The latest Texas House of Representatives news from The Texas Tribune.
The freshman Republican state representative on what he liked about the legislative session, what's wrong with the process, the press, politics and why he'd be coming back for more if a local job hadn't opened up. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry has said the Rainy Day Fund should be preserved as an insurance policy against natural disasters, but Texas can't actually dip into it until the next legislative session — in 2013. Full Story
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Another House freshman won't be back: Lanham Lyne, R-Wichita Falls, says he won't seek re-election to the Texas House in 2012. Full Story
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The state's new political maps are now in the hands of the federal government. An army of lawyers lined up before the start of federal hearings on Tuesday, lugging boxes of papers and briefcases bulging with the scribbled notes and other arguments they'll present over the next two weeks. Full Story
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Former state Rep. Corbin Van Arsdale, defeated in Tomball in the 2008 Republican primary, will run for an open seat in Cedar Park in 2012. Full Story
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Building on the success of our previous redistricting interactive, the Tribune has prepared a new version that includes the redistricting maps for the state House, Senate and State Board of Education. Full Story
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Former Brazos County Tax Assessor-Collector Gerald "Buddy" Winn might run for the Texas House next year, but it won't be for state Rep. Fred Brown's seat. Full Story
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Sugar Land Mayor Pro Tem Jacquie Chaumette says she will challenge state Rep. Charlie Howard, R-Sugar Land, in next year's Republican primary. Full Story
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As expected, state Rep. Kelly Hancock, R-Richland Hills, will run for the Texas Senate next year in SD-10, the district currently occupied by state Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth. Hancock is the first challenger to announce, but this could get crowded, and quickly. Full Story
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Aaronson examines the Texas jobs "miracle," Root on how Rick Perry built his financial portfolio, Tan and Wiseman on Perry vs. Ron Paul, Philpott on how budget cuts will affect a mental health provider, yours truly on a House freshman who was less than impressed with his first legislative experience, M. Smith on public schools charging for things that used to be free, Hamilton on a new call to reinvent higher education, Grissom on a rare stay of execution, Galbraith on the end of a Panhandle wind program, Aguilar on the increase of legal immigration into the U.S. and Texas: The best of our best content from July 25 to 29, 2011. Full Story
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State Rep. Beverly Woolley, R-Houston, says her current term — her ninth — will be her last; she's not running for re-election next year. Full Story
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See where Rick Perry stood on the liberal-conservative spectrum when he was a member of the Texas House of Representatives from 1985-1991. Full Story
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In the legislative session, state lawmakers passed bills to help exonerated Texans who have been convicted of crimes but later determined to be innocent. Use this interactive to search for the big debates on criminal justice. Full Story
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State lawmakers considered a wide variety of bills, from shooting feral hogs from helicopters to criminalizing “inappropriate” touching during airport security searches. Use this interactive to find lawmakers’ commentary on the measures. Full Story
State Rep. Senfronia Thompson is the longest-serving woman, African American and Democrat in the Texas House, where her career spans nearly four decades. Here's a photographic look back at her tenure in the Legislature's lower chamber. Full Story
Rep. Senfronia Thompson’s almost 40-year House tenure is defined by her defense of the underserved. But her legislative career is peppered with occasional paradoxes. Full Story
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The controversial “sanctuary cities” bill failed to pass, but other immigration-related bills advanced and were signed by the governor. Explore this interactive to pinpoint the days lawmakers debated issues related to immigration. Full Story
State Rep. Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood, says that he won't be a candidate for Congress in the seat opened by Ron Paul's decision not to seek another term — but he might run for the state Senate. Full Story
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The Legislature passed several health-care related measures including the abortion sonogram bill, Medicaid cuts and a significant defunding of Planned Parenthood. Use this interactive to find what lawmakers said during the health care debates. Full Story
Texas bypassed the Obama administration's Department of Justice on Tuesday, opting to ask a panel of federal judges in Washington, D.C., to review the state's new maps for congressional, legislative and State Board of Education districts. Full Story