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The latest state government news from The Texas Tribune.

  • Few Obstacles Face Voter ID in the Legislature

    By Ross Ramsey

    Both sides cite stats and research papers to support their positions, with Democrats saying the photo voter ID law will suppress minority voting, and Republicans saying it won't do anything but stop fraud. Whatever it is, it's on its way into the law books. Full Story 

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    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • Disputed Howard-Neil Contest Goes to the House

    By Ross Ramsey

    Travis County Republican Dan Neil lost his first race for elective office in November by just 12 votes. Now he's asking the Texas House of Representatives to declare some of the voters in that election ineligible and to put him in first place and state Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, in second. Full Story 

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    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • Lawmakers Propose Raiding Auto Theft Fund

    By Brandi Grissom

    House and Senate budget writers have proposed closing a little-known state agency that helps prevent and solve automobile theft and burglary. The catch? While they’re planning to kill the agency, they're not planning to stop collecting the fee you pay to keep it going. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Todd Wiseman

  • Medicaid Cuts Worry Texas Nursing Homes

    By Ben Philpott, KUT News

    Texas agencies facing the budget ax say the only thing left to cut are the services they fund. Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports on fears that many of the state's nursing homes could be forced to dramatically cut back or even close as a result. Full Story 

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    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • Lawmakers Mull Reductions to Pension Plans

    By Mose Buchele, KUT News

    As Texas lawmakers look to slash billions in state spending, pension plans have become fair game. Mose Buchele of KUT News reports on a legislative proposal to decrease state contributions to two retirement plans that collectively serve hundreds of thousands of Texans. Full Story 

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    Credit: Jacob Villanueva

  • Sam Houston, Texas Secession — and Robert E. Lee

    By Kate Galbraith

    No secession ball will mark the day. But 150 years ago today, on Feb. 1, 1861, a state convention voted overwhelmingly to secede from the Union, against the fervent wishes of Gov. Sam Houston. Caught in the mess was one Robert E. Lee, a federal officer in what had become a rebel state. Full Story 

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    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • Red Meat, Fast Track

    By Ross Ramsey

    Abortion politics is back on center stage, with Gov. Rick Perry putting it, voter photo ID, state support for a balanced federal budget amendment to the U.S. Constitution, eminent domain and a ban on sanctuary cities at the top of his list of priorities. Why? Full Story 

    Gov. Rick Perry as the keynote speaker at The Annual Texas Rally for Life at the Capitol on January 22, 2011.
    Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller

  • Inside Intelligence: A Real Legislative Emergency is...

    By Ross Ramsey

    For the latest installment of our nonscientific survey of political and policy insiders on issues of the moment, we asked whether voter fraud is a policy issue or a political one, what should and shouldn't be on the governor's list of emergency items for the Legislature, how those designations should be used and whether the Legislature ought to be allowed to set its own early priorities. Full Story 

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  • Health Reform Roulette

    By Emily Ramshaw

    Even as Texas pursues a lawsuit attacking federal health care reform, some state officials are reluctantly laying the groundwork to implement parts of the law. Full Story 

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    Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman

  • A Conversation with Michael Williams

    By Evan Smith

    For our latest TribLive conversation, I sat down with the soon-to-be-ex Rairoad Commissioner and declared 2012 U.S. Senate candidate to talk about why he's qualified to serve, what he thinks of his potential primary opponents and a range of issues that he'd face if he were in D.C. today. Full Story 

    Education Commissioner Michael Williams, a former railroad commissioner, is shown at a TribLive event on Jan. 27, 2011.

  • Artistic Development

    By Reeve Hamilton

    Creative industries — from advertising to dance companies to book publishing — generate $4.5 billion per year in economic activity for Texas, according to a new report released by the Texas Cultural Trust in association with the Texas Commission on the Arts. The report features projects in communities like Amarillo, El Paso, Rockport, Texarkana and the tiny, north central Texas town of Clifton, population 3,795. “It’s more than fluff,” says Amy Barbee, the Trust's executive director. “We want to tell the story that the arts truly are economic development.” Full Story 

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    Credit: Todd Wiseman

  • The Constant Gardeners

    By Kate Galbraith

    From the highways of Texas to the San Jacinto Battleground, state agencies now aim to maximize the use of native grasses rather than opting for whatever was cheapest or fastest-growing, as they did decades ago. Full Story 

    Bill Neiman, owner of Native American Seed, at his seed-cleaning facility in Junction, TX, Jan. 18, 2011.
    Credit: Callie Richmond