Tag Archives: Texas Organizing Project

Doing more to get tax breaks

Posted on March 25, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see about this. Companies seeking city tax breaks soon could get a boost if they commit to providing additional community benefits – such as workforce housing, paid internships for low-income students or jobs for those who previously were incarcerated … Continue reading →

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TOP releases report on inefficiency of development tax subsidies

Posted on February 7, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: [Thursday], the Texas Organizing Project and the Workers Defense Project released a report on the ineffectiveness of tax subsidies in cities across Texas, and proposed ways to increase requirements for such deals in Houston to offer benefits … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS denies 30-Day Extension in Immigration Case

Posted on December 3, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted twenty-six states an extra eight days to file their response to the Obama administration’s appeal in defense of its broad new immigration policy. That extension — considerably less than the added thirty days … Continue reading →

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Feds respond to request for delay of immigration appeal

Posted on November 29, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Counterpoint: It was the federal government’s move Tuesday, and the U.S. Department of Justice asked the court to reject Texas’ request for a 30-day extension to file its brief in the case, but says it is open to an eight-day … Continue reading →

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Obama appeals immigration order ruling to SCOTUS

Posted on November 21, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

As expected. The Obama administration on Friday asked the United States Supreme Court to review a federal appellate court’s ruling that struck down the president’s controversial immigration program. The request comes exactly one year after the program, called Deferred Action … Continue reading →

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More focus on inequality

Posted on October 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Good to see. As Houston’s mayoral candidates spar over the city’s largely agreed upon top issues – finances, infrastructure and public safety – a fourth policy concern is percolating: economic inequality. Concerns about disparity underpin discussions about the city’s revenue … Continue reading →

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Highlighting wages in the Mayor’s race

Posted on October 3, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Coalition Calls on Next Mayor to Raise Minimum Wage for Publicly Funded Projects Today, a coalition of community and labor organizations staged a tour of of sites that received tax dollars to tell the story of how … Continue reading →

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Harris Health wants more people to enroll in Obamacare

Posted on September 27, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Who can blame them? Harris County’s public health care agency, responding to a budget crisis, will eliminate more than 19,000 people next year from eligibility for free or nearly free services, hoping most of these patients will obtain coverage through … Continue reading →

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TOP/SEIU Mayoral forum report

Posted on July 28, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From David Ortez: After the dust settled, the forum commenced with the hosts explaining the four pillars of their platform. It boiled down to: 1) Good Jobs; 2) Neighborhoods of Opportunity; 3) Infrastructure; and 4) Immigrant Rights. At the end … Continue reading →

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TOP calls for changes in construction incentives

Posted on July 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From Prime Property: Members of the Texas Organizing Project stood with signs across from a 40-story building under construction at Preston and Milam just off the park on downtown’s north side. The group was hoping to draw attention to the … Continue reading →

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Van de Putte and Taylor in SA Mayor runoff

Posted on May 10, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go. Former state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte is set to face San Antonio Mayor Ivy Taylor in a runoff for the city’s top job. With 95 percent of all precincts reporting late Saturday, Van de Putte led … Continue reading →

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The next generation of leaders

Posted on January 6, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The future looks good. A new generation of black activist leadership in Houston has emerged from the protests over the officer-involved deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, and Eric Garner in New York. At one point during a town … Continue reading →

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Don’t forget about Pasadena

Posted on January 5, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

There’s still a lawsuit in the works regarding their 2013 redistricting referendum that switched their Council from an eight-member all-district makeup to six districts and two At large seats, all at the behest of Mayor Johnny Isbell. Pasadena is preparing … Continue reading →

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Expand Medicaid or else

Posted on November 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Turns out the federal government has more leverage over Texas than you might think. If Texas wants to keep receiving billions of federal dollars to help hospitals care for uninsured patients, state lawmakers may have to look again at expanding … Continue reading →

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On Gene Green and representing Latino districts

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been meaning to blog about this story about Rep. Gene Green and CD29 and how the Houston area has never sent a Latino to Congress, but I kept getting stuck and I finally decided I was overthinking it. Two … Continue reading →

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Davis proposes minimum wage increase

Posted on September 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Chronicle buries the lede. Down in the polls and facing an opponent with a cash advantage, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis on Thursday took her campaign to the University of Texas at San Antonio, where she told supporters the … Continue reading →

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Last minute health insurance enrollment help

Posted on March 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The Houston Department of Health and Human Services (HDHHS) will open four of its multi-service centers on Sunday and extend their business hours next Monday to help people sign up for a health insurance plan by the Affordable … Continue reading →

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More Obamacare enrollments, still lots more needed

Posted on March 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

That’s pretty much the story. Texas enrollment in the online insurance marketplace created by the Affordable Care Act rose steadily in February but did not meet expectations set forth by the Obama administration, according to figures that the U.S. Department … Continue reading →

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The Texas Future Project

Posted on March 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting. High-powered Democrats from Texas and California have joined with national labor unions in an effort to mobilize out-of-state donors and raise millions of dollars to build a progressive majority in the Lone Star State that could change state … Continue reading →

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Somewhat less onerous navigator rules published

Posted on January 23, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

They could have been worse, but they could still be better. The Texas Department of Insurance on Tuesday issued state regulations for health care “navigators,” the workers who assist people seeking health insurance in the federal marketplace created by the … Continue reading →

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What next in Pasadena?

Posted on November 11, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Just waiting on the lawsuit at this point. There have been other elections in Pasadena with closer results, but not many. After all of the votes were counted in Tuesday’s (November 5) Charter Amendment election, Proposition One: “Shall the City … Continue reading →

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Enroll SA

Posted on October 2, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

San Antonio leads the way. San Antonio city officials and the area’s largest nonprofit health plan have launched separate websites to help residents understand the federally run health insurance marketplace opening Tuesday. The Affordable Care Act requires most people to … Continue reading →

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Just a reminder that women’s health isn’t the only thing they don’t care about

Posted on July 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

In case you needed one. Texas officials have declined to establish a state-based health insurance marketplace, a major provision of the federal Affordable Care Act. So private organizations are working to educate Texans about coverage options through the federal health … Continue reading →

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Council to consider wage theft ordinance

Posted on July 25, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Houston City Council may step up its efforts to combat wage theft, sanctioning companies that deny workers pay to which they are entitled and monitoring firms accused of doing so, regardless of whether they do business with the … Continue reading →

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Yes, Rick Perry still hates Medicaid

Posted on April 2, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

We’re not surprised by this, right? The Texas rhetoric around a key facet of federal health reform — whether the state will expand subsidized insurance to its poorest adults — reached the high water mark on Monday, with back-to-back press … Continue reading →

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Working the county Medicaid expansion angle

Posted on February 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

As statewide Medicaid expansion is being pushed in Austin, some activists are going to various County Commissioners Courts to push for the county option to expand Medicaid as well. “A broad spectrum of people across business, faith and health care … Continue reading →

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“Reasonable accommodation”

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

According to a legal opinion provided by the City Attorney’s office, Houston must provide “reasonable accommodation” to Southwest Airlines for its proposal to offer international flights at Hobby Airport. In a memo accompanying the legal opinion, City Attorney David Feldman … Continue reading →

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