Last week, House Speaker Joe Straus appointed a committee to examine the state’s Code of Criminal Procedure. Committee members and relevant interest groups were caught by surprise, but they say the code is long overdue for revisions.
83rd Legislative Session
Posted in
State Government
Signs of Legislative Motion
Lawmakers are diving into the state budget, figuring out which parts of the governor’s State of the State speech they liked and didn’t like, and watching out of the corners of their eyes at the latest in the 2014 race for governor.
Posted inState Government
Perry Confronts New Challenges With New Team
Rick Perry heads into another legislative session, and possibly a 2014 re-election campaign, without many of the trusted aides who helped turn him into a Texas powerhouse. Do they know something we don’t know?
Posted in
Health care
TribLive: Straus on Health Reform
At Wednesday’s TribLive conversation, House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, held open the possibility of a compromise with the federal government on the implementation of the Affordable Care Act.
Posted in
State Government
TribLive: Straus on the Budget
At Wednesday’s TribLive conversation, House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, talked about the likelihood of withdrawals from the Rainy Day Fund and whether the state can meet its obligations under the spending cap.
Posted in
Public Education
TribLive: Straus on School Finance
At Wednesday’s TribLive conversation, House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, reacted to this week’s ruling on the school finance lawsuit and talked about what happens now.
Posted in
Public Education
Aycock Proposes New Testing, Graduation Requirements
Newly appointed House Public Education Chairman Jimmie Don Aycock filed legislation Wednesday that would restructure the state’s high school graduation and student testing requirements.
Posted in
Bidness As Usual
For Lobbyists, They’re Gifts That Keep On Giving
The culture of gift-giving is alive and well in the Texas Capitol, and lobbyists are the chief benefactors.
Posted in
Health care
CPRIT Founders Lay Out Reform Legislation
The legislative founders of the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas laid out the first draft of a bill to reform the embattled agency on Tuesday before the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.
Posted in
Bidness As Usual
Jim Clancy and Paul Hobby: The TT Interview
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.
