Democratic rival says governor failing UTSA [1]

By Melissa Ludwig and Gilbert Garcia, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 20 April 2010

Bill White, Democratic candidate for governor, said Monday at a campaign stop at the University of Texas at San Antonio that UTSA ought to be a Tier One research university and that his opponent, Gov. Rick Perry, has not done enough to support that goal.

Organizations pay big bucks to land Palin for fundraisers [2]

By Anna M. Tinsley, FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 19 April 2010

Organizers say they aren't "allowed to disclose the amount" the organization is paying Sarah Palin for an April 30d event, but reports show that she commands six-figure fees, the kind that some political observers say are usually reserved for former presidents or vice presidents.

Sparring begins for Flores, Edwards [3]

By Matthew Watkins, THE EAGLE, 20 April 2010

U.S. Rep Chet Edwards kept mostly silent while candidates battled in recent months for the Republican nomination to the seat he's held for almost 20 years.

Van Taylor appointed to finish Brian McCall's term in Texas House District 66 [4]

By Theodore Kim, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 20 April 2010

Van Taylor is not running for the Texas House of Representatives until November. But he is being sworn in today.

Pair hope to depose those behind February political mailer [5]

By Aman Batheja, FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 19 April 2010

Two local judicial candidates, one a sitting judge, have taken their unhappiness with a political mailer from this year's primary season to the courtroom.

Supreme Court turns down appeal of Texas inmate tried in court of amorous judge, prosecutor [6]

By Chuck Lindell, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 19 April 2010

The U.S. Supreme Court rejected an appeal Monday from Charles Dean Hood, a Texas death row inmate who complained that he was denied a fair trial because his trial judge and prosecutor had engaged in a secret years-long affair.

Subpoenas issued in Fort Hood shootings [7]

By Gary Martin, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 20 April 2010

A Senate committee pressed its confrontation with the Obama administration Monday, issuing subpoenas for documents and witnesses its chairman considers crucial to an investigation of last year's Fort Hood massacre.

$153,800 Per Arrest [8]

By Brandi Grissom, THE TEXAS TRIBUNE, 20 April 2010

Gov. Rick Perry has invested $4 million in the Texas Border Watch Program over two years. Twenty-nine cameras have been installed on the 1,200-mile Texas-Mexico border, or one camera for every 41 miles of border. Internet viewers have helped police make a total of 26 arrests — that’s about $153,800 per arrest. And some border law agencies are not even using the cameras for police work. "Tell me, tell me, what is a camera going to do? asks Sheriff Omar Lucio of Cameron County. "I never thought it would work, and I don't believe it will work."

State legislators told of HOA fines, foreclosure threats [9]

By Robert T. Garrett, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 19 April 2010

Lawmakers say they have tried to write laws in recent years to prevent homeowners associations from gouging and abusing property owners, but more might need to be done.

Houston council may consider higher water hikes [10]

By Bradley Olson, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 19 April 2010

The Houston City Council may vote this week to raise water rates by nearly 30 percent on an average residential household, more than twice the increase Mayor Annise Parker proposed earlier this month.

Lockdowns becoming common among area schools [11]

By Jared Taylor, THE MONITOR, 20 April 2010

For schools in the Rio Grande Valley, concerns about border violence have compounded fears of school shootings that have made national headlines since the massacre at Columbine High School near Denver in 1998.

Net Neutrality Neutralized [12]

By Ross Ramsey, THE TEXAS TRIBUNE, 20 April 2010

FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell on why people who use more bandwith should pay more, what he thinks of the recent court decision preventing restrictions on "information service" providers, and more.

Panel punts decision on Governor's Mansion addition [13]

By Mike Ward, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 19 April 2010

In a surprise move, a state board that was expected to choose between two plans for an addition to Texas' historic Governor's Mansion declined Monday to choose one plan over the other.

FBI firing range proposal faces vote [14]

By Melissa Ludwig, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 20 April 2010

The FBI wants to build a firearms training facility at the Alamo Colleges' First Responders Academy near Von Ormy, putting up $1.3 million to front the cost.

City to get update on traffic-cam program [15]

By David Burge, EL PASO TIMES, 20 April 2010

Police say more than 75,000 motorists have been caught running red lights by city cameras in the past 3 1/2 years.

Money for Waco's new high-tech research center beginning to arrive [16]

By Mike Copeland, WACO TRIBUNE-HERALD, 20 April 2010

Nearly $30 million committed to making the former General Tire plant a high-tech research center has started arriving, and one official said the hammers should start swinging within a month or two.

Appraisals to drop for most Williamson homeowners [17]

By Laylan Copelin, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 19 April 2010

Two-thirds of Williamson County taxpayers should see lower values when notices for 2010 property appraisals are mailed next week, Chief Appraiser Alvin Lankford said Monday.

Rainfall fills reservoirs and saves local water district money [18]

By Bill Hanna, FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 19 April 2010

While local water providers will be nervously watching the skies later this week for the risk of flooding rains, there is a benefit from all the wet weather.

911 tapes reveal concern after plane crash [19]

By Asher Price, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 19 April 2010

In response to requests made under the Texas Public Information Act, the Austin Police Department released the recordings of dozens of 911 calls placed Feb. 18 after Andrew Joseph Stack III flew his plane into a building housing Internal Revenue Service offices in Northwest Austin. Authorities deleted the names of callers from the recordings.

Learning under fire: Tension mounts as extortion threats escalate [20]

By Maggie Ybarra, EL PASO TIMES, 20 April 2010

Trinidad Vazquez says he spends each day waiting for a death threat. His job is innocent enough, as he teaches English at a small school he owns on the south side of Juárez. But for the past year, Vazquez, 40, said he has expected a phone call from drug cartel members demanding protection money and threatening to kill him if he cannot pay.

Harris County jail open to all comers again [21]

By Chris Moran, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 19 April 2010

Houston police are back to arresting people for low-level traffic offenses now that the sheriff is able to accept all arrivals at the county's booking center.

Dallas County retains state's worst HIV infection rate [22]

By Sherry Jacobson, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 19 April 2010

Dallas County had the highest HIV infection rate in the state in 2008 and has held that distinction for a number of years, county health officials acknowledged Monday.

Whitewater park for kayakers planned on Trinity River in Dallas despite water quality concerns [23]

By Steve Thompson, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 20 April 2010

The Trinity River, which often seems like a dirty drainage canal, may soon be home to kayakers splashing in specially created rapids.

S.A. home sales showing strong gains [24]

By Jennifer Hiller, SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 19 April 2010

Sales of existing homes zoomed up 28 percent in March, compared with the same month in 2009, as more than 1,700 homes sold, according to the latest data from the San Antonio Board of Realtors.

Proposed athletic fee up for student vote [25]

By Adriana Gómez Licón, EL PASO TIMES, 20 April 2010

Students at the University of Texas at El Paso will vote Wednesday on a tuition hike to subsidize intercollegiate sports.