Senate Announces Budget Negotiation Team
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has named the Senate lineup of budget negotiators who will meet with House counterparts and hash out a final version of the two-year state budget. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick after votes on first reading of SB #11 March 18th, 2015]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
The Brief: April 23, 2015
The word of the day on Wednesday was tension, which infected the traditional weekly breakfast work meeting held by the state's top three leaders and later manifested itself on the House floor as members selected their budget negotiators. Full Story
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![House Speaker Joe Straus (left) and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.]()
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Legislative Tensions Peak at Leadership Breakfast
A weekly leadership breakfast went sour Wednesday as the state's top three officials complained to one another about legislative packages and the tensions between a House and Senate that have just weeks left to complete their work. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks during Texas Public Policy Foundation's grand opening of new building on April 21st, 2015]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Analysis: Legislative Dance Partners Stepping on Each Other's Toes
The Texas House and Senate are ignoring each other's work, slowing progress on bills like open carry and border security legislation. They're ruffling feathers, too. Full Story
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![Texas House Ways and Means Chairman Dennis Bonnen, R-Angleton, talks over amendments to border security legislation on March 1, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
The Brief: April 22, 2015
A shift in the public debate over the relationship between oil and gas production and earthquakes happened Tuesday with a new study in Texas and a turnabout by the Oklahoma government on the issue. Full Story
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Patrick Advisers Blast Abbott's Pre-K Plans
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick's grassroots advisers are blasting Gov. Greg Abbott's plan to enhance pre-kindergarten programs, a move sure to increase tension between the top two Republican leaders. Full Story
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![Newly sworn in, Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick watch the inaugural parade up Congress Avenue in Austin, Texas on January 20, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Senate Gives Initial OK to School Scholarship Plan
Scholarships funded by state business tax credits would help some low-income parents send their children to private schools under a measure tentatively approved by the Texas Senate Monday. Full Story
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Analysis: Abbott's Caution on Display in Tax Fight
Texans grew accustomed to the swagger and bombast of Rick Perry, a governor who didn’t shy from confrontation with the Legislature and upended the notion that his office was inherently weak. Newly elected Gov. Greg Abbott, ever cautious and lawyerly, is cutting a different path. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott at a Tax Day press conference on April 15, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Analysis: A Senate Trying to Regulate Its Own Spending Habits
The Texas Senate wants to limit growth in the state budget — by adding a fifth spending limit to state law. Full Story
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![State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, speaking at the Texas Public Policy Foundation legislative orientation session on Jan. 7, 2015.]()
Credit: Robin Daemmrich -
Abbott Refuses to Take Sides on Tax Cuts
Gov. Greg Abbott refused to pick sides Wednesday in a growing squabble over how best to cut state taxes, and moved away from an earlier promise to “insist” that Texas lawmakers cut property taxes before the session ends on June 1. Full Story
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![Gov.Greg Abbott outlines his plan to reduce the Texas business franchise tax at a press conference at vcfo on April 15, 2015]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
The Brief: April 15, 2015
Discussion in a House committee Tuesday on a proposed change to the name of a state holiday honoring soldiers who fought for the Confederacy took on an extra dose of notoriety because of the identity of the main proponent of the change. Full Story
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![Student Jacob Hale listens to testimony on HB 1242 a Donna Howard-sponsored bill that would change the name of Confederate Heroes Day on April 14, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Texas Senate Approves $211 Billion Budget
Senators on Tuesday voted 30-1 to approve the state's two-year budget. It will now go to conference committee to be reconciled with the House version. Full Story
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![Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, lays out the property tax relief portion of Senate Bill 1 for final passage in the Senate on March 25, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
The Brief: April 14, 2015
Chances are good for passage of legislation up for debate in the House today that would allow for open carry of handguns by those already with concealed carry licenses. Full Story
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![Chris Way and his son Ryan, 2, participate in an open carry march on March 12, 2014 during the South by Southwest festival. The event was led by the Austin chapter of Come and Take It.]()
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Unable to Tighten Spending Cap, Senate Built a New One
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Senate Republicans had hoped to amend the Texas Constitution to tighten the state's spending cap. Short of the needed votes, they passed a measure creating a new cap in state law instead. Full Story
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![State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick touted legislation to exempt tax cuts from counting toward the state spending limit at a Capitol press conference on March 10, 2015.]()
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Senate Shapes Plan for Private Scholarships
In its quest for school choice legislation, the Senate is backing away from traditional vouchers and heading toward a plan that would use donations to fund scholarships for low-income students trying to get out of weak schools. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick listens to debate on SB 8 franchise tax reform measure during Senate action March 25, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Senate OKs Bill That Would Tighten Spending Cap
The Senate passed a bill Thursday that would tighten the state's constitutional spending cap and make it tougher for future legislatures to break it. Senate Bill 9, by Sen. Kelly Hancock, passed with a vote of 19-12. Full Story
![State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, speaking at the Texas Public Policy Foundation legislative orientation session on Jan. 7, 2015.]()
Credit: Robin Daemmrich -
The Brief: April 8, 2015
Lawmakers are talking about giving taxpayers billions in tax relief this session. But in a state with 27 million residents, it turns out that even $4.5 billion doesn't stretch as far as the politicians would like it to. Full Story
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The Brief: April 6, 2015
The House's chief tax writer is dropping some clues on how his chamber's approach to tax relief this session will differ from their counterparts in the Senate. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dennis Bonnen, R-Angleton, confers with State Rep. John Otto, R-Dayton, during a point of order called on House Bill 11 on March 18, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Analysis: Two Tax Plans, but Only One Comes With a Distinct Sales Pitch
The Texas Senate has touted its plans for cuts to property and business taxes publicly. The House has some alternatives, but it is way behind in the race to build public support. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announces the filing of SB1 with a series of property and business tax cuts for Texans on Feb. 24, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Senate Panel Sets Sights on In-State Tuition Law
Efforts to ditch a law that allows some undocumented students to pay in-state college tuition appear to be on a fast track in the Senate, but key House leaders aren't on board with the idea. Full Story
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![An immigration reform rally at the Texas Capitol on Feb. 22, 2013.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera