This week in the Texas Weekly Newsreel: It’s freshman orientation at the Texas Capitol, and Gov. Rick Perry has appointed a new Texas Supreme Court justice and a new secretary of state.
83rd Legislative Session
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State Government
Lawmakers Expect Fight Over Anti-Trafficking Bill
Lawmakers have proposed allowing victims of human trafficking to sue advertisers for damages in civil courts. Advocates say they expect to battle advertisers over free speech.
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State Government
Video: Lawmakers Look Ahead to 83rd Session
With the election behind them, the first round of bills filed and the start of the legislative session around the corner, Texas lawmakers will have plenty to talk about around the turkey table this Thanksgiving, including the House speaker’s race.
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State Government
Newsreel: Racing, With and Without Wheels
This week in the Texas Weekly Newsreel: George P. Bush announces he will run for something, Bryan Hughes steps up his run for House speaker, F1 is running residents out of Austin this weekend and three candidates are running for the late state Sen. Mario Gallegos’ seat in Houston — so far.
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State Government
Perry, Dewhurst Back Drug Testing for Welfare Applicants
Gov. Rick Perry and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst on Tuesday expressed support for a bill that would require welfare applicants to take drug tests. Critics of the bill say it needlessly targets the poor.
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Interactive: Bill Tracker for the 83rd Session
Bill filing for the 83rd legislative session kicked off on Monday, and lawmakers filed more than 250 bills on the first day alone. The Tribune has retooled last session’s bill tracker and put it to work, pulling in all the legislation that’s been filed so far for 2013.
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State Government
More Than 250 Bills Fly Out of the Legislative Gate
In a preview of the impending 83rd legislative session, lawmakers filed more than 250 bills on Monday. The proposals would affect just about everything from public school testing to health insurance and how we buy milk.