Craft brewers want Gov. Greg Abbott to veto a bill that would put limits on some regulatory relief that benefits them. But supporters, including some major distributors, say the bill is needed to stop big beer companies that gobble up independent craft brewers from taking advantage of relaxed regulations.
Chris Essig
Chris Essig is the data visuals editor at The Texas Tribune. Based in Austin, he leads a team of developers who build charts, maintain public databases and analyze data to help reporters hold elected officials accountable. Chris has been a newsroom developer for 10 years and has worked in several local newsrooms. As a native of the Midwest, Chris received his journalism degree from Eastern Illinois University and spent six years in Iowa working at The Gazette in Cedar Rapids and at the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier in Waterloo.
Posted inEconomy, Health care, Public Education, State Government
Take a closer look at the budget Texas lawmakers just passed
Did the Texas Legislature boost funding for border security? What about public education? Did they dip into the Rainy Day Fund? Here’s a wide-angle look at what’s in the $217 billion budget the two chambers ultimately settled on.
Posted in
Congress
Survey of Texas delegation finds few Republicans weighing in on Russia
The Tribune asked all 38 members of the Texas congressional delegation whether Congress is appropriately overseeing investigations into relationships between Russia and members of the Trump team.
Posted in
Higher Education
Here’s what’s at stake for Texas universities in Legislature’s budget fight
Check out how each public university in Texas would fare under the House and Senate budgets.
Posted inState Government
How do the Texas House and Senate budgets compare?
Both chambers have passed state budgets that spend around $218 billion but significant differences remain. With just a few weeks to go before the end of the session, here’s a look at the key sticking points.
Posted in
State Government
Data shows Dukes has missed most votes in Texas House
State Rep. Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin, has missed more than 100 record votes during the current legislative session, the most of the 150 members of the House, according to a Tribune analysis of data from a legislative analytics website.
Posted in
Politics
Here’s where Texans in Congress stand on Trump’s Syrian airstrikes
Texans in Congress mostly backed President Donald Trump’s recent airstrikes in Syria, according to a Tribune survey of the delegation.
Posted in
Demographics
Harris County loses residents to other areas; Texas suburbs growing
In Texas, suburban counties lead in population growth as they continue to receive residents from other areas while urban counties are more dependent on international migrants and expanding families, new census figures show.
Posted in
Politics
Here’s how much Texas candidates spent per vote in the November elections
A Texas Tribune analysis of how much Texas candidates spent per vote ahead of the November elections reveals campaigns that won or lost on the cheap, as well as those that paid heavily for their outcome.
Posted in
Graphics and data reporting
Search the newly updated Texas state employees salaries database
The Texas Tribune’s database of Texas state employees’ compensation is updated to represent salaries as of October 1.