The latest budget news from The Texas Tribune.
The state will have an extra $27 billion in its coffers in 2023 — money that could help pay for property tax cuts and other legislative priorities. Full Story
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Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick had asked House leaders to support his push for arming school police officers with bulletproof shields after the Uvalde shooting. House Speaker Dade Phelan is also asking for more money for mental health and school safety programs. Full Story
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Hegar also talked about how to keep Texas business-friendly and what another wave of COVID-19 could mean for the state budget. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott said Texas was stepping up to do the federal government’s job after Biden’s immigration policies had “opened the floodgates” to illegal immigration and crime. Full Story
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The Flower Mound lawmaker is the most senior Republican in the upper chamber and has served as its top budget writer for the past four sessions. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott pledged $250 million in state funds for a Texas-Mexico border wall and is soliciting donations to fund the rest. Full Story
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The governor suggested more details would be released next week. The announcement Thursday of several initiatives is the latest in an ongoing conflict between Abbott, a Republican, and Democratic President Joe Biden's administration. Full Story
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Abbott has the power to veto individual line items he objects to. Full Story
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Abbott already planned to call a special session later in the year for the Legislature to do its decennial redrawing of Texas political maps. Full Story
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In the latest episode of our podcast about the Texas Legislature, Evan Smith talks to LaTonya Goffney, the superintendent of Aldine Independent School District, about public education’s disrupted year — pivoting online, learning loss, budget woes, and what it will take to put the whole thing back together by fall. Full Story
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The Texas Legislature is working on a budget that spends around $250 billion. But it doesn't include billions in federal COVID-19 relief money or account for big changes that could rock the state's Medicaid programs. Full Story
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It's an old and bittersweet story in Texas: Property values rise, local property tax revenue rises and the state government spends less on public education. Full Story
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The state budget approved by the Texas Senate on Tuesday is just the start: Lawmakers still have to decide what to do with billions in federal COVID-19 relief money. Full Story
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Almost a year after Michael Ramos, a Black and Hispanic man, was killed in Austin, Christopher Taylor, the officer who shot him, has been charged with murder. Full Story
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The governor's pivot from a focus on racism and policing after protests last summer to an emphasis on police funding and public safety, creates cross-pressures for Texans of color — particularly those who are Democrats, our pollsters write. Full Story
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Texas voters support the police and don't want to cut their budgets. But they disagree on the reasons behind the deaths of Black people in encounters with law enforcement, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. Full Story
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Texas voters also think the state spends too little on mental health, and public education, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. Full Story
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Debbie Gosnell, city manager of Cross Plains, said it could take months for her community to recover from the winter storm. Without approval for federal aid, Gosnell worries the town's budget will not cover the numerous broken pipes and damaged buildings. Full Story
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Dutton joined The Texas Tribune on Thursday for a conversation moderated by Aliyya Swaby, the Tribune's public education reporter. Full Story
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With assignments out, legislation that has been filed can be referred to committees for potential hearings. The committees overseeing public education, budget writing and redistricting are among those with new chairs. Full Story
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