Trial Balloons
The ideas on what to do with the state budget are getting weirder and weirder. Full Story
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TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Aaronson on the latest attack on Planned Parenthood, Aguilar previews the sanctuary cities debate, Grissom on a death row inmate's unsuccessful appeal, Hamilton on the UT System's faculty "productivity" data dump, Philpott on the prospect of lawsuits over education cuts, Ramsey on puppies and other distractions, Ramshaw on a tobacco fight, my interview with the presidents of UT-Austin and Texas A&M, M. Smith on a former State Board of Ed member who may have violated state ethics law, Stiles interactively displays the effects of House redistricting and Tan on the Senate budget end game: The best of our best content from May 2 to 6, 2011. Full Story
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Video: The Week in Texas Politics Recap, May 2 to May 6
No time to follow all the happenings of the Texas Legislature? We've made it easier for you with our weekly recaps of the action under the dome. Full Story
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House Sets Budget Negotiating Rules
The House is sending its five budget conferees — Reps. Jim Pitts, John Otto, Sylvester Turner, John Zerwas and Myra Crownover — off to negotiate with the Senate, but they want to tie their hands on certain issues, instructing them on what's acceptable to add, subtract or leave alone when they talk with the other side. Full Story
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Video: Outside Groups, Ads Influence Senate Budget Debate
The Texas Senate passed a budget this week for the next biennium, but only after nearly suffering a meltdown. Senate Finance Chairman Steve Ogden has blamed some of the drama on the meddling of outside interest groups. Full Story
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Schools Consider Legal Action Over Budget Cuts
With school districts across the state passing belt-tightening budgets due to cuts expected at the Legislature, Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports that some districts are gearing up for legal challenges. Full Story
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Procedural Move Allows GOP to Pass Senate Budget
The $176 billion budget was approved along party lines, with all 19 Republicans voting for it and all 12 Democrats voting against. Full Story
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Full Video: TPPF's Higher Ed Reform Panel
At a panel hosted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation, UT president Bill Powers, TPPF senior fellow Ronbald Trowbridge and speaker of the A&M faculty senate Robert Strawser discussed the conservative think tank's seven proposed reforms to higher education. Here is the full video. Full Story
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Senate Approves Budget Bill on Party-Line Vote
The Texas Senate voted 19-12 along party lines Wednesday to pass its own version of HB 1, the House’s budget for the next biennium. Not only did the Democrats lose their power to stop the bill under the traditional two-thirds rule, but they may have lost their chance for a Democrat to join the conference committee where five senators and five representatives will develop a compromise bill. Full Story
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Liveblog: Senate Passes Budget, 19-12
Over the vehement objections of Democrats, the Texas Senate today passed a state budget for the next biennium by a straight party-line vote of 19 to 12. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
The Weekly TribCast: Episode 78
In this week's TribCast, Evan, Ross, Reeve and Ben discuss the Texas Senate, the budget being considered by the Texas Senate, and the influence of outside groups on the Texas Senate. Full Story
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Credit: Todd Wiseman -
Senate Budget Debate: Education Funding
The Texas Senate talks education funding, revenue and Rainy Day spending as members debate suspending the rules to bring up their substitute for House Bill 1, the proposed budget for the next biennium. Full Story
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Failed Budget Vote Threatens Senate Tradition
Senate Finance Chairman Steve Ogden tried, and failed, to get 20 state senators to vote with him on a proposed state budget Tuesday. On Wednesday, he's going to see if he can find 15. Full Story
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Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Liveblog: Senate Debates Budget Bill
The Texas Tribune is liveblogging the Senate's debate over its substitute for House Bill 1, the proposed budget for the next biennium. Full Story
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![Sen. Steve Ogden, R-Bryan, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, listens to debate after bringing budget bill CSHB1 to the floor on May 3, 2011.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
In Hunt for Revenue, It's Big Tobacco vs. Little
It’s big tobacco vs. little in the effort to smoke out new revenue for the Texas budget. Large tobacco companies, which fork over half a billion dollars to the state every year as part of a 1998 lawsuit settlement, want small cigarette manufacturers to pay their share. Full Story
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Senators Still Searching for Budget Support
Sen. Steve Ogden is still looking for 20 fellow senators willing to start the debate on the state budget and with less than a month left in the legislative session, the pressure is on. Full Story
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Why the House Is Unlikely to Agree to the Senate Budget
It might not matter, in the end, whether the Senate wants to use some of the Rainy Day Fund to balance the budget. The House isn’t likely to go along unless the proposition is delivered on a tea cart pushed by Gov. Rick Perry and third-party conservative groups who have been hounding lawmakers to hold the line. Full Story
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Senate Debates "Non-Tax Revenue"
The Texas Senate, digging publicly for money while it battles quietly over a proposed budget, approved a "non-tax revenue" bill that would make $4.3 billion available for spending over the next two years. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, Sen. Carlos Uresti, Sen. Robert Duncan and Sen. Dan Patrick review amendments to Senate Bill 16, the abortion sonogram bill.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Senate Budget Debate Stalls Over Vote Count
Waiting for the Senate budget debate? Get comfortable. Plans to bring the Senate’s substitute for the House’s budget, HB 1, up for a vote on the floor on Thursday have for now been pushed back to Friday or later, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said. Full Story
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Dewhurst Makes Budget Pitch to Senators
Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, trying to build enough support to bring the budget up for consideration this week, appealed in writing to state senators, supporting the plan and a provision that would allow the state to spend $3 billion from the Rainy Day Fund. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich
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