WEEKLY REPORT
October 7, 2011
Supply Pinch in Texas Electricity Rules
Low wholesale prices have prompted power companies to defer construction of generating plants and shutter old units, cutting supplies. Meanwhile, demand hit record levels this year, due to extreme heat and continuing population growth. Texas came close to rolling blackouts this summer and had rolling blackouts in February when electricity supplies gave out during a cold snap.
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Early GOP slate forms
A handful of candidates have made public their plans to run for a number of Denton County seats in the 2012 election and challenge Republican incumbents.
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DFW workers’ cost of healthcare benefits to rise 10% next year
North Texas workers can expect their cost of healthcare benefits to rise more than 10 percent next year, according to a new forecast by benefits consultant Aon Hewitt.
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New insurance commissioner says politics won’t guide her decisions
New Texas Insurance Commissioner Eleanor Kitzman sought to assure a Senate committee Tuesday that politics will not be a consideration as she leads the state agency that regulates the insurance industry. Questioned by some senators about her previous stint as director of the South Carolina Department of Insurance and her subsequent race for lieutenant governor of that state, Kitzman replied, “My reputation as insurance commissioner in South Carolina was not one of partisanship or undue favoritism.” Kitzman lost the GOP primary for lieutenant governor of South Carolina last year.
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Fixing school finance system on next Legislative agenda, Duncan says
State government is shrinking. Many attribute the big drop to the $15 billion in budget cuts lawmakers passed in this year’s legislative session. They kicked in on Sept. 1. But these cuts didn’t come as a shock to state agencies; they’ve been preparing for the budget deficit — and dropping employees — for more than a year.
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More hoops for Homestead Exemption
The party’s over: As of Sept. 1, homeowners applying for a new property tax homestead exemption must show proof they actually live in the home they claim as their principal domicile.
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Student loans expansion on ballot
When voters go to the polls Nov. 8, they will decide on a constitutional amendment to allow the state to expand a long-running student loan program.
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Texas juvenile justice reforms working, group says
Reforms instituted in the wake of 2007 allegations of widespread sexual abuse of minors in Texas Youth Commission facilities have led to dramatic improvements in the way the state deals with young offenders, according to a national juvenile justice study released Tuesday.
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State tax revenues on the rebound
Texas tax revenues have bounced back to levels nearly equal to pre-recession levels, indicating that the economy is in recovery, the state’s chief revenue estimator said Wednesday.
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Staples stumps for more border security at Irving council meeting
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples spoke to the Irving City Council on Wednesday about the ongoing statewide drought and Texas-Mexico border security in what was billed as an update on state affairs.
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Texas Facing at Least Two School Funding lawsuits
During the legislative session earlier this year, David Thompson received a message from a Republican lawmaker on the floor of the House.
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Budget expert: Texas will have $7 billion surplus in 2013
Texas will have $7 billion in its main reserve fund by January 2013, the state’s chief revenue estimator told lawmakers Wednesday, a projection deemed overly pessimistic by a senior Republican legislator.
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UT medical school should be ‘world-class’, Powers says
The University of Texas wants to establish a “world-class medical school,” the university’s president said Thursday.
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Girls schools like Ann Richards scrutinized in academic paper
Austin school district officials had the name of the district’s celebrated all-girls school removed from a controversial academic paper published in a prestigious science journal last month.
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John Carona joins Royce West in opposition to Confederate license plate
Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, joined his Democratic colleague Sen. Royce West in urging state officials to reject a license plate design that honors the Confederacy and displays the rebel flag.
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Some state workers get juicy incentive to retire
Some state agencies looking to trim their payrolls in recent months did so in part by giving employees a financial incentive to leave.
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Texas Doctors Experiment With Care, Payment Models
At Village Health Partners, a comprehensive medical practice in this Dallas suburb, patients receive a year’s worth of wellness exams in a single visit, get their e-mails answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and have their mammogram or MRI results logged into their electronic medical record by the time they pull out of the parking lot.
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Out of the Smoke-Filled Room and Onto the Internet
The concept of crowdsourcing — soliciting information from a wide range of people responding to an open call over the Internet — is drawing some interest at the Capitol and could play a significant role in the way Texas lawmakers handle a key issue next session.
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Half of Texas doctors may quit Medicare if cuts enacted, survey finds
Half of Texas physicians would consider withdrawing from the Medicare program if Congress allows a forthcoming deep cut in reimbursement payments, Texas Medical Association officials said Thursday.
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