The latest state government news from The Texas Tribune.
Voting against legislation isn't the only way to kill it. Some of the most powerful tools available to Texas legislators are found in the dry pages of their parliamentary rulebooks. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/03/18/HB11Border162.jpg)
Three years ago, a company called Geo Care Inc. gave HHSC chief Kyle Janek a blueprint for privatizing state hospitals. The only contract awarded — privatizing Terrell State Hospital — ended up going to that same company. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/04/16/Terrel_State_Hospital_ContractHigh_xx2pKSf.jpg)
At our 4/16 conversation, state Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, and state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Richmond — the chairmen, respectively, of the Senate and House Higher Education committees — talked about the need for new building projects on public university campuses. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/DSC_8732Seliger.jpg)
At our 4/16 conversation, state Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, and state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Richmond — the chairmen, respectively, of the Senate and House Higher Education committees — handicapped the prospects for passage of campus carry legislation. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/DSC_8703Z.jpg)
At our 4/16 conversation, state Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, and state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Richmond — the chairmen, respectively, of the Senate and House Higher Education committees — talked about the controversial law allowing undocumented students to pay in-state tuition rates at public universities. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/DSC_8759.jpg)
Looking to clear the Texas Department of Public Safety's name, the agency’s top official is asking the head of the state's anti-corruption unit to renew a halted investigation into $20 million no-bid border security contracts. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/07/24/UP9A4422.jpg)
Full video of my 4/16 conversation with state Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, and state Rep. John Zerwas, R-Richmond — the chairmen, respectively, of the Senate and House Higher Education committees. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/_BDB8542three.jpg)
The Texas Senate wants to limit growth in the state budget — by adding a fifth spending limit to state law. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/04/09/Kelly_Hancock.jpg)
Just 2 percent of students enrolled in an institution of higher education in Texas are undocumented and pay in-state tuition — and most of them attend community college. Check out these students' enrollment by campus. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/04/15/sanjacinto-cc.jpg)
If the names of the compounding pharmacies providing execution drugs to Texas officials are made public, it could end the death penalty, state Rep. John Smithee told a house committee on Wednesday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/06/04/TCJD-Execution.jpg)
School officials say the cost of providing free tuition for veterans and their dependents is growing at an unsustainable pace. Lawmakers in the House are considering tweaks to the law. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/02/27/SoldiersFtHood.jpg)
The family of the late Marlise Muñoz, a pregnant Fort Worth woman who in 2013 was kept on life support against her family’s wishes, asked state lawmakers on Wednesday to help prevent other families from going through similar trauma. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/03/12/UP9A3464.jpg)
The Texas Senate on Wednesday tentatively approved a measure to partially consolidate the state’s massive health and human services system. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/SunsetEthics_1.jpg)
As the House and Senate continue their "robust discussion" over whether to cut sales or property taxes, Gov. Greg Abbott touted his own preference, along with a way to avoid the fight: business tax cuts, along with whatever legislators decide. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/04/15/DSC_8643WoodCMS.jpg)
A proposal to ban the trade of shark fins in Texas sailed through the Texas House on Wednesday, but it faces choppier waters ahead: the Texas Senate, where similar legislation foundered in 2013. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/04/15/Shark_Fin_SoupTT.jpg)
Two bills aimed at disclosure of lobbyist wining and dining are on the verge of being snuffed out in a Senate committee, according to the sponsor of the measures. That's despite Greg Abbott’s vow to “dedicate this session to ethics reform." Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/03/18/UP9A4917.jpg)
Ahead of a trip to Texas to advocate for an end to mass incarceration, the Grammy and Academy Award-winning singer talked with the Tribune about why the state is so crucial to the criminal justice reform movement. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/04/14/JohnLegend-002.jpg)
The Texas Senate passed out a state budget plan Tuesday that spends $211 billion over the next two years. The budget debate on the Senate floor contrasted greatly with the marathon budget debate in the House two weeks ago. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/videos/Senate_budget.jpg)
The House Ways and Means Committee heard mostly praise for Chairman Dennis Bonnen's plan to cut the state's sales tax and the business margins tax. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said the Senate remains committed to a property tax cut. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/03/18/HB11Border287smile.jpg)
Another round of sparring between Texas cities and car service companies Lyft and Uber played out on Tuesday, when a panel of Texas lawmakers considered letting cities regulate Lyft and Uber the same way they regulate cab companies. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/06/09/Uber-Lyft-Hybrid.jpg)