other current issues in Texas politics. Full Story 

  • A Conversation with David Dewhurst

    by Evan Smith

    For the ninth event in our TribLive series, I interviewed the lieutenant governor about the budget shortfall, state-federal tensions, immigration, why he doesn't release his taxes, and his future plans. We've provided the conversation with the lite guv in three forms: full video, full audio and a transcript. Full Story 

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    Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller

  • The Weekly TribCast: Episode 28

    by Elise Hu

    In this week's TribCast, Ross, Elise, Ben and Emily discuss the state's multi-billion-dollar budget woes, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst's turn in the hot seat at TribLive, and the intersection of new media and old-school lawmaking. Full Story 

  • In Too Deep

    by Ben Philpott, KUT News

    Lawmakers fishing for ideas on how to deal with a coming budget shortfall are going to need a bigger rod and reel: The newest projections show itl could be as much as $18 billion. Full Story 

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  • Benefits and Drawbacks

    by Ross Ramsey

    The insurance plan for state employees will have a $140.4 million shortfall next year — and that's the least of its problems. The projected shortfall for the two years after that is $880 million, and it will take another $476 million to replenish the legally required contingency fund. The Employee Retirement System and state leaders are surprisingly mellow about the red ink, saying growth in the cost of health benefits has actually stabilized at around 9 percent. But steady and large increases in costs threaten to erode the program, leaving policymakers to consider cuts in benefits, to negotiate lower prices or to find vast amounts of new money. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Employee Retirement System of Texas

  • TribBlog: An Off-Track Bet

    by Ross Ramsey

    The Speaker doesn't have anyone studying gambling in advance of the next legislative session, and a leading Democrat says legislators ought to get together on their own to consider the issue. Full Story 

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  • The Shell Game

    by Ross Ramsey

    If history is any guide, the Legislature will turn to accounting illusions to mask large portions of a budget shortfall of at least $11 billion. Trouble is, such trickery is a bet on the economy roaring back to life — and that's no sure thing. Full Story 

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    Credit: Jacob Villanueva

  • Blame It On Health Care

    by Elise Hu

    Republican lawmakers in Texas may despise the federal health care overhaul, but it's politically opportunitistic: They get to blame the staggering budget shortfall to come on the anticipated state share of the cost of reform. Full Story 

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  • A Conversation with Deirdre Delisi

    by Evan Smith

    For the seventh event in our TribLive series, I interviewed the chair of the Texas Transportation Commission on the size of the road funding hole, the toll-versus-tax debate and whether the governor she once served as chief of staff is really not running for president. Full Story 

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  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    by Ross Ramsey

    E. Smith interviews Gov. Rick Perry for the Trib and Newsweek, Philpott dissects the state's budget mess in a weeklong series, Hamilton looks at whether Bill White is or was a trial lawyer, M. Smith finds experts all over the state anxiously watching a court case over who owns the water under our feet, Aguilar reports on the battle between Fort Stockton and Clayton Williams Jr. over water in West Texas, Ramshaw finds a population too disabled to get on by itself but not disabled enough to get state help and Miller spends a day with a young man and his mother coping with that situation, Ramsey peeks in on software that lets the government know whether its e-mail messages are getting read and who's reading what, a highway commissioner reveals just how big a hole Texas has in its road budget, Grissom does the math on the state's border cameras and learns they cost Texans about $153,800 per arrest, and E. Smith interviews Karen Hughes on the difference between corporate and political P.R. — and whether there's such a thing as "Obama Derangement Syndrome." The best of our best from April 19 to April 23, 2010. Full Story 

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    Credit: Jacqueline Mermea

  • The Ditch: The Axman Cometh

    by Ben Philpott, KUT News

    The last time there was such a huge shortfall was in 2003, and lawmakers back then did a little bit of everything to patch up the hole — but mainly they slashed state spending. In the final part of his series on our budgetary woes, Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at what cuts could be in store this time. Full Story 

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  • The Ditch: A Big Bet

    by Ben Philpott, KUT News

    Legislative leaders are not expected to push new taxes as a remedy to the coming shortfall, and yet social service advocates say the safety net can't afford any more cuts. So where might new money come from? In part four of his series on the state budget, Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at one option that could succeed or fail with a roll of the dice. Full Story 

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  • The Weekly TribCast: Episode 25

    by Elise Hu

    In this week's TribCast, Evan, Ross, Elise and Reeve take on the latest topics in the Texas governor's race, big budget problems ahead and everyone's favorite political punching bag, the federal government. Full Story 

  • The Road Funding Hole

    by Elise Hu

    It's no secret the Texas Department of Transportation is broke. Texas Transportation Commission Chair Deirdre Delisi tells the Tribune's CEO/Editor-in-Chief Evan Smith just how broke the agency is. Full Story 

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    Credit: Bob Daemmerich