The latest economy news from The Texas Tribune.
Nearly half of all Texans would repeal the constitutional promise of citizenship for anyone born on U.S. soil, and nearly two-thirds would favor Arizona-style laws allowing the police to ask about the immigration status of anyone they stop for any reason, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll. Full Story
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Texas lawmakers will have their hands full filling a budget hole in 2011 of $18 billion or more, but the projected shortfall is great political fodder for candidates of both parties in 2010. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry went on the air today with his first TV spot of the general election. Full Story
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Galbraith's three-parter on the battle over wind power transmission lines, Grissom on a convicted killer who got probation, Aguilar on how the U.S. census counts inmates in the Texas prison system, Stiles launches a new interactive tool tracking the candidates for governor, Hamilton on the Texas A&M University System's latest accountability measure for faculty, Hu's interview with Democratic megadonor Steve "Back to Basics" Mostyn, Philpott on how the Texas economy compares to that of other states and Ramsey on the start of the 2010 election sprint: The best of our best from Sept. 6 to 10, 2010. Full Story
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Texas.gov, the state's clearinghouse for services like driver's license renewals and vehicle registrations, has launched a new page featuring numerous raw government data sets — including a list of foreign companies doing business here. Full Story
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Rick Perry asserts the Texas economy is one of the strongest in the nation. Bill White eagerly points out what he says are the problems the governor conveniently overlooks. Who's right? Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune looks at how we stack up compared to other states — and our own history. Full Story
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I hit the campaign trail with Rick Perry, E. Smith starts off the fall TribLive series by interviewing Attorney General Greg Abbott, Stiles on the most congested roads in Texas, Ramshaw's interview with former Dallas Mayor Laura Miller, Grissom on the perils of talking too much if you're the head of the state's jail standards board, M. Smith on Congressman Chet Edwards' fight for political survival in a Republican year, Philpott on counties worried the state's budget woes will trickle down, Hamilton on whether Texas should be in the movie-vetting business, Aguilar on a Mexican journalist seeking asylum from his country's drug violence, Galbraith on green energy and Texas college football, and excerpts from former Lt. Gov. Bill Hobby's new book, How Things Really Work: Lessons from a Life in Politics: The best of our best from August 30 to September 3, 2010. Full Story
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State lawmakers facing an estimated $18 billion budget shortfall will soon wield their knives, but who or what will sustain deep cuts? As Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports, county officials are among those waiting to see how the legislative slice-and-dice could affect things back home — and they're particularly nervous about unfunded mandates. Full Story
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Nothing has helped Texas "close the gaps" of higher education achievement more than financial aid for low-income students. But with coming budget cuts, tens of thousands of students could lose out on the state's largest and most generous financial aid program. Full Story
As New Orleans measures how far it has come since Hurricane Katrina — and how far it has to go — an Austin man who was an aide to Mayor Will Wynn in 2005 traveled to the Big Easy to put some ghosts to rest. He talked with Matt Largey of KUT News. Full Story
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Galbraith on grass, federal money and efforts to prevent another dust bowl, Ergenbright on school suspensions and who gets punished; Aguilar's interview with Alan Bersin, whose job is to keep the U.S./Mexico border secure, M. Smith on why it would be harder than you think to ditch the 14th Amendment, Adler and me on whether controversy is politically contagious, Ramshaw on the flap over funding for the state's institutions for the disabled (it's not about the money), my meditation on the state's fiscal woes (including a $1.3 billion deficit in the current budget), Philpott on proposed cuts to the state's food stamp program, Grissom on the push by Hidalgo County officials for a special election that might not be legal; Hamilton on the seven Texas universities that are making a play for Tier One status and Stiles on the mid-year cash-on-hand numbers reported by campaigns and political action committees: The best of our best from August 16 to 23, 2010. Full Story
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In this week's TribCast, Evan, Ross, Elise and Ben talk ethics and the Texas House, the newly noted $1.3 billion budget deficit and whether terror babies have much of a political impact. Full Story
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Comptroller Susan Combs' quiet acknowledgment that Texas will show a $1.3 billion deficit at the end of the budget year contrasts with the happy face she's put on state finances leading up to the 2010 elections. The numbers are the worst since 2003, when the Legislature responded with $10 billion in spending cuts, and increased fees, tuition and other revenue sources. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry and his Democratic challenger, Bill White, appeared on the same stage in Austin on Thursday. But anyone itching for a debate between the two was disappointed. The candidates were separated on the schedule by other speakers and were never even in the room at the same time. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune filed this report. Full Story
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The U.S. House has passed a bill on Tuesday that is expected to send about $800 million to bolster the state’s education budget. But thanks to an amendment added by U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin, the funding comes with Texas-specific strings attached. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune has this report. Full Story
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As the nation’s unemployment rate hovers around 9.5 percent, the jobless are hardest hit by the poor economy. But as Mose Buchele of KUT News reports, the stress of working through the downturn is also taking a toll on those who have jobs. Full Story
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill White is calling for an independent audit of Texas Enterprise Fund grants after documents showed the governor's office offered $2.5 million in state subsidies to Sino Swearingen, a company founded by Doug Jaffe. Jaffe is one of two partners involved in a controversial land deal that netted Perry a $500,000 profit. Full Story
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Depending on whom you ask, anywhere between 100,000 to half a million Juarenses have left Mexico since drug violence exploded in 2008. In a tragic irony, neighboring El Paso is flourishing economically as Juárez descends further into terror. Full Story
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It was more like a bidding auction today than a meeting of the Texas House Committee on Licensing and Regulation. Gambling advocates packed into three Capitol hearing rooms, and threw out number after number as they asked legislators — yet again — to consider the benefits of more gaming in Texas. Full Story
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A new political action committee is attacking Gov. Rick Perry with a television ad playing on a familiar theme: Perry's high-class living. The ad starts airing tonight in markets across Texas. Full Story
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