Monthly Archives: March 2011

House votes to spend some Rainy Day funds

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the Trib: House lawmakers preliminarily passed two bills Thursday that together will balance the state’s budget for the remaining months of the fiscal year through a mix of spending cuts and use of the Rainy Day Fund. The cuts … Continue reading →

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Costello opposes exempting the churches

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Houston City Council Member Stephen Costello asks the Mayor and Council to exempt only state-mandated property from the drainage fee. Costello, the At Large Position 1 Council Member, offered an amendment Wednesday to the Municipal Drainage Utility … Continue reading →

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What was this past election about?

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve seen the following quote from House Appropriations Chair Jim Pitts, in this Statesman story about some queasiness among lower chamber Republicans about the severe budget cuts, several times this past week, and I feel it needs a bit of … Continue reading →

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Mayor seeks pension fund cuts

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Given the size of the budget shortfall for next year and the amount that the city pays into the various pension funds, Mayor Parker’s proposal to pay less should not be a surprise to anyone. City Attorney David Feldman and … Continue reading →

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Bill Hammond gets his name in the papers again

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Whether he actually achieves any of the goals that are the basis for many of these stories remains to be seen. Hammond, a former business owner and Republican lawmaker from Dallas, is accustomed to steering the state business organization between … Continue reading →

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Is there an app for doing a golf clap?

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This just about blew my mind. Staying connected at the Shell Houston Open will be easier than ever this year, and golf fans won’t have to sneak their cellphones past the entrance gates to do so. Starting with this year’s … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of March 28

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance is ready for another sports-related tourist infusion as it brings you this week’s bloog roundup.

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Hung jury for Eversole

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s the one outcome guaranteed to ensure that nobody is happy. Federal prosecutors plan to retry their corruption case against Harris County Commissioner Jerry Eversole after a judge today declared a hung jury in the three-week trial on charges that … Continue reading →

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“Nobody likes a sore winner”

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker’s updated drainage fee proposal, which would allow for exemptions to schools and churches, was introduced to City Council amid a torrent of whining from the pro-exemption forces. Church and school leaders testified at a special council meeting that … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Gambling interests tout job creation benefits

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: REPORT OUTLINES 77.5K JOBS BY REGION, SECTOR CREATED BY SLOTS BILL Confirms Texans Continue To Spend Billions Gaming in Neighboring States AUSTIN, Texas – Win For Texas released a new report today outlining the specific regions and … Continue reading →

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Texting while lawmaking

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This is a fascinating issue. A bill by Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi , would make an addition to the Texas Open Meetings Act. And it would apply to any public meeting, whether it’s a House committee or a small-town … Continue reading →

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From the “Things that are not considered legislative emergencies” department

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

That list would include removing Texas’ unconstitutional anti-sodomy law from the books. Although Texas’ so-called sodomy law cannot be enforced legally, civil rights advocates say it should be removed from the books because it creates a climate favorable to bullying, … Continue reading →

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RIP, health exchange bill

Posted on March 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Can’t say this is a surprise. State Rep. John Zerwas, the Simonton Republican who has filed legislation to implement one of the key elements of federal health care reform, said his bill may be permanently stuck. Zerwas, who proposed establishing … Continue reading →

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Moving the primaries back

Posted on March 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

In the 2007 legislative session, there was some energy to move the primary date up in Texas, on the theory that an earlier primary would finally enable Texas voters to have a say in the Presidential process, which was usually … Continue reading →

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Schools begin to feel the effect of budget cuts

Posted on March 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

If you’re an HISD principal, the next few weeks will be no fun at all. More public school employees can expect pink slips in coming weeks as state law requires districts to notify teachers by mid-April – technically, 45 days … Continue reading →

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TPC splits the difference

Posted on March 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Bike advocates get a partial victory as the Transportation Policy Council voted to keep the last $12.8 million of unallocated federal funds on alternate mode projects instead of redirecting it towards roads. “Whatever we do in this room is supposed … Continue reading →

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The first people

Posted on March 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Great story. Texas scientists have found the oldest confirmed site of human habitation in the Americas just north of Austin, where the Edwards Plateau meets the coastal plains. The unprecedented haul of artifacts from as far back as 15,500 years … Continue reading →

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What the vote suppressers are up to

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I just saw a link on the chron.com homepage about a group of folks who are convinced that there’s heaps! reams! scads! piles! of examples of vote fraud going on out there and how they’re here in our fair city … Continue reading →

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Interview with Steve Murdock

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Dr. Steve Murdock is a former State Demographer of Texas and director of the US Census, now the founding Director of the Hobby Center for the Study of Texas at Rice University. He’s the man to go to if you … Continue reading →

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SBOE redistricting

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The House Redistricting Committee gets to work. It would be easier to draw new State Board of Education districts to reflect the state’s booming Hispanic population growth if there were more than 15 seats, a state lawmaker said Friday while … Continue reading →

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Constable Bailey to step down

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This from last week was a surprise. Harris County’s longest-serving current constable resigned today at commissioners court, upset by the layoffs he said he was forced to make after the county passed its leanest budget in years earlier this month. … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

“Don’t call me, I won’t call you”

Posted on March 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Does anybody use the phone any more? In the last five years, full-fledged adults have seemingly given up the telephone — land line, mobile, voice mail and all. According to Nielsen Media, even on cellphones, voice spending has been trending … Continue reading →

Posted in Society and cultcha | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Weekend link dump for March 27

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Spring is here, spring is here, life is skittles and life is beer… All talk, and no action, that’s our Republican Congress. The only quibble I have with this is that it needed to give more hate to people who … Continue reading →

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More on the drainage fee exemptions

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the Chron story about the Mayor’s change in direction to exempt churches and schools from the new drainage fee. Under previous numbers published by the administration, exempting those institutions would raise the monthly fee on other property owners by … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

School district reserves

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Rick Perry sure does like the idea of spending other people’s money. Pressed on using the Rainy Day Fund to help close of the state’s massive budget shortfall and avoid dramatic cuts, particularly to school funding, Gov. Rick Perry earlier … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

St. Joseph’s Hospital on the auction block

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Another ownership change is coming for the venerable hospital. St. Joseph Medical Center, Houston’s oldest hospital, will be put up for auction next month, five years after its then-Catholic owners sold majority shares to a North Carolina-based for-profit company. Hospital … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , | 1 Comment

New judge in DeLay associates’ case

Posted on March 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Meet the new judge, fourth in a series: The co-defendants of Tom DeLay, who was convicted last fall of conspiring to launder corporate money into political donations, will be tried before state District Judge David Crain, according to a court … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: Ease on down the road

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

We took the girls to see a children’s-theater production of “The Wizard of Oz” last weekend, and that made me think of this: Alas, I couldn’t find a clip of this from the movie, but if you just want to … Continue reading →

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No more free tows

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Change is coming to SafeClear – it will now cost $50 for a tow on a highway inside the city, instead of it being provided for free. Passing the cost of towing to motorists is expected to save the city … Continue reading →

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Smaller cuts from the Senate

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Trail Blazers: The Senate Finance Committee on Thursday adopted a school funding plan for the next two years that would cut basic funding for school districts by nearly 6 percent – or $2 billion a year – to handle a … Continue reading →

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I-10 service road update

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From Ultimate Heights: Two of six planned detention ponds are under construction near Interstate 10 east of Patterson Street, along with new feeder roads between Shepherd and Taylor. Work on the project began in October, with the first two detention … Continue reading →

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District H redistricting town hall meeting

Posted on March 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: City of Houston Redistricting 2011 Town Hall Meeting (District H) Mayor Annise D. Parker District H Council Member Edward Gonzalez City of Houston Attorney Dave Feldman Monday, March 28, 2011 6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m. Jefferson Davis High … Continue reading →

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City caves on drainage fee for churches

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Mayor Parker Announces New Rebuild Houston Funding Plan with Exemptions and Assistance for Low Income Mayor Annise Parker today announced that she will ask City Council next week to approve a new Rebuild Houston funding plan that … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: The 1950s

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The 1950s. Poodle skirts, greasy kid stuff, James Dean, and some pretty good music. 1. Walkin’ Blues – Muddy Waters (1950) 2. All The Things You Are – Dizzy Gillespie (1953) 3. Rock Around The Clock – Bill Haley and … Continue reading →

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