Hidalgo County Presses Ahead With Disputed Election [1]

By Brandi Grissom, THE TEXAS TRIBUNE, 17 August 2010

Rio Grande Valley officials are fighting to hold a special election in November to fill a seat on the Hidalgo County Commissioners' Court — even though the secretary of state and a district judge say they have no legal authority to do so.

Texas Reps. Kleinschmidt, Rose face challenges from the left, right [2]

By Seamus McAfee, THE TEXAS INDEPENDENT, 16 August 2010

They belong to different parties, but incumbent state Reps. Tim Kleinschmidt (R-Lexington) and Patrick Rose (D-Dripping Springs) have a lot in common. Representing adjacent GOP-leaning districts — filled with suburban and rural voters willing to vote for the right Democrats — both Central Texas lawmakers have walked fine partisan lines to win their seats and must do it again this year if they are to fend off relatively well-funded challengers.

DOJ drops investigation of DeLay's ties to lobbyist [3]

By R.G. Ratcilffe, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 16 August 2010

Former U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay said Monday he is happy to have a federal investigation of his relationship with disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff behind him and is ready to fight Texas ethics charges.

Tom DeLay not surprised that Justice drops ethics probe [4]

By Juan A. Lozano, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 16 August 2010

Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay said Monday that he always knew a Justice Department inquiry of his ties to disgraced ex-lobbyist Jack Abramoff would end without criminal charges being filed against him, because he did nothing wrong.

After 6 Years, Justice Department Drops DeLay Case [5]

By Andy Uhler, KUT NEWS, 17 August 2010

The Justice Department has ended a six-year criminal probe of onetime U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, without filing charges. But as Andy Uhler of KUT News reports, that doesn’t mean the controversial former congressman is off the legal hook.

Conflicting outlooks on state budget [6]

By Kate Alexander, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 16 August 2010

A $1.3 billion deficit is expected in the state's general revenue fund at the end of the current two-year budget, even after factoring in the recently enacted 5 percent budget cuts, according to comptroller's documents.

Sharon Keller's rebuke in mishandled appeal stands [7]

By Chuck Lindell, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 16 August 2010

The Texas Supreme Court on Monday declined to void the public rebuke of Judge Sharon Keller for her role in a botched 2007 death row appeal.

Keller loses appeal to Texas Supreme Court [8]

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 17 August 2010

The Texas Supreme Court refused Monday to overturn a judicial conduct panel's reprimand of the state's highest criminal court judge for her handling of an execution-day appeal.

Keller still fighting 'public warning' [9]

By Gary Scharrer, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 16 August 2010

Sharon Keller, head of the state's highest criminal appeals court, will ask the Texas Supreme Court for a full review of a public warning issued to her after the court rejected her motion Monday for an immediate ruling.

State Rep. Joe Driver of Garland double-billed for travel [10]

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 16 August 2010

State Rep. Joe Driver of Garland, who rails against the evils of runaway government spending, admitted Monday that he has pocketed thousands of dollars in taxpayer money for travel expenses that his campaign had already funded.

Budget shortfall could mean 7,300 layoffs for Texas prisons [11]

By Mike Ward, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 16 August 2010

More than 7,300 criminal justice employees would have to be laid off if Texas' corrections agency is required to cut its spending by 15 percent, officials said Monday, warning that such a move could force the closure of several prisons and endanger public safety.

Undercount could cost El Paso House seat [12]

By Ramon Bracamontes, EL PASO TIMES, 17 August 2010

The county is in danger of losing one of its state representative seats because of possible inaccuracies with the ongoing U.S. Census population count, several elected officials told a Texas House of Representatives committee on Monday.

Food stamps agency requests staffing boost [13]

By Robert T. Garrett, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 17 August 2010

Texas' system for handling requests for food stamps and other aid will require more than 1,900 additional state workers over the next few years to keep up with heavy demand, a top official has told state leaders.

Feds strengthen rules on offshore oil drillers [14]

By Stewart M. Powell, HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 17 August 2010

The Interior Department on Monday announced new rules for offshore oil drilling that will require environmental reviews and an end to exemptions of the type that allowed the Deepwater Horizon rig to operate with scant regulatory oversight.

BP sends state of Texas check in full for oil spill cleanup [15]

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, 17 August 2010

BP has sent nearly $175,000 to the state of Texas to cover the cost of the state cleanup of tar balls from oil washed up on a Galveston beach over the July 4 weekend.

Texas drops play from test after controversy over dialogue [16]

By Aman Batheja, FORT WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 16 August 2010

"For God's sake!" The three-word exclamation is a piece of dialogue from Game Theory, a short play written by Peter Sagal, perhaps better known as host of NPR's news quiz show, Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me! Last month, Sagal learned that his play, about a confrontation at an executive boot camp, would be included in a test given to students in Texas schools. But a problem arose when the state wanted to edit out "for God's sake" and Sagal objected.

Alleged Juárez trafficker extradited in U.S.; 51 die in Juárez [17]

By Daniel Borunda, EL PASO TIMES, 17 August 2010

A suspected Juárez drug trafficker appeared in U.S. District Court in El Paso on Monday after being extradited from Mexico even while rampant bloodshed continued in Juárez.

Lubbock County Commission approves tax rates, raises [18]

By Logan G. Carver, LUBBOCK AVALANCHE-JOURNAL, 17 August 2010

Lubbock County commissioners on Monday approved a raise for all elected officials while keeping the effective tax rate virtually identical to last year’s.

Ambassadors Say Mexico Is Not a Failed State [19]

By Julian Aguilar, THE TEXAS TRIBUNE, 17 August 2010

Along the border, the beheadings and bombings carried out by drug cartels are drawing comparisons to murders by Muslim extremists — not surprising, given the war-like death toll of 8,100 so far this year in Mexico, including about 50 casualties last weekend. Yet diplomats from both sides reject the notion raised regularly by government officials and media outlets that Mexico is a "failed state." The horrors of some communities, they told a border security conference last week in El Paso, overshadow the fact that parts of the country remain stable and are thriving economically.

Seeking Heat Relief, Texas Set Energy Usage Record [20]

By Peter Babb, KUT NEWS, 17 August 2010

It's late August in Texas, which means triple-digit temperatures and air conditioners everywhere cranked to the max. No wonder that, on Monday, the state set an energy consumption record — for the second day in a row. Peter Babb of KUT News has this report.

At Texas colleges, elsewhere administration ranks grow faster than faculty [21]

By Christy Hoppe, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 17 August 2010

The glass offices at the nation's leading universities have filled faster than the classrooms, with new layers of administrators added at twice the rate of faculty and instructors, according to a study being released today.

Green economy could grow big profits in Texas, Waco [22]

By Bill Teeter, WACO TRIBUNE-HERALD, 17 August 2010

With careful cultivation, the renewable energy industry could mean hundreds of thousands of new jobs and billions of dollars for tax accounts in Texas during the next decade, according to a report just released.