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The latest state government news from The Texas Tribune.

  • Tom Leppert: The TT Interview

    By Emily Ramshaw

    The Dallas mayor left a hugely successful private sector career to lead the country’s ninth-largest city through an economic meltdown and the aftermath of a City Hall corruption scandal. And he doesn’t regret a minute of it. Here, he talks about fighting a sky-high crime rate, how he keeps party politics from his office, and every urban area's Achilles' heel: education. Full Story 

    Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert

  • The Last Time Around

    By Julián Aguilar

    How will lawmakers deal with a budget shortfall of at least $11 billion — and maybe several billion more — in the next legislative session? In all likelihood, by doing what they did in 2003, when things were almost this bad. Full Story 

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  • This Might Hurt: A Dose of Politics

    By Abby Rapoport

    Immunization advocates want to expand our vaccination database, but the well-educated, middle-class parents who oppose them are organized and driven — and could force lawmakers to take sides in the tussle between personal freedom and public health. Full Story 

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  • TribBlog: Terri Hodge's Farewell Letter

    By Brandi Grissom

    On the same day she publicly announced that she would drop her reelection bid and plead guilty in federal court to making false statements on an income tax return, State Rep. Terri Hodge, D-Dallas, wrote a letter to her House colleagues to say good-bye and apologize. Full Story 

    Farewell letter from state Rep. Terri Hodge to House members

  • Accidents Will Happen

    By Brandi Grissom

    State troopers turned in hundreds of error-riddled crash reports in 2007 and 2008, according to an internal audit by the Department of Public Safety. Full Story 

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    Credit: Jacob Villanueva, Caleb Bryant Miller

  • This Might Hurt

    By Abby Rapoport

    Advocates for vaccination records say a complete registry of shots would help the state navigate major health crises. Opponents say it would jeopardize patient privacy. Lawmakers like the potential cost savings, but they still aren’t sure where they stand. Full Story 

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  • Reform Follows Function

    By Brian Thevenot

    The federal push for accountability at "persistently low-achieving" schools across Texas is running smack into the hard, slow work of improvement at the local level. Full Story 

    Use our data app to find "persistently lowest performing" schools in Texas.
    Credit: Matt Stiles

  • TribWeek: In Case You Missed It

    By Evan Smith

    Thevenot on the abysmally low community college graduation rate and higher ed's coming budgetary winter. Ramshaw on Terri Hodge's guilty plea and hasty exit. Grissom on the Department of Public Safety's use of dreaded federal stimulus funds to plug a hole in the state's border security budget. Hu on the first of the intraparty face-offs in our Primary Color series. Ramsey and Stiles on the congressional candidates with the most money on hand. Ramsey on whether Farouk Shami's accent and name are an obstacle to his election. Aguilar on the fever-tick epidemic overwhelming South Texas. Rapoport on TxDOT's hard road and the State Board of Education's lack of finance expertise. Philpott on how Barack Obama's budget will impact Texas. M. Smith on whether lawyers giving to judges is a good thing. Hamilton on the latest transportation innovations on the drawing board. The best of our best from February 1 to 5, 2010. Full Story 

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  • Department of Public Stimulus

    By Brandi Grissom

    The Department of Public Safety, which is struggling financially, is planning to use $16 million of the federal stimulus dollars that Gov. Rick Perry begrudgingly accepted to plug a hole in the border security budget. The decision follows a mandate by Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, and House Speaker Joe Straus that state agencies cut 5 percent out of their budgets to meet an anticipated shortfall. Full Story 

    Security camera towers loom over the Rio Grande River.
    Credit: Bob Daemmrich

  • Primary Color: HD-146

    By Elise Hu

    State Rep. Al Edwards, D-Houston, and former State Rep. Borris Miles are vying for the same Texas House seat for the third time. In a district with a high dropout rate, a high incidence of HIV infection, and a high percentage of people without health insurance, they predictably disagree about who can best deliver on promises of help, hope and change. Full Story 

  • A Hard Road

    By Abby Rapoport

    Lawmakers are still perturbed at TxDOT, but the state's transportation agency is trying to do better. The first step, says one commissioner: Figure out how to meet the transportation needs of Texas citizens — which it's not doing. Full Story