The latest state government news from The Texas Tribune.
Legit advertisement or dirty campaign trick? That's the question for Travis County prosecutors who are reviewing a criminal complaint against the influential conservative group Empower Texans. At issue: A mailer that looks like an official government notice targeting their top bête noire, state Rep. Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth. Full Story
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Uniformed officers and what appeared to be locksmiths were spotted at the agency's Austin headquarters the day former Executive Director Harvey Hilderbran was fired in January. Full Story
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Watch Democrats Allison Campolo and Beverly Powell virtually debate the issues in their race to challenge Republican state Sen. Konni Burton in the latest edition of our "Split Decision" series. Full Story
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Testimony and closing arguments have wrapped up in the criminal trial of state Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio. Now a jury will decide whether he's guilty of 11 felony counts. Full Story
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Donors pumped a total of $67 million into state-level campaigns from the beginning of 2017 through Jan. 25, and a whopping $57 million of it, or about 86 percent, went to GOP candidates, according to a Texas Tribune analysis. Gov. Greg Abbott got nearly a third of all the political money raised since the start of last year. Full Story
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Lawmakers say local property taxes are getting too high. School leaders say the taxes are increasing because the state is taking on a smaller share of public education funding. Hey Texplainer, what's really happening? Full Story
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When the land commissioner wanted to buy a West Austin house, he turned to a major donor's bank for an $850,000 mortgage — then put it under the name of a family trust to keep his home address secret. Bush says death threats made the move necessary. Full Story
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A year after the Texas Freedom Caucus first launched, the bloc of hardline conservatives in the Texas House is optimistic it will broaden its membership before state lawmakers head back to Austin in 2019. Full Story
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Earlier this month, defense lawyers claimed Texas was botching its executions with old drugs. Now, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice has stalled the release of information on how many lethal doses the state has and when they expire. Full Story
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In the latest chapter of an ongoing fight over how involved public school districts may get in this year's elections, Attorney General Ken Paxton has warned three Texas school districts to "cease and desist" what he called illegal electioneering efforts. Full Story
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Half of the FEMA-provided money is available immediately, the governor said at a press conference in Rockport. The rest will come on or before the one-year anniversary of Harvey's landfall in late August. Full Story
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New state Supreme Court Justice Jimmy Blacklock is the latest judge to face a familiar challenge in Texas: On the bench, he has to appear impartial. But to keep his seat, he has to win the approval of Texas' deep-red electorate. Full Story
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Both sides revealed the outlines of their cases Monday in a federal court trial testing Texas' nearly 150-year-old system of statewide elections to the state's two highest courts. Full Story
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George P. Bush, whose agency took over running the iconic Texas landmark from the Daughters of the Republic of Texas in 2015, says a "doctored" audit led to the investigation — but won't say how it was doctored. Full Story
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Powerful conservatives have taken several shots over the past few months at an educational advocacy group aiming to promote voting. Full Story
One of the two women running in the Democratic primary to unseat state Sen. Konni Burton backed Hillary Clinton in 2016. The other backed Bernie Sanders. Remnants of that divide from two years ago can be found in their current match-up. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott now has two spots to fill on the commission that oversees the Texas Department of Transportation at a time when he's drawing ire for blocking toll projects. Full Story
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"Some of these people say they want responsible Republicans," Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said during a speech in Austin on Thursday. "A responsible Republican is a conservative Republican." Full Story
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How do I know if I’m registered to vote? What am I voting on? How do runoffs work? We've got answers to the basic questions about how to cast a ballot in the March 6 Republican and Democratic primaries in Texas. Full Story
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CJ Grisham, a candidate challenging state Rep. Hugh Shine in the Republican primary, wrote Facebook posts suggesting violent responses to excessive force by police. But Grisham told The Texas Tribune he would "take a bullet for good cops." Full Story
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