The latest Texas Legislature news from The Texas Tribune.
The president and chief operating officer of the Sam Houston Race Park on legislation that would allow slot machines at horse and dog tracks in Texas, why she believes that's a good idea, and why it has a chance this year. Full Story
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This week on the TribCast, Evan, Ross, Reeve, and Morgan discuss rumors of the death of campus carry legislation, a controversial amendment with many names, and the latest on redistricting and the budget. Full Story
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The latest player in Texas' immigration debate? God. Citing passages from the Bible they say teach that immigrants should be shown compassion, a group of religious leaders congregated Wednesday to denounce a House sanctuary cities bill. Full Story
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The first House redistricting maps are out, creating one new Latino district, keeping the current number of black opportunity districts and pairing 16 incumbents in districts where they would face one of their colleagues in the 2012 elections. Full Story
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A bill designed to find cost savings and efficiencies in Texas' costly Medicaid program — and, more controversially, expand managed care into the Rio Grande Valley — is moving to Senate budget writers for consideration. Full Story
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Another bill on Gov. Rick Perry's emergency items list — eminent domain — tentatively passed in the House today, and it could further curb the government's right to take private property. Full Story
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The Texas Youth Commission and the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission would be combined into a new Texas Juvenile Justice Department under a bill the Texas Senate approved today. Full Story
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The so-called puppy mill bill that has dog breeders and animal rights groups in Texas squared off in a war of words, HB 1451 by state Rep. Senfronia Thompson, will be up for a vote on the House floor tomorrow. Full Story
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The Big Men on Campus in the school known as the Texas Legislature have the unenviable job of finding money that might alleviate the massive cuts outlined in House Bill 1, the general appropriations bill for the next biennium. Full Story
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A House committee is set to consider a bill requiring cities with populations of more than 500,000 to have single-member city council districts. As Ryland Barton of KUT News and ReportingTexas.com reports, the bill's supporters say it would more effectively incorporate minorities and less densely populated areas. Full Story
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Families and doctors testified Tuesday on the grief and tough decisions surrounding Texas' advance directives law, which allows hospitals to cease treating terminally ill patients after a 10-day waiting period if an ethics panel agrees there is no hope for recovery. Full Story
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With more than 3,000 bills and only 140 days to pass them, somebody's got to set priorities and make a schedule. Those somebodies are on the calendars committees. Full Story
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State jail officials would get a clearer picture of potential problems in county lockups under a bill a Senate panel considered on Tuesday that would require counties to report the monthly turnover rate among jailers. Full Story
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For the first time in decades, first-time drunken-driving offenders could get deferred adjudication under a bill the Senate Criminal Justice Committee considered Tuesday. Full Story
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The state’s two leading anti-abortion groups — Texas Right to Life and Texas Alliance for Life — agree on where life begins, but not on a law governing how it may come to an end. A house committee will take up the issue today. Full Story
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The House Ways & Means Committee is considering several bills that have the same mission: to make permanent the franchise tax exemption for businesses that report $1 million or less in gross revenue. Full Story
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A panel of senators today discussed an abortion sonogram carve-out that would allow women in remote communities to wait just two hours after a sonogram to have an abortion, instead of 24 hours. Full Story
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At last Thursday's TribLive conversation, I interviewed state Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, and state Rep. Burt Solomons, R-Carrollton, about the maps they and their colleagues will draw for the state's House, Senate and congressional districts. Full Story
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At last Thursday's TribLive, state Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, and state Rep. Burt Solomons, R-Carrollton, the chairs of the Senate and House redistricting committees, respectively, talked about their approach to redrawing Texas congressional district lines. Full Story
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At last Thursday's TribLive, state Sen. Kel Seliger, R-Amarillo, and state Rep. Burt Solomons, R-Carrollton, the chairs of the Senate and House redistricting committees, respectively, talked about their approach to redrawing Texas House district lines. Full Story
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