The Midday Brief: Top Texas Headlines for April 8, 2011

Your afternoon reading:

• "It is hard to overstate the budget-cutting furor that has gripped lawmakers in this capital, where the Republicans who control the Legislature and all statewide offices believe voters sent them an iron-clad mandate last year to shrink the size of government." — In Texas, Furor Over Proposal for Huge State Budget Cuts, The New York Times

• "A prestigious group of Texas business men and women who have raised "several billion dollars" for University of Texas programs urged the UT Board of Regents to re-affirm its commitment to research." — UT Controversy Continues, Houston Chronicle

• "Billionaire T. Boone Pickens and a Panhandle water authority have reached a tentative deal for the sale of most of Pickens' Panhandle water rights to the authority, both sides announced on Thursday." — Pickens sells water rights to Panhandle authority, Associated Press

• "School board candidates in urban districts may have to post campaign finance reports online under a bill that tentatively passed the Texas House on Thursday. The bill by state Rep. Marisa Marquez, D-El Paso, faced some pushback from a few Republican members of the House, but ultimately it was passed by a 108-31 vote." — House OKs contribution posting bill, The El Paso Times

New in The Texas Tribune:

• Drought and strong winds mean that the number of wildfires is way up this year: Last weekend, one army base alone started four blazes. The Texas Forest Service, the lead fire-fighting agency, is also facing heightened scrutiny in the Legislature — and, of course, budget cuts. — Forest Service Battles on Two Fronts: Fires, Budget
  
• No time to follow every twist and turn of the Texas Legislature? We've made it easier for you with our weekly recaps of the action under the dome. — The Texas Tribune's Weekly Rundown: Week of April 4 to April 8, 2011