The latest state agencies news from The Texas Tribune.
A Texas correctional officer killed while escorting a prisoner to his cell was beaten to death with a two-foot pry bar, a tool guards carry to unlock the small meal tray openings in a cell door, the Tribune has confirmed. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/07/16/Tray_door_w_slot_bar.jpg)
Hospitals that serve large uninsured populations stand to lose critical funding if Texas can’t convince the federal government to continue helping the state pay, doctors and health advocates told the state health department Thursday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2013/02/11/Medicaid-Expansion-3.jpg)
A rookie Texas Department of Criminal Justice guard was beaten to death Wednesday at a northeast Texas prison as he was escorting an inmate, one with an extensive history of attempted escapes and previous beatings of prison personnel, from a day room to a cell. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/07/15/BillyJoelTracyPrison-Bars-TT.jpg)
In light of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on Friday, the Texas attorney general's office conceded a separate legal challenge to the state's ban on same-sex marriage. A federal appeals court then affirmed a lower court's ruling that overturned the state's ban. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/01/07/5thCircuit_copy.jpg)
As of Wednesday, public employers including Texas agencies and universities will allow current and retired gay and lesbian employees to enroll their same-sex spouses in the same benefit programs and services available to opposite-sex couples. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/06/26/_BDB8490guys.jpg)
The city of San Antonio, the MD Anderson Cancer Center and the University of Texas at Dallas are the latest additions to the Tribune's Government Salaries Explorer. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/06/16/Capitol-Salary.jpg)
Texas housing advocates are sounding the alarm about disaster recovery legislation they say would be critical for those affected by the kinds of storms that devastated some parts of the state this week. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/05/26/ATXFlood.jpg)
Statewide elected officials would no longer be required to live in Austin under a constitutional amendment that could be headed to voters on a general election ballot. The House tentatively backed the measure on Monday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/03/31/HS1472Otto2.jpg)
Hundreds of Texas nursing homes have transferred their ownership to local government entities in order to secure more federal Medicaid funding. Critics of the arrangement say it shields negligent nursing homes from lawsuits. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/MEDICAID_CEDARVIEW.jpg)
An Austin assisted living facility for people with disabilities — originally targeted for closure in 2017 — won’t be shuttered until 2019 under a major agency overhaul initially approved by the Texas House on Saturday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/OldHandOnaWheelChair.jpg)
With the House set to consider legislation to re-evaluate the state’s health commission, a flurry of pre-filed amendments could set the stage for a fiery debate over end-of-life issues. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/01/13/EndOfLife-Split-1.jpg)
Lawmakers are aiming to restructure the chain of command at the Texas State Cemetery. But longtime caretakers of the famous graveyard think a measure moving through the Capitol goes too far in shifting power. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/state-graveyard.png)
A Lone Star-studded audience including Land Commissioner George P. Bush and Cecilia Abbott, the first lady of Texas, got a sneak preview of the new miniseries Texas Rising at a red-carpet fundraising event Monday night at the Alamo. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/05/18/UP9A4129.jpg)
State Sen. John Whitmire is asking questions about a program for at-risk youths run by the Texas Military Department where more than half of the applicants are truant students referred by justice of the peace courts or from the schools themselves. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Empty-Desk.jpg)
Lawyers for a Texas inmate convicted of capital murder in the 1999 stabbing death of a prison guard have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to halt his Tuesday execution. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/04/27/Robert_Pruett_Death_Row.jpg)
Shortly after lab tests on two Blue Bell ice cream flavors came back “presumptive positive” for Listeria, an assistant commissioner at the state health agency reached for the phone to call Brenham. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/04/23/bluebell-listeria-outbreak-infographicTT.jpg)
This week, the House and the Senate named the members of a conference committee that will resolve the differences between the two chambers' budget plans. Here’s a look at how the two proposals compare, with details on some areas where the plans diverge. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/04/13/house-senatebudget.jpg)
Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller is looking to buck a decade-old statewide ban on deep fat fryers in public schools, putting decision-making about food in schools back in the hands of Texas school districts. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2015/02/27/UP9A0221.jpg)
The Texas House on Thursday gave preliminary approval to a measure that would require public employers to provide accommodations for mothers who need to pump breast milk while at work. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/2014/07/17/TXT-Clinic-CCR009.jpg)
Responding to a request by the Texas Department of Public Safety to renew an investigation into the department’s border security contracts, the head of the state’s anti-corruption unit said Monday that it was not equipped to continue the investigation. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/e00d40a882af9e01f94bb9c004057f5d/DONT%20USE%20DPS%20Gunboat)