State Waits for Directions to Declassify Colonias
The state has worked for decades to halt the proliferation of colonias, but it has no way to declassify communities that have outgrown the colonia description. Full Story
The latest politics news from The Texas Tribune.
The state has worked for decades to halt the proliferation of colonias, but it has no way to declassify communities that have outgrown the colonia description. Full Story
In a House committee hearing on Monday, one witness sought to redefine the climate change debate as one with clear implications to national security. Full Story
During an event that had an unmistakable political charge, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz spoke Monday about how a nuclear Iran presents an existential threat to Israel. Full Story
Leading Texas Republicans on Monday asked the Obama administration for greater flexibility to administer Medicaid — a move that has gotten little traction in the past — while reiterating that they would not participate in an expansion of the program under the Affordable Care Act. Full Story
The Tribune's Jay Root and Neena Satija filed a story over the weekend on the problem of deferred maintenance at state government buildings in multiple agencies. It makes for some grim reading. Full Story
Iowa and New Hampshire have the first presidential nominating contests, but there’s a key Republican primary fight going on in Texas: the money chase. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at GOP donors and bundlers in high demand. Full Story
The first University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll of 2015 had good news for likely White House hopefuls Scott Walker and Hillary Clinton — so we’re kicking off this week’s playlist with George Jones singing “The Race Is On." Full Story
Sen. Rand Paul won his third consecutive Conservative Political Action Conference straw poll Saturday, dashing the hopes of U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, who came in third, and former Gov. Rick Perry, who placed eleventh. Full Story
In a Friday night scramble with the clock running down, Congress managed to pass a stopgap measure funding the Department of Homeland Security for seven more days. The search for a more permanent solution continues. Full Story
Buddy Barfield, once an adviser to former Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, was sentenced Friday to 87 months in prison for embezzling millions of dollars from Dewhurst’s campaign for the U.S. Senate. Full Story
Rick Perry spoke at the CPAC conference on Friday morning, presenting the former governor a chance to reset the table before the conservative base and the national press after his disastrous 2012 bid. Full Story
Voters are evenly split on whether the state should offer in-state tuition rates for undocumented immigrants, but that outer parity covers some pronounced polarization on the issue, according to the latest UT/TT Poll. Full Story
At CPAC, the annual meeting of conservative firebrands, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz on Thursday delivered a presidential pitch that highlighted his willingness to take on fellow Republicans in the name of the conservative cause. Full Story
In the latest effort by conservatives to fight what they see as overreach by the United Nations, two Texas Republican lawmakers have filed legislation aimed at a nonbinding plan for sustainable development that the United States and more than 100 other countries signed in 1992. Full Story
Voters like the state government slightly better than their local government — and a lot better than the federal government, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. Full Story
A reinvented Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas says its darkest hour has passed, but the agency faces new conservative lawmakers unconvinced more money should be devoted to the agency. Full Story
Senate budget writers directed their displeasure at the Texas Racing Commission during a contentious hearing on Wednesday in which the head of the finance committee declared herself "livid." Full Story
It’s kind of like Dallas Buyers Club: A group of sick Texans is seeking to gain access to experimental drugs — only this time, a flurry of state lawmakers is rushing to help them. In Austin, the movement hits a personal chord. Full Story
Texans in this month's University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll made clear that the property tax is their least favorite. The only other tax to be disliked by voters more than it is liked is the business margins tax. Full Story
State Sen. Joan Huffman acknowledges that a lobby firm with ties to casino interests helped her draft a GOP caucus letter blasting a proposal to allow expanded gambling at horse tracks. Now a major proponent of the tracks is crying foul. Full Story