The latest economy news from The Texas Tribune.
DAY 5 of our month-long series on the effects of new state laws and budget cuts: The Rio Grande Valley’s longest-running helicopter ambulance will be permanently grounded this fall — and state budget cuts were the final straw. Full Story
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Though the amount of freight being shipped by truck in the U.S. is up, there aren't enough drivers to meet the demand. As Ben Philpott of KUT News and the Tribune reports, the shortage is particularly troubling for Texas. Full Story
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Call it a modern day Ellis Island: More people are moving to Texas than to every other state but Florida, according to a report on migration released today by the Empire Center, a New York policy research project. Full Story
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Aaronson examines the Texas jobs "miracle," Root on how Rick Perry built his financial portfolio, Tan and Wiseman on Perry vs. Ron Paul, Philpott on how budget cuts will affect a mental health provider, yours truly on a House freshman who was less than impressed with his first legislative experience, M. Smith on public schools charging for things that used to be free, Hamilton on a new call to reinvent higher education, Grissom on a rare stay of execution, Galbraith on the end of a Panhandle wind program, Aguilar on the increase of legal immigration into the U.S. and Texas: The best of our best content from July 25 to 29, 2011. Full Story
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Nine Texas government borrowers including Dallas, Bexar, Tarrant and Travis counties could face costly downgrades in their bond ratings if the federal government doesn't quickly resolve its debt ceiling problems. Full Story
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The “Texas jobs miracle” is a hot topic, but Texas’ unemployment rate is higher than all four states that border it — and it’s up slightly from last year. So why is everyone touting Texas, and Gov. Rick Perry, for its strong economy? Full Story
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Hey, Texplainer: What are the State Comptroller’s Events Trust Funds, and how do they work? Full Story
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U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas — who has been extremely critical of President Obama's role in federal debt ceiling negotiations — again took up the cudgel on this morning's edition of Fox News Sunday. Full Story
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The Trib's been keeping track of the key issues throughout the special session. From budget measures to school finance, health care and airport groping, here's our final rundown of bills that passed, and the ones that died. Full Story
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Your afternoon reading: Sanctuary cities bill isn't dead; UT System and former adviser Rick O'Donnell reach settlement; House passes health reform bill; George Will says Rick Perry is a "potentially potent candidate"; debating how much credit Perry deserves for jobs creation; TSA removes 95-year-old woman's diaper Full Story
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The Tribune counts down to the end of the special session with updates on where the major issues added to the agenda by Gov. Rick Perry stand. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry fired up the party faithful at the Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans on Saturday. Watch C-SPAN's video of his speech, which clearly shows he's nodding to a national audience. Full Story
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Aaronson and Murphy visualize what happened to the nearly 5,800 bills introduced in the 82nd Lege, Aaronson, Hasson and Swicegood interactively recap the budget battle, Aguliar on the surge in illegal re-entry cases prosecuted by the Obama administration, Galbraith on a coal plant that wants a water deal from the LCRA, Grissom interviews a man wrongly imprisoned and nearly executed — twice, Hamilton on a controversial UT regent who wants a do-over in the debate over higher ed reform, Ramshaw on the continuing fight over pre-abortion sonograms, Root on Rick Perry's newsmaking trip to NYC and M. Smith on whether cash-strapped school districts will raise taxes: The best of our best content from June 13 to 17, 2011. Full Story
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Houston Mayor Annise Parker has released an interactive budget balancing tool on her personal website, giving citizens a chance to see if they can close the city's $130 million deficit. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry, moving closer to a run for the White House, took his anti-Washington message to New York City Tuesday, telling a gathering of Republican donors that the Obama administration had “promised jobs and … delivered economic misery.” It comes as Perry steps out increasingly on the national stage. Full Story
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Rep. Donna Howard's proposal to direct surplus Rainy Day Fund money to Texas schools for enrollment growth survived to fight another day during debate on the House floor this morning, but not before a Republican attempt to derail it. Full Story
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Lengthy debate on a key budget bill featured many retreads of contentious topics from the regular session — but it was Rep. Wayne Christian's revival of his famous "pansexual" amendment around midnight that almost killed the whole thing. Full Story
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State Sen. Wendy Davis' controversial decision to torpedo the 82nd Legislative session with a filibuster has catapulted the Fort Worth Democrat into the spotlight, which she has seized to try to mobilize the state’s downtrodden and outnumbered Democrats. Full Story
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After last ditch efforts from Democrats to increase funding for schools through closing tax loopholes and tapping the Rainy Day Fund failed, two budget bills quickly cleared the Senate Friday night. Full Story
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Want a quick recap of some of the happenings this week in the Texas Legislature? We've made it easier for you with our weekly video rundown of the action under the dome. Full Story
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