The latest state agencies news from The Texas Tribune.
School district police departments use tasers, pepper spray, dogs and drawn handguns to control crime on campus. But most don't keep data on the incidents, leaving parents no way to track them. Many even refuse to turn over their “use of force” guidelines, saying parting with their policies could create a security threat. Full Story
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Texas will not adopt national school curriculum standards, risking its ability to get a $700 million federal grant. Full Story
Comptroller Susan Combs says the state will have $77.7 billion in general revenue for the current budget, which calls for $77.6 billion in general revenue. Full Story
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How much of Bill White's federal war chest could be used in a race for governor? Most of it. Full Story
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Two legislative ABCs — Anybody But Craddicks — back the Republican moderate challenging Christian conservative member Don McLeroy. Full Story
The Dallas church community has vowed to forge 25 partnerships with high-poverty public schools and push for 700 units of housing for the homeless — a down payment on a larger effort to heal wounds left by racism and injustice. Full Story
No snowbirds here. A growing number of state employees are retiring and coming straight back to work, padding — and in some cases nearly doubling — their state salaries with pension pay-outs. Full Story
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Multi-part stories from Ramshaw and Grissom and Stiles on mental health services for detained immigrants and on payday lenders who provide exorbitantly priced credit to people with nowhere else to turn... Twitter, word clouds and the race for governor — a Stiles joint... Farouk Shami is in and Hu was there to watch... Philpott went to Bastrop for a gather of Republican governors... Rapoport finds a State Board of Education that's trying to control itself... and we have the skinny on legislative races that are likely to be competitive (only about 5 percent of the races on the ballot). It's the best of The Texas Tribune from November 14 to 20, 2009. Full Story
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The state's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 8.3 percent in October, up from 5.2 percent a year ago. Full Story
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Groups that offer high-interest, short-term consumer loans and want to avoid state regulation contributed more than $1.4 million to Texas politicians over the past nine years, Texas Ethics Commission records show. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry won't grant clemency to Robert Lee Thompson, who was sentenced to death under Texas' controversial "law of parties." Full Story
The State Board of Education, which has showcased some intense philosophical fights, has drawn scrutiny for becoming a partisan battleground. For now, members are just trying to get along — but the rifts are as big as ever. Full Story
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The day after DPS warns parents that Mexican cartels are trying to recruit their kids to sell drugs, the agency issues a press release that says DPS efforts are pushing back drugs and preventing them from getting here. Full Story
Could Sarah Palin be far behind? Full Story
That warning comes as law enforcement officials report an increase in the number of youth from Mexico and the United States becoming involved in human and drug trafficking. Full Story
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A for-profit company hopes to get approval to start two charter schools in Texas. Thursday's SBOE meeting will set the precedent for dealing with this murkier side of the charter school system. Full Story
Amid handwringing over child obesity, SBOE likely will eliminate health and physical education requirements at this week's meeting. Full Story
KBH resigns herself to staying in the Senate, Grissom investigates the broken border, Ramshaw outs IT contractors who make gigabucks from state agencies, Hu gives Hutchison and Perry the Stump Interrupted treatment, the new head of the Foresenic Science Commission faces his critics, Stiles posts a searchable database of fines levied by the state ethics commission, and Hamilton discovers the consequences of party switching (none): The best of the best from November 9 to 13, 2009. Full Story
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Districts prepare to go to court with the TEA over minimum grades policies, prompting the question: How much should schools emulate the real world? And how many second chances should students get? Full Story
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Typically, Texas Child Protective Services experiences sky-high employee and caseworker vacancy rates, but as unemployment has soared, staffing numbers have blossomed — stabilizing child abuse caseloads. Why the bad economy is good news for one state agency. Full Story
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