Tag Archives: Mike Villarreal

Van de Putte for Lite Gov?

Posted on September 3, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, please. Democratic operatives are scouring Texas to find worthy statewide candidates to run on a 2014 ticket with Sen. Wendy Davis. Davis is expected to announce in the coming weeks whether she’ll challenge for governor or opt to seek … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2014 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Payday lending prospects look grim in the House

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From the Observer: Late into the night on Monday, the payday loan industry strutted its stuff before a very friendly House committee. The hearing came just a week after the Senate passed a surprisingly tough bill that the industry insists … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Somewhat improved payday lending bill passes Senate committee

Posted on April 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I still don’t think it’s good enough. Breathing new life into a proposal that was doomed by the opposition of consumer groups only last week, a Texas Senate committee approved strengthened legislation Tuesday that imposes restrictions on the payday loan … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Payday lending legislation may go nowhere

Posted on April 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t say I’m surprised, since Sen. John Carona’s most recent version of a payday reform bill was not met well by advocates for consumers and the poor. Among other things, Carona’s proposal would limit the maximum size of loans … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Payday lending legislation may go nowhere

House passes major changes to testing and graduation requirements

Posted on March 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is a big deal. Texas public high school students would face far fewer high-stakes exams and gain more freedom in choosing courses under a major education bill approved by the state House on Tuesday. Hours of debate among lawmakers … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

It’s good to be a payday lender

Posted on March 25, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Bleah. Earlier this legislative session, a chief of staff for a senator noted that the $4 billion Texas payday and auto-title loan industry would soon grow powerful and lucrative enough that the Texas Legislature would be unable to take it … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Gubernatorial speculation: Mike Villarreal and Bill White

Posted on March 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

A few days back, BOR had a post about who was on deck for 2014, and the first two candidates they speculated about for Governor were two I had not talked about here before, State Rep. Mike Villarreal and 2010 … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2014 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Gubernatorial speculation: Mike Villarreal and Bill White

More STAAR changes proposed

Posted on January 24, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Everyone’s least favorite standardized test is a fat target these days. State Sen. Kel Seliger, the Amarillo Republican who chairs the Senate Higher Education Committee, filed a bill Tuesday offering broad changes to student assessment and high school graduation requirements … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on More STAAR changes proposed

Meet the new budget

Posted on January 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Same as the old budget. Republican leaders in both chambers of the Legislature on Monday offered spare first drafts of the state’s next two-year budget that continue $5.4 billion in cuts to public education made last session and freeze funding … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Meet the new budget

The revenue estimate is in

Posted on January 8, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

And under normal circumstances it would be very good news. Texas Comptroller Susan Combs, laying out the parameters for state spending on the eve of the legislative session, said Monday that the rebounding Texas economy gives lawmakers $8.8 billion unallocated … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

It’s usually a bad idea to bet on any kind of overhaul in the Lege

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I agree that it’s a sucker’s bet to think that the Lege will try to fix Texas’ tax code in any meaningful way. Nobody likes having to take votes that may later be used as clubs against them in a … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

And then they went right back to not caring about women

Posted on March 23, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Such a delightfully cynical little stunt. Thirteen Republican members of the Texas congressional delegation wrote a letter to President Obama protesting the administration’s decision to phase out funding for the Texas Women’s Health Program. The administration took the action after … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Just keep cutting till we tell you to stop

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I have two things to say about this. Looking to get an early start on shaping budget discussions for the 2013 legislative session, the Texans for a Conservative Budget Coalition recommended Tuesday that lawmakers plan to reduce welfare spending, increase … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

It’s time to go on the offensive for women’s health

Posted on March 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I believe that just as Democrats must make the 2012 elections in Texas about public education, they must also make them about health care, in particular access to health care for women. There’s some polling data to suggest this will … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2012 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Another item for the city’s legislative wish list

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Loren Steffy brings up a familiar issue that has added salience now as the city tries to deal with its long term finances. Across the city, prime office buildings are selling for far more than their tax values, leaving billions … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Another item for the city’s legislative wish list

Who’s running for what where?

Posted on June 5, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Chris Cillizza notes an old familiar face who’s back on the scene. Former Rep. Ciro Rodriguez (D-Texas) is running again after losing his seat to businessman Francisco Canseco (R) last fall. Rodriguez won the seat in an 2006 special election, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2012 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Who’s running for what where?

