Texas Senate Approves $211 Billion Budget
Senators on Tuesday voted 30-1 to approve the state's two-year budget. It will now go to conference committee to be reconciled with the House version. Full Story
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![Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, lays out the property tax relief portion of Senate Bill 1 for final passage in the Senate on March 25, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
After Delay, House to Take up Open Carry Bill on Friday
UPDATED: After a technical error caused the Texas House to delay its debate on open carry legislation Tuesday, the legislation is now cleared to go back to the full House floor on Friday. Full Story
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![San Antonio Democratic Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, center, confronts State Rep. Larry Phillips, R-Sherman, with a Point of Order on HB 910 that delayed the open carry gun bill on April 14, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Tesla Makes Sales Pitch to House Panel
At a packed committee hearing Monday evening, advocates for Tesla Motors told a panel of Texas House members that it was time to bring state laws into the 21st century and let the company sell its luxury electric cars in Texas. Full Story
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![Tesla vehicle on display outside the Texas Capitol on Jan. 15, 2015.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Unable to Tighten Spending Cap, Senate Built a New One
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Senate Republicans had hoped to amend the Texas Constitution to tighten the state's spending cap. Short of the needed votes, they passed a measure creating a new cap in state law instead. Full Story
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![State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick touted legislation to exempt tax cuts from counting toward the state spending limit at a Capitol press conference on March 10, 2015.]()
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Senate Votes to Close Austin Institution
The Austin State Supported Living Center will be the first closed, but more are to come as the state continues moving away from residential centers for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Full Story
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![Austin State-Supported Living Center employee Tamika Mays is shown with resident Rebecca Hadnot in 2011.]()
Credit: Todd Wiseman -
House Approves Heart Exams for High School Athletes
Almost three years after a Texas high school football player died from sudden cardiac arrest, the Texas House has tentatively approved mandatory electrocardiograms for high school athletes. Full Story
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![Cody Stephens, a Crosby High School football player, died in 2012 of sudden cardiac arrest.]()
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House Takes Step to Patch Pension Fund Hole
State workers would pay more into their retirement system but get pay raises to offset the cost under legislation that earned preliminary House approval Monday. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dan Flynn, R-Van, co-chair of the House Committee on Transparency in State Agency Operations, is shown calling an executive session on May, 12, 2014.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Former Lead Budget Writer Lobbies to Cut Texas "Pole Tax"
Former House Appropriations Chairman Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, is lobbying for the Texas Entertainment Association — the euphemistically named trade group for the state’s strip clubs. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Analysis: Big Money, Little Ideas in Legislature
With a huge pot of extra money to inspire them or tempt them to make grand proposals, Texas lawmakers have opted for thrift over big ideas. That's a little out of character. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman / Steven Leggett -
Inside Texas Politics: The Dream Act
On this week's edition of WFAA-TV's Inside Texas Politics with host Jim Douglas, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Bud Kennedy and Tribune Executive Editor Ross Ramsey, the show opens with a discussion of the Dream Act. Full Story
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![Tribune Executive Editor Ross Ramsey on WFAA's "Inside Texas Politics" on April 12, 2015.]()
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The Playlist: On the Trail
It’s less than a year until the first presidential primaries in Iowa and New Hampshire, and the 2016 race is already well underway, so we start off this week's playlist off the news with a campaign-themed set. Full Story
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Video: Agriculture Commission Has Hand in Texas Lotto
Millions of dollars ride on the balls the Texas Lottery uses for its various drawings. The state Department of Agriculture helps preserve the integrity of the process as part of its consumer protection duties. Full Story
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Roundup: Tax Cuts, Pre-K and College Tuition
In the Roundup: The Legislature took steps on key issues this week, including tax cuts, improving the quality of pre-kindergarten programs and repealing in-state college tuition rates for some undocumented immigrants. Full Story
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Analysis: Lawmakers Contradict Themselves on Debt and Domain
Lawmakers try to do what voters want, but nobody promised consistency. That's why you can get the same legislators to reduce debt and increase it on the same day, or to argue for and against eminent domain in the same hearing. Full Story
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Lawmakers Skeptical of Body Cameras for Police — for Now
State Rep. Ron Reynolds made his case on Thursday for requiring cops in Texas to wear body cameras, citing the fatal police shooting of an unarmed man in South Carolina. But police advocates were skeptical. Full Story
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![Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City, during a House Environmental Regulations Committee meeting on April 16, 2013.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Senate OKs Bill That Would Tighten Spending Cap
The Senate passed a bill Thursday that would tighten the state's constitutional spending cap and make it tougher for future legislatures to break it. Senate Bill 9, by Sen. Kelly Hancock, passed with a vote of 19-12. Full Story
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![State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, speaking at the Texas Public Policy Foundation legislative orientation session on Jan. 7, 2015.]()
Credit: Robin Daemmrich -
Sponsor Softens Divisive Bill on Property Tax Rates
State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, wants to make cities and counties ask voters for permission to enact tax rates that allow overall property tax revenue from existing homes and businesses to rise more than 6 percent. Full Story
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![Paul Bettencourt, now a state senator, is shown on Dec. 5, 2014, during the "What the Tea Party Wants" panel at a Texas Tribune event previewing the 2014 legislative session.]()
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Analysis: Something More Conservative Than Cutting Taxes?
As the House and Senate engage in what state Sen. Kevin Eltife calls "a bidding war" over cuts to sales and property taxes, the Tyler Republican is sticking to his guns: He thinks lawmakers should look at neglected projects before they cut taxes. Full Story
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![State Sen. Kevin Eltife, R-Tyler, speaks during an interview with Texas Tribune CEO and Editor-in-Chief Evan Smith on April 9, 2015.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Early Education Bill Wins Final Approval in House
The Texas House gave final approval Thursday to an early education bill backed by Gov. Greg Abbott, sending it to the upper chamber on a vote of 128-17. Full Story
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![Rep. Dan Huberty R-Humble, votes on one of the 165 amendments to House Bill 5 on March 26, 2013.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Background Checks Drive Uber Debate
One week after an Uber driver in Houston was charged with sexually assaulting a passenger, a panel of Texas lawmakers on Thursday considered a bill critics say will open the door for more criminals to slip past driver background checks. Full Story
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![Uber and Lyft, two San Francisco-based transportation networking companies, have launched services in several Texas cities.]()
Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman
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