TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

The embattled Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas on Friday appointed Wayne Roberts, the vice president of public policy at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, to serve as interim executive director.

If there is a silver lining to the intensifying drought, it is that after years of hand-wringing from water experts, Texas seems poised to get serious about financing water projects. Competing proposals are floating around the statehouse.

Ahead of the 2013 legislative session, lawmakers have filed nearly 200 fewer bills than they had filed at the same point two years ago. Use our bill tracker to follow the process, learn more about the proposals or see what your representative has filed so far. 

Texas Tech University professor James Wetherbe has filed a federal suit against the university, claiming that administrators there have stifled his career advancement because he publicly opposes tenure.

Congressional candidates recently had to file their post-general election campaign finance reports with the Federal Election Commission. This interactive includes the contribution, expenditure, cash-on-hand and debt totals gleaned from those reports.

Texas is a gun state, more likely to expand gun rights after a mass killing than to restrict them. While there are proposals to buy back guns or restrict sales, Texas leaders are pushing to allow guns in more places.

After a botched run for the presidency and with growing disenchantment among Tea Party activists, Gov. Rick Perry is facing some potentially strained policy discussions when the Legislature convenes in January.

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and Sen. Dan Patrick gave the first details of what they promised would be a wide-ranging set of proposals for public education policy during the upcoming legislative session.