The latest state agencies news from The Texas Tribune.
Texans who work in some industries must already take drug tests as a condition of employment. Soon, they will also face them if they lose their jobs and seek unemployment. This story is part of our 31 Days, 31 Ways series. Full Story
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This month, the sole public water well in Barnhart went dry for nearly three days. Residents in the Permian Basin community say that the area's thriving fracking industry is important but that a proper balance must be struck. Full Story
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UPDATED: The board of the state’s embattled Texas Windstorm Insurance Association agreed Tuesday to take steps that it says will better prepare the agency for the 2013 hurricane season and be more efficient over the long term. Full Story
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An amendment that would have allowed undocumented immigrants to obtain a permit to legally drive and purchase insurance in Texas was derailed Friday on a point of order. Full Story
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As state and federal regulators analyze the patchwork of policies governing the fertilizer plant that exploded in West, the incident has prompted a closer look at communities that lie near stockpiles of chemicals. Full Story
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Promoters say tax subsidies are needed to lure events that otherwise wouldn't be held in Texas. Critics say the practice is corporate welfare. The Texas Senate on Thursday backed legislation that keeps the subsidies going but with new restrictions and oversight. Full Story
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Citing the need for more power to meet the demands of a burgeoning community, El Paso Electric plans to build a natural gas power plant. But a legislator has joined forces with a coalition of residents intent to fight the project. Full Story
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Legislators, coastal residents and insurance leaders agree it will take a dynamic approach to reform the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association. The Senate Business and Commerce Committee discussed four TWIA bills Tuesday. Full Story
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UPDATED: Looking to save Texas millions of Medicaid dollars, the Senate Health and Human Services Committee heard four hours of testimony on a proposed redesign of long-term care services for disabled Texans. Full Story
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The case of death row inmate Andre Thomas offers a lens through which to examine the effects of a long underfunded mental health system and raises important questions about how Texas punishes the mentally ill. Full Story
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Texas' public pension systems — including the one state lawmakers pay into — have an airtight exemption from the landmark 1973 sunshine law that was designed to let taxpayers known how public money is being spent. But some lawmakers want to change that. Full Story
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The Senate Health and Human Services Committee on Tuesday approved a bill to reform the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas and the “scope-of-practice” bill that would increase the prescriptive power of advanced practice nurses. Full Story
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The new chairman and vice chairman of the Texas Ethics Commission board on the state’s disclosure rules, their efforts to prioritize certain types of ethics complaints and the reforms they anticipate in the 83rd legislative session. Full Story
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A decision by the Texas Railroad Commission has paved the way for an open-pit coal mine to begin operating on the Texas-Mexico border. Opponents of the plan are weighing their options, which include making a request for another hearing. Full Story
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There will be no pay raise for legislators this year. The Texas Ethics Commission, at the urging of Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and House Speaker Joe Straus, declined to raise the per diem payments lawmakers get when they're in session. Full Story
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Texas prisons are running low on hygiene products that are not considered necessities for inmates, including toothpaste and deodorant. Family members and inmates are frustrated as state officials try to find a contractor. Full Story
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A little-noticed piece of the fiscal cliff deal approved by Congress this week could mean a windfall for the new Formula One racetrack in Austin. The so-called NASCAR tax credit allows racetracks to potentially write off millions of dollars in costs. Full Story
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It could cost Texas up to $11 million to clear the backlog of some 20,000 untested rape kits in police agencies statewide. If Congress doesn't come through with funding, lawmakers here in Texas will search for funds to help solve the crimes. Full Story
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The Rio Grande Valley became one of the last regions to operate under Medicaid health maintenance organizations last year. Now, many doctors there say the red tape in the new system has taken the joy out of practicing medicine. Full Story
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The embattled Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas on Friday appointed Wayne Roberts, the vice president of public policy at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, to serve as interim executive director. Full Story
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