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The latest budget news from The Texas Tribune.

  • Why the House Is Unlikely to Agree to the Senate Budget

    By Ross Ramsey

    It might not matter, in the end, whether the Senate wants to use some of the Rainy Day Fund to balance the budget. The House isn’t likely to go along unless the proposition is delivered on a tea cart pushed by Gov. Rick Perry and third-party conservative groups who have been hounding lawmakers to hold the line. Full Story 

    Sen. Steve Ogden, R-Bryan, attempts to get votes to suspend the rules on CSSB1580 a Senate spending bill on April 28, 2011.
    Credit: Bob Daemmrich

  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Ross Ramsey

    Aguilar and Weber on a subdued debate over homeland security, Galbraith on rising concern about natural gas drilling, Grissom on a controversial psychologist, Hamilton on the aftermath of the Rick O'Donnell episode, Philpott on the comptroller's apology, Ramshaw with more on the statewide database of child abusers, E. Smith interviews Lance Armstrong, M. Smith on what House budget cuts would mean for school districts, M. Stiles on how redistricting would change things for each House member, Tan on the Senate's wobbly attempts to approve a budget and my interview with David Dewhurst: The best of our best content from April 25 to 29, 2011. Full Story 

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  • Senate Debates "Non-Tax Revenue"

    By Ross Ramsey

    The Texas Senate, digging publicly for money while it battles quietly over a proposed budget, approved a "non-tax revenue" bill that would make $4.3 billion available for spending over the next two years. Full Story 

    Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, Sen. Carlos Uresti, Sen. Robert Duncan and Sen. Dan Patrick review amendments to Senate Bill 16, the abortion sonogram bill.
    Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera

  • David Dewhurst: The TT Interview

    By Ross Ramsey

    With less than five weeks left to go in the session, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst sat down with the Tribune to talk about his future political plans, the status of the budget in the Senate and in the biennial parley between the Senate and the House, redistricting and the tug-of-war over the Rainy Day Fund. Full Story 

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    Credit: Caleb Bryant Miller

  • Senate Budget Debate Stalls Over Vote Count

    By Thanh Tan

    Waiting for the Senate budget debate? Get comfortable. Plans to bring the Senate’s substitute for the House’s budget, HB 1, up for a vote on the floor on Thursday have for now been pushed back to Friday or later, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said. Full Story 

    Sen. Steve Ogden R-Bryan during Senate Finance Committee hearing on April 19th, 2011
    Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera

  • Dewhurst Makes Budget Pitch to Senators

    By Ross Ramsey

    Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, trying to build enough support to bring the budget up for consideration this week, appealed in writing to state senators, supporting the plan and a provision that would allow the state to spend $3 billion from the Rainy Day Fund. Full Story 

    Lt. Governor David Dewhurst (c) goes over legislation with colleagues on the Senate floor April 18, 2011
    Credit: Bob Daemmrich

  • What $7.8 Billion Less Means for Your School District

    By Morgan Smith

    If the House has its way, there will be 7.8 billion fewer state dollars headed to Texas public schools. Here's our searchable database built from state Rep. Scott Hochberg’s projections of how the funding cuts would hit 1,024 school districts across the state. Full Story 

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    Credit: Graphic by Ryan Murphy / Morgan Smith / Todd Wiseman

  • Video: Conservative Coalition Expands Ad Campaign (UPDATE)

    By Thanh Tan

    One day after the Senate passed its version of the budget for the next biennium, the Texas Public Policy Foundation expanded its media campaign for a "conservative budget." They produced a series of new ads now running on statewide television. The timing appears to be strategic, as the Senate and House prepare to reconcile their spending plans in conference committee. Full Story 

    Texas For Conservative Budget Commercial
    Credit: Conservativebudget.com

  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Evan Smith

    Aaronson on a freshman lawmaker's rogue antics, Aguilar on how cartel violence affects tick eradication, Galbraith on Midland's water woes, Hamilton on the exit of a higher ed reformer, Murphy maps voting age by county, Philpott on the data breach at the Comptroller's office, Ramsey on why Susan Combs needs to eat crow, my TribLive interview with U.S. Sen John Cornyn, Ramshaw on Cornyn's refusal to take the "nickel tour" of Planned Parenthood, M. Smith annotates the contracts of superintendents, Stiles on a GOP-friendly redistricting map and Tan on a possible Rainy Day Fund raid: The best of our best content from April 18 to 22, 2011. Full Story 

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  • CDC: Southern States Lag in Smoking Bans

    By Emily Ramshaw

    Though secondhand smoke leads to nearly 50,000 U.S. deaths among nonsmoking adults every year, no southern state, including Texas, has adopted a smoke-free law for worksites, restaurants and bars, according to a new CDC report. Full Story 

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    Credit: Justin Shearer

  • Senate Panel Approves $176.5 Billion Budget

    By Ross Ramsey

    A $176.5 billion budget for the 2012-13 biennium — 5.9 percent smaller than the current budget but almost $12 billion larger than the version passed earlier by the House — won approval from the Senate Finance Committee Thursday. Full Story 

    A lemon is left on the desk by a protester as the Senate Finance Committee voted to use the rainy day fund to balance the state budget on April 21, 2011.
    Credit: Bob Daemmrich