Budget passes

Posted on May 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s official. The Texas House and Senate passed a state budget Saturday that cuts billions from public schools, state universities and health care for the elderly. The $172 billion legislation now goes to Gov. Rick Perry for his signature. Facing … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

We have a budget

Posted on May 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Such as it is. Budget negotiators met briefly this morning and voted 9-1 to adopt a conference committee report that cuts the state budget over the next biennium by $15 billion, or 8 percent. The total amount of funding from … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on We have a budget

Still going after Doggett

Posted on May 20, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Scott Stroud suggests there’s a new ploy by Republicans in the works to get rid of Rep. Lloyd Doggett. Congressman Lamar Smith, the Republican charged with redrawing Texas’ congressional districts, has floated a map that would transform Doggett’s district into … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

I’d really like to buy a yacht in Texas, if only your tax policies would let me

Posted on May 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not sure which is more awesome, the idea that we’re even having a debate about giving yacht owners a tax break or that they yacht owners who would benefit from this are telling us it’s for our own good. … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Senate fails to bring the budget to the floor

Posted on May 4, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It started Monday when Senate Finance Chair Sen. Steve Ogden said he might pull same Rainy Day funds out of the budget in order to get more Republican (read: Dan Patrick) support for it. After some discussion about alternate ways … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What we need right now

Posted on April 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Is a tax cut on yachts. As some lawmakers look high and low for money to ease cutbacks in education and human services, the House Ways and Means Committee has approved a tax break for big yachts. The committee voted … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Senate Finance Committee passes its budget

Posted on April 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The fight over the Rainy Day Fund is now officially on. A $176.5 billion budget for the 2012-13 biennium — 5.9 percent smaller than the current budget but almost $12 billion larger than the version passed earlier by the House … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Senate Finance Committee passes its budget

House moves forward on school fund money

Posted on April 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Last week, I noted a bill filed by Rep. Rob Orr that would direct some money from the Available School Fund into the public schools. His legislation has now been approved by committee and is likely on its way to … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

SAISD’s Trustee elections

Posted on April 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t know much about San Antonio ISD or the makeup of its board, but I know they’re about to have some very interesting elections next month. Name the ills of a typical inner-city school district and San Antonio has … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2011 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on SAISD’s Trustee elections

House passes its budget

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib has a good writeup of how it went down on Sunday. Mot of the heavy lifting was done before then, in the bills that closed the books on the previous biennium and allocated Rainy Day funds for them … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on House passes its budget

Budget debate resumes tomorrow

Posted on April 2, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Postcards: The Texas House [has called] it a night. They finished up the section of the budget bill that deals with public and higher education around 12:40 a.m. then adjourned until Sunday. Some members were planning to attend a Saturday … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

What’s happening in the House

Posted on April 1, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The House will be debating the budget well into the night, and very likely into tomorrow, if not Sunday. If you want an in-depth analysis of what’s being discussed and what the effect of each line item will be, you … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on What’s happening in the House

The Lege’s job killing budget

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Do you think this is what all those people who came out to vote last November had in mind? The Legislative Budget Board, a nonpartisan state agency that helps lawmakers with budget numbers, predicts that House version of the 2012-2013 … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

More on the microbrew compromise

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Brewed And Never Battered gives its report from the House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee hearing yesterday. Briefly on HB 602: No one expressed opposition, not even the Wholesale Beer Distributors of Texas, who have opposed the bill in the … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on More on the microbrew compromise

House Appropriations Committee passes a budget

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not much different than what they started out with. House budget-writers were able to sprinkle some extra money into education and health care but otherwise did little to change the bare-bones proposal with which they started. The 2012-13 budget … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Compromise on microbrew bills

Posted on March 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

As Brewed and Never Battered noted, HB660 and HB602 were scheduled for a public hearing in committee today. I’m delighted to say that it looks like there was progress achieved on them. Rep. Mike Villarreal, D-San Antonio, laid out HB660 … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The itty bitty budget deal

Posted on March 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not nothing, but not by much. Gov. Rick Perry and House leaders struck a deal Tuesday to spend $3.2 billion from the state’s rainy day fund to fix one piece of the state’s budget shortfall. […] Perry said at … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Comptroller finds a few more bucks

Posted on March 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Better than a sharp stick in the eye. Comptroller Susan Combs has revised the state’s 2011 revenue estimate by $300 million because of stronger-than-expected sales tax collections. That change would reduce the deficit in the current budget to $4 billion … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Comptroller finds a few more bucks