The latest state agencies news from The Texas Tribune.
According to a study commissioned by the town of DISH, which sits in the heart of the gas-rich Barnett Shale region, a permanent air monitor recently installed by the state is giving false readings. Full Story
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Thevenot on bogus public school accountability rankings, Garcia-Ditta on what locals think of increased patrols on the border, Stiles and Ramsey on where Kay Bailey Hutchison's donors have landed, Grissom on the pay gap between state and local police, Cervantes on how tweaks to the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder will impact Texas, M. Smith on the sinking prospects for an East Texas wetlands project, Ergenbright on the challenge of educating autistic children, Aguilar on efforts to legalize medicinal marijuana, Ramshaw on former foster children having trouble getting records from the state and Burnson on public health officials battling imported infectious diseases: The best of our best from August 2 to 6, 2010. Full Story
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Young adults who age out of Texas foster care often request their records to reconnect with estranged siblings, to track down biological families or to understand what they endured. But child welfare advocates complain the state routinely denies these requests, saying the records can't be found or will take months or even years to compile — assuming they respond at all. State officials admit they have a large backlog but insist they've beefed up staff and are putting new policies in place to address it. Full Story
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For nearly a decade, advocates of expanded use of medical marijuana have been spurned by the Texas Legislature — but giving up isn't how they roll. So they're trying again with a limited proposal. Full Story
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The author and former security guard at the Port Isabel detention center for illegal immigrants talked with the Tribune last week about the torture, sexual abuse and drug smuggling he says he witnessed there. Full Story
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After a decade in which Texas has seen a 400 percent increase in the number of children with autism, lawmakers are wrestling with how best to educate the afflicted — and how to pay for it. Full Story
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According to a review by the State Auditor’s Office, the salaries of state law enforcement officers in DPS, the Alcoholic Beverage Commission and other agencies lag as much as 20 percent behind those of big-city police. Full Story
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A change in policy by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs granting extended benefits to soldiers with post-traumatic stress disorder should disproportionately impact Texas: Seven PTSD treatment programs are located in the state, and an estimated 13 percent of the 2 million troops who have served in Afghanistan and Iraq since 9/11 are from here. Full Story
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Despite just-released ratings that show huge improvements, a Texas Tribune analysis finds that the performance of the state's public schools — when decoupled from the controversial Texas Projection Measure — is little changed from 2008, the year before the accountability formula took effect. Full Story
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Stiles' and Torres' three-parter on the changing Texas political map, Ramsey on questions about Brian Birdwell's voting history and residency, Aguilar on the Obama administration's immigration crackdown, Reed on hospitals that won't induce early labor, Stiles on what Troy Fraser left off his financial disclosure form, the latest installment of Hu's Face-Off video debate series, Grissom on the problem-plagued Driver Responsibility Program, Galbraith on the controversy over fracking and M. Smith's interview with former Texas Supreme Court Justice Harriet O'Neill: The best of our best from July 26 to 30, 2010. Full Story
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In new public school ratings released this afternoon, three-fourths of the state's public schools — graded under a controversial formula called the Texas Projection Measure — now rank "exemplary" or "recognized," the highest two of four categories of performance. Less than two percent of schools are ranked "unacceptable." Full Story
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State Rep. Tara Rios Ybarra, D-South Padre Island, who is awaiting prosecution on corruption charges, is the latest Texas elected official under indictment but not yet convicted to languish in career-crippling limbo. Full Story
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The two men battling for a spot on the Texas Railroad Commission go head-to-head — virtually — in the latest installment of our Face-Off video series. Watch as political novice and certified public accountant David Porter, a Midland Republican, debates Democrat Jeff Weems, an oil and gas attorney from Houston, on their respective qualifications for the job, whether there are enough pipeline inspectors and and the proper balance between environmental regulation and economic growth. Full Story
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State Sen. Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay, who was involved in a controversial land deal with Gov. Rick Perry, failed to disclose ownership or sale of the property to the Texas Ethics Commission, an apparent violation of a state ethics rules, according to a review of his personal financial statements. Full Story
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The past president of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association, who testifies before two House committees today, tells the Tribune that Texas liability law shortchanges workers caught in industrial accidents — an issue of renewed interest since the Deepwater Horizon disaster. Full Story
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The ACLU has sued Hidalgo County for jailing an estimated 150 impoverished youths for failure to pay fines racked up on school-related tickets. Such sentences amount to running a "debtor's prison" and violate the Constitution and Texas law, ACLU attorneys argue. Full Story
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State auditors might have found a clue about why Texas has a hard time hanging onto new state troopers: The pay stinks. Full Story
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Cases of whooping cough spiked in Texas last year to their highest level since 1962. Ben Freed of KUT News reports on what's being done to prevent the spread of this disease. Full Story
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Statewide disability group ADAPT of Texas and the Texas Civil Rights Project commemorated the 20th anniversity of the Americans with Disabilities Act today by filing more than 20 lawsuits across the state — targeting inaccessibility in restaurants and municipal buildings. Full Story
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Efforts to salvage the problem-plagued Driver Responsibility Program ultimately may not shield it from the wrath of its many detractors, including at least one lawmaker who believes we "shouldn't hesitate in getting rid of it." Full Story
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