Eye on Williamson (Free subscription) | 11/20/2009
As Texas Speaker of the House Joe Straus writes to the members of the Texas House in the cover letter to the interim charges he laid out yesterday, “..these charges and the recommendations you develop will form the basis for major legislation we will consider next session”. The letter also made clear that some things [...]
Burnt Orange Report (Free subscription) | 11/20/2009
Yesterday, Teas House Speaker Joe Straus released Interim Charges to his committees. You can look at them here (.pdf). In a letter to members, Speaker Straus stated, "these charges and the recommendations you develop will form the basis for major legislation we will consider next session." The following is the third charge given to the House Committee on Elections: Examine...
Houston Chronicle (Free subscription) | 11/24/2009
AUSTIN – State Comptroller Susan Combs warned lawmakers today the state does not have much wiggle room in keeping the current two-year budget balanced.She said in a letter to Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, House Speaker Joe Straus and lawmakers that the state will have $77.7 billion in general revenues available to support $77.6 billion in related appropriations in the current two-year...
Dallas Morning News (Free subscription) | 11/23/2009
... that 2008 Republican presidential nominee John McCain's policies were "awful." And as state Rep. Joe Straus lined up the votes to become Texas House speaker in January, she called the San Antonio Republican a "radical" who was out of step with the conservative GOP.She also has been a consistent thorn in the side of the state's senior U.S. senator, , who has riled Adams by supporting abortion...
Burnt Orange Report (Free subscription) | 11/15/2009
... the momentum to oust Craddick from the dias. McCall was also one of the key 11 Republicans to put Joe Straus in charge of the more evenly split Texas legislature. In other words, with McCall gone, Straus may have a more serious challenge to remain Speaker. As the Texas Tribune write: He's the chairman of the Calendars Committee that sets the House's daily agenda and decides which...
Burnt Orange Report (Free subscription) | 11/18/2009
... writes dirty jokes (bodice rippers, anyway), Abbott doesn’t get the joke, and House Speaker Joe Straus and Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson would rather be at the track or the gun range, respectively, no joke. Oh, I almost forgot to mention that while teabaggers do their best to redraw a Mason-Dixon line along the Red River, most moderate Texans are alarmed that they can’t afford...
Off the Kuff (Free subscription) | 11/16/2009
... on a high note,” McCall said. “So few in politics know when to get off the stage.” House Speