Auto Title Companies Sue Texas DMV Over New Fee Limit
Eight title service companies filed a lawsuit against the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, saying the department’s service fee limits could put them out of the business. Full Story
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![Fry Auto Title Service in South Austin.]()
Credit: Qiling Wang / The Texas Tribune -
"Why Are You So Angry at the Railroad Commission?" Texas Lawmaker Asks Reviewers
State lawmakers on Monday considered a host of recommendations to reshape and rename the Texas Railroad Commission, a powerful agency that oversees a host of oil and gas activities but not railroads. Full Story
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![Texas Railroad Commission Chairman David Porter speaks during a Sunset Advisory Commission hearing in Austin on Aug. 22, 2016.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Growing Zika Threat Prompts New Calls for Medicaid Expansion
Advocates for the uninsured are hoping the threat of Zika will spur Republican leaders to consider a massive expansion of subsidized health care to the low-income Texans they say are most vulnerable to the disease. Full Story
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![Aedes aegypti mosquitoes can transmit the Zika virus, which has been linked to birth defects, to humans. Officials say there have been no cases of mosquito-to-human transmission in Texas.]()
Credit: Erik F. Brandsborg / Flickr -
Texas Department of Criminal Justice to Request Budget Cut Exemptions
On Thursday, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice presented a legislative appropriations request to its governing board that offered $28 million in cuts. Officials added that they would seek an exemption from further cuts. Full Story
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Credit: Rob Crow -
Conservative Lawmaker Battling to Stop a Texas Execution
State Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Plano, a staunch conservative, is trying to stop the upcoming execution of Jeff Wood, who was sentenced to death even though he killed no one. Full Story
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![State Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Plano, is hoping to stop the upcoming execution of Jeff Wood.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Massive Health Data Warehouse Delayed Again, A Decade After Texas Pitched It
Texas health regulators are starting from scratch in designing a project to store massive amounts of data — after spending millions of dollars trying to roll out a version that’s now been scrapped. Full Story
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![Charles Smith, executive commissioner of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, testified Aug. 15, 2016, before the House State Affairs Committee on contracting procedures.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Analysis: Texas Legislator Wonders if a New School Tax Might Bring Less Pain
State Rep. James Frank, R-Wichita Falls, wrote to his constituents about school finance and used these phrases along the way: statewide commercial property tax, consolidated funding districts, and statewide property tax. Yikes. Full Story
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![State Rep. James Frank, R-Wichita Falls.]()
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Anti-Abortion Advocate's Group Receives Women's Health Grant
A group led by an anti-abortion advocate received $1.6 million in state funding from a program recently created to help women find health care services paid for by the state. Full Story
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![One of the six exam rooms at Haven Health Clinics in downtown Amarillo Monday, Dec. 9, 2013. The clinic provides services for women in the 26 county region of the Texas panhandle.]()
Credit: Stephen Spillman -
Inside UH's Political Push to Join the Big 12
The University of Houston has been burned before when it comes to the politics of college sports realignment. This time, its supporters are lobbying the state's top politicians for some help winning an invitation to the Big 12. Full Story
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![Football players practice at TDECU Stadium at the University of Houston on Aug. 28, 2015.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Attorney Wins Democratic Nod to Replace Rep. Borris Miles
Attorney Shawn Thierry on Saturday clinched the Democratic nomination to replace state Rep. Borris Miles, D-Houston. Full Story
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![Houston attorney Shawn Thierry has been nominated to replace Borris Miles in state House District 146.]()
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In Fight over Surprise Medical Bills, Some Lawmakers Target Insurance Regulators
Lawmakers are trying to find a way to prevent surprise medical bills, while doctors, insurance companies and patients argue over who is responsible for them. Now, some lawmakers are pointing fingers at the state's insurance department. Full Story
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![Ed Hagan at his home in Dallas, Texas on August 5, 2016.]()
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Texas High Court Carves "Monstrous Loophole" for Government Secrets
McAllen taxpayers cannot find out how much their city paid Enrique Iglesias to sing at a holiday concert, and that's just one example of the fallout from a Texas Supreme Court decision that is shielding many business secrets from the public. Full Story
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Texas Prisons Ponder Cutting $250 Million
With the 2017 state budget dance approaching, the Texas prison system is following instructions to cut 4 percent from its spending. Will that mean closing prisons and releasing more nonviolent inmates? Full Story
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![Texas Department of Criminal Justice Central Prison Unit in Sugar Land, TX. Amid budget cuts, Texas is closing a prison unit for the first time. The historic Central Unit will close at the end of August.]()
Credit: Justin Dehn -
Independent Wins Race to Temporarily Fill McClendon Seat
Independent Laura Thompson has won the special election runoff to temporarily fill the seat of former state Rep. Ruth Jones McClendon, D-San Antonio. Full Story
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![Laura Thompson]()
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Only One Private Texas University Adopting Campus Carry
Starting Monday, licensed college students, faculty and visitors across Texas will be allowed to carry their concealed guns into campus buildings thanks to a new state law. But that right will be mostly limited to public schools. Full Story
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Paxton Sues to Get Guns Into Austin City Hall
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the city of Austin in Travis County district court, trying to force the city to comply with his reading of the state's open carry law and let license holders openly carry handguns in city hall. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton during a May 25, 2016, press conference.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Rick Perry's Digital Legacy Gives Archivists New Momentum
Two years ago, Texas had made no progress archiving its electronic records. With the launch this year of the Texas Digital Archive — and the release of seven terabytes of Rick Perry's digital legacy — Texas has become a national leader. Full Story
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![Rick Perry with Reveille, the Texas A&M mascot. This image is included in Perry's collection in the Texas Digital Archive.]()
Credit: Texas Digital Archive, Texas Governor Rick Perry Collection -
Panel Backpedals on Swapping Out STAAR Tests
A special panel recommending changes to the state’s public school testing and accountability system has stopped short of proposing that Texas scrap the controversial assessment regime known as STAAR. Full Story
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![Theresa Treviño, president of Texans Advocating for Meaningful Student Assessment, speaks at a special panel charged with suggesting changes to the state’s testing and school accountability system on July 27, 2016.]()
Credit: Qiling Wang/The Texas Tribune -
Lawmaker Asks Ken Paxton to Weigh In on Car Registration Debate
Amid a turf battle between the state's Department of Motor Vehicles and some Texas counties over who should handle vehicle registration renewals, a state lawmaker has asked Attorney General Ken Paxton to weigh in. Full Story
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![Inspection stickers will begin disappearing from Texas vehicles when the state rolls out a new single-sticker program for inspection and registration on March 1, 2015.]()
Credit: Ryan McCrimmon for The Texas Tribune -
Judge Orders Voter ID Fix for Texas House Runoff
Voters in Bexar County will be the first to cast their ballots under relaxed rules after a federal appeals court ruled that Texas’ strict voter identification law discriminated against minority voters. Full Story
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Credit: Graphic by Cheryl Gerber