Fetal Tissue Research Limited but Important, Lawmakers Told
Texas public university officials told lawmakers on Thursday that scientific research using human fetal tissue was limited in scope but crucial to medical advances. Full Story
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![State Rep. Byron Cook, R-Corsicana, the chairman of the House State Affairs Committee, listened to testimony about how researchers use fetal tissue on April 28, 2016.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles -
Bathroom Battle Begins Taking Hold in Texas
Activists, lawmakers and state leaders are eyeing Texas as the next battleground in what has become an explosive national debate: the right of transgender people to decide which bathroom they use. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick was interviewed by Tribune CEO and Editor-in-Chief Evan Smith on Oct. 16, 2015.]()
Credit: Spencer Selvidge/ The Texas Tribune -
Video: A Conversation with San Antonio Lawmakers
Full video of my 4/26 conversation with four state representatives from San Antonio: Democrats Diego Bernal, Ina Minjarez and Justin Rodriguez and Republican Rick Galindo. Full Story
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Analysis: Texas Lawmaker Says Sunset Process Has Lost Some of Its Glow
If state Rep. Larry Phillips gets his way, the Sunset Advisory Commission could be up for the sort of operational review it's used to dishing out to other state agencies — forcing the agency to justify its existence. Full Story
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![Chairman State Rep. Larry Phillips, R-Sherman, sponsor of HB 910 open carry legislation, just before final passage of the bill April 17, 2015 by a 96-35 House vote.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Lt. Gov. Patrick Slams Universities for Tuition Increases
In his most aggressive terms yet, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick excoriated Texas universities for raising their tuition in recent years, suggesting that the Texas Senate will try to limit tuition growth when it reconvenes next year. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick speaks during the Texas Tax Day Tea Party Rally at the Texas Capitol on April 15, 2015.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Analysis: Texas Legislative Review Process in Need of a Review of Its Own
House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, is trying to rescue legislative reviews of state agencies from poachers in the lobby and in the Legislature itself. He says they've "made a mockery" of the process. Full Story
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![Speaker Joe Straus on the floor of the Texas House on April 17, 2015.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
On Way Out of Office, Some Lawmakers Keep Spending Campaign Cash
If Texas Sen. Troy Fraser is looking for a country music song to describe his recent months in office, “I’ve Been Everywhere” might do the trick. Full Story
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![Sen. Troy Fraser R-Horseshoe Bay on floor April 23]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Analysis: Straus Stays Firm but Won’t Raise Voice in Texas House
Buried in a couple of vanilla announcements this week, House Speaker Joe Straus gently telegraphed some of his plans for next year’s legislative session. If you weren’t listening carefully, you probably missed it. Full Story
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![House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, campaigns for re-election at The Barn Door restaurant in San Antonio on Jan. 21, 2016.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Court Tosses Lawsuit Over Medicaid Cuts to Therapy Services
A Texas appeals court delivered a big loss on Thursday to a group of home health agencies and parents of children with disabilities who sued the state over payment cuts to in-home therapy providers. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman -
Video: A Conversation with Dawn Buckingham
Full video of my 4/21 conversation with Dawn Buckingham, a candidate in the Republican runoff in Senate District 24. Full Story
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State Workers Want Pensions to Catch Up
Thousands of retired Texas state workers are essentially stuck in 2001. Though health care, food and pretty much everything else keep getting more expensive, their monthly pension checks haven’t budged. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman -
Lawmakers Hear Litany of Foster Care Woes
The state’s child welfare agency faces a $40 million budget shortfall, a critical shortage of good homes for foster children and overwhelming caseloads for staff, agency leaders told state lawmakers at a hearing on Wednesday. Full Story
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![DFPS Commissioner John Specia appears before the Senate Health and Human Services Committee at the Texas Capitol on April 20, 2016.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber/The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Sid Miller's Lonely Political Rodeo
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller's itch for public attention earned him his latest headline, aided by his overdeveloped political reflex for deflecting blame. But the attention comes at an inopportune time. Full Story
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![Sid Miller, who was elected agriculture commissioner in November 2014, is shown at Day 3 of the Texas Republican Convention in Fort Worth on June 7, 2014.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Texas Asks Feds for Short-Term Medicaid Funds
State health officials confirmed Tuesday they have asked the Obama administration to keep a 15-month lifeline of federal Medicaid money flowing into Texas to help hospitals treat uninsured patients. Full Story
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Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman -
UnitedHealthcare Drops Obamacare Plans in Texas
UnitedHealthcare, a major health insurer, will no longer sell insurance on the Affordable Care Act marketplace in Texas next year, according to a letter filed with state regulators. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman -
New Gas Pump Stickers Highlight Sid Miller, Ding Lawmakers
A new sticker for the state's gas pumps comes with a few additional flourishes: Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller's name emblazoned across the top and a disclaimer blaming gas taxes on Congress and the Texas Legislature. Full Story
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![A new fuel pump sticker issued by the Texas Department of Agriculture puts tax blame on Congress and the Legislature while placing Commissioner Sid Miller's name in greater prominence.]()
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Analysis: Legal Matters Could Temporarily Expand Abbott’s Power
Texas doesn’t have a cabinet form of government, but in Gov. Greg Abbott’s case, it might soon have the next best thing. Full Story
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![From left: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Attorney General Ken Paxton and Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles/Bob Daemmrich -
Video: A Conversation with Nevárez and Uresti
Full video of our 4/13 conversation at Sul Ross State University in Alpine with state Rep. Poncho Nevárez, D-Eagle Pass, and state Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio. Full Story
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Roundup: New Challenges for Ken Paxton, Sid Miller
In the Roundup: The state’s attorney general faces new securities fraud charges, the Texas agriculture commissioner is the subject of an investigation over a pair of state-paid trips and the governor works to reform an embattled child welfare agency. Full Story
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Analysis: The Difficult Intersection of Tragedy and Public Policy
Anyone trying to influence public policy will move where the public’s attention takes them, into the edges of the spotlight around events that might make their arguments for them. Full Story
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![A large crowd congregates during a community gathering in honor of Haruka Weiser on the University of Texas campus on April 7, 2016.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber