Monthly Archives: April 2019

Two items about MJ Hegar and John Cornyn

Posted on April 30, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Ross Ramsey makes an obvious but necessary point about the fight MJ Hegar hopes to have with John Cornyn. It was money that made [Hegar’s close race in 2018 against Rep. John Carter] possible, just as money made O’Rourke’s challenge … Continue reading →

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Why would any Dem Senator change their mind on Whitley?

Posted on April 30, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t think of a good answer to that, but the man himself is going to try. Acting Secretary of State David Whitley, whose confirmation has been stalled in the Texas Senate after a controversial advisory from his office questioned … Continue reading →

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School finance and property tax update

Posted on April 30, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From last week. Blasting the Senate for taking a symbolic approach on school district taxes, a panel of House lawmakers heavily altered then approved the upper chamber’s version of priority property tax legislation late Thursday. And committee members pointedly included … Continue reading →

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April 2019 campaign finance reports: Congress

Posted on April 29, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It’s April, and that means it’s time once again to review campaign finance reports for Congressional candidates. The January roundup is here, which closed out the 2017-18 election cycle; these reports are the first ones for the 2019-20 cycle. A … Continue reading →

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A first attempt at regulating scooters

Posted on April 29, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

A bill by Sen. Royce West may impose some rules on e-scooters. Under existing law, a city or county may prohibit the operation of a motor-assisted scooter on a street, highway or sidewalk if its governing body finds the prohibition … Continue reading →

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The “Texas Serengeti”

Posted on April 29, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

How cool is this? During the Great Depression, some unemployed Texans were put to work as fossil hunters. The workers retrieved tens of thousands of specimens that have been studied in small bits and pieces while stored in the state … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for April 28

Posted on April 28, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

“The problem is that this authority has been bestowed too hastily. Algorithms are increasingly found to be making mistakes. Whether it’s a sexist hiring algorithm developed by Amazon, conspiracy theories promoted by the Google search engine or an IBM facial-recognition … Continue reading →

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So what’s with Joaquin?

Posted on April 28, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Nobody knows but him. From the nation’s capitol to the state capitol, the scuttlebutt was that Democratic U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro would announce within days — if not hours — his campaign for U.S. Senate. That was four weeks ago. … Continue reading →

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Meet the new marriage license

Posted on April 28, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Time for a change. A sketched portrait of a bride and groom has been nixed from Harris County-issued marriage licenses to make the records more inclusive to “all unions, backgrounds and faiths,” according to clerk officials. The ornate image of … Continue reading →

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A closer look at how Texas strongly discourages voting

Posted on April 28, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Well, it strongly discourages some people from voting. Julieta Garibay, a native of Mexico City, was brought to Texas by her mother when she was 12. For 26 years, she was told to assimilate and stay quiet so people wouldn’t … Continue reading →

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Settlement officially reached in lawsuits over bogus SOS advisory

Posted on April 27, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Great news. Three months after first questioning the citizenship status of almost 100,000 registered voters, the Texas secretary of state has agreed to end a review of the voter rolls for supposed noncitizens that was flawed from the start. The … Continue reading →

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House liberalizes beer sales

Posted on April 27, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It was a bit of shenanigans, but all things considered that seems entirely fitting. The Texas House voted Thursday to extend beer and wine sales on Sundays and to let craft breweries to sell beer to go. Those new expansions … Continue reading →

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Senior stoners

Posted on April 27, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Makes a lot of sense, really. Most states now have legal medical marijuana, and 10 of them, including California, allow anyone 21 or older to use pot recreationally. The federal government still outlaws the drug even as acceptance increases. The … Continue reading →

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Where the Republicans think they’re vulnerable

Posted on April 26, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Always good to get the opposing perspective on these things. Eight House Republicans, including the three from districts won by Hillary Clinton in 2016, have been named to the National Republican Congressional Committee’s list of incumbents expected to face tough … Continue reading →

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Injunction granted against Texas anti-Israel boycott law

Posted on April 26, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: A federal court today ruled that a Texas law that requires government contractors to certify that they are not engaged in boycotts of Israel or companies that do business with Israel is unconstitutional. The judge ruled that … Continue reading →

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Missing In Harris County Day

Posted on April 26, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I had no idea this was a thing. Last year, 40,175 children were reported missing in Texas (over 9,600 of these from the Greater Houston area). And while many of these cases ended up solved, as of December 31, 8,360 … Continue reading →

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Add CD10 to the contested primaries list

Posted on April 25, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

It has been that way for awhile now, but I’m only just noticing that there is a second candidate for the Democratic nomination in CD10. This Statesman story, which is about the multiple Congressional districts being targeted by Democrats for … Continue reading →

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Council approves firefighter layoffs

Posted on April 25, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

And here we are. City Council voted Wednesday to send 60-day layoff notices to 220 Houston firefighters to help pay for Proposition B, the voter-approved measure giving firefighters equal pay to police officers of corresponding rank and experience. The 10-6 … Continue reading →

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Why is allowing ads on Metro buses so hard?

Posted on April 25, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron editorial board weighs in. The Metropolitan Transit Authority should proceed cautiously as it considers lifting its ban on commercial advertising on buses, rail cars, stations and shelters. That prohibition has served Houston well over the years, working together … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of April 22

Posted on April 25, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance presents its complete and unredacted blog roundup for the week to you.

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Hegar is in for the Senate

Posted on April 24, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Boom. Former Democratic congressional candidate MJ Hegar is running for U.S. Senate in 2020. Hegar, a former Air Force helicopter pilot, mounted a high-profile bid to unseat U.S. Rep. John Carter, R-Round Rock, in November, fueled by attention-grabbing ads and … Continue reading →

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Looks like we’re headed for a vote on Daylight Saving Time

Posted on April 24, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Ugh. On Tuesday, The Texas House passed the first proposal in a two-part legislative plan that would kill twice-a-year time changes and let voters decide in November on Texas’ permanent time. The measure passed on a 133-9 vote. Proposals to … Continue reading →

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Off and running for Council

Posted on April 24, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I confess I haven’t paid very much attention to the Houston city races so far. Part of that is the existential angst I feel at being forced to take seriously anything Bill King or Tony Buzbee says, and part of … Continue reading →

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Republicans have no incentive to worry about redistricting being used against them

Posted on April 23, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

I appreciate the thrust of this story, but it omits a key fact. One way to determine if Texas is truly gerrymandered is to compare the total vote share that Republican and Democratic candidates for the U.S. Congress received in … Continue reading →

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Off to mediation we go

Posted on April 23, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Hope for the best, y’all. Mediation soon will begin in a lawsuit between the Houston police and firefighters unions over Proposition B, the voter-approved measure that gives firefighters equal pay to police officers. In a Monday morning filing, State District … Continue reading →

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Early voting for the May elections has begun

Posted on April 23, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Early Voting for the May 4, 2019 Joint Election starts Monday, April 22 and ends on Tuesday, April 30. During that period, Harris County voters may vote at any of the 25 Early Voting locations designated throughout … Continue reading →

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DCCC polls Trump in three target districts

Posted on April 22, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

News flash: Donald Trump is not very popular. Surveys the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee recently conducted found that 41 percent of voters approved of Trump’s job performance in Texas’ 24th congressional district, where Rep. Kenny Marchant serves, while 44 percent … Continue reading →

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Ogg hires Bradford

Posted on April 22, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

A familiar face for the DA’s office. Former Houston City Councilmember and Police Chief C.O. “Brad” Bradford has joined the Harris County District Attorney’s Office as a senior adviser. District Attorney Kim Ogg has hired Bradford to serve in a … Continue reading →

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We are still talking about Metro maybe allowing ads

Posted on April 22, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This is one of the longer ongoing story lines I’ve followed on this blog. The red and blue stripes on Metro’s buses and trains soon could be joined by advertisements for Red Lobster and Blue Bell, a nod to the … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for April 21

Posted on April 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

“The number of multistate lawsuits filed so far against Trump is twice the number filed against President Barack Obama during his second term, when the spike in such lawsuits started.” “If you’ve ever fallen in love with someone whose main … Continue reading →

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One more for CD24

Posted on April 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Another contested primary. Democrat Candace Valenzuela, a 34-year-old Carrollton-Farmers Branch school board member, is launching a campaign Monday against Texas GOP Rep. Kenny Marchant, one of the party’s top targets in 2020. She will face an uphill battle for her … Continue reading →

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We’re still figuring out how to do development in a floodplain

Posted on April 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The Greater Houston Flood Mitigation Consortium has released dual research reports that examine current standards in the area’s drainage, detention, and development regulations. The reports also include findings that encourage implementation of new and updated flood management infrastructure approaches … Continue reading →

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Here comes the Kroger driverless grocery delivery car

Posted on April 21, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Who wants to order some groceries, in certain selected ZIP codes? Kroger, the nation’s largest grocer, has launched a self-driving grocery delivery service in Houston, the latest salvo in a hyper-competitive grocery market that has supermarket chains investing heavily in … Continue reading →

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Mediation ordered in Prop B lawsuit

Posted on April 20, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This ought to be interesting. A state district judge on Thursday ordered the city, the Houston Professional Fire Fighters Association and the Houston Police Officers’ Union to enter into mediation as they seek to resolve lingering differences over the implementation … Continue reading →

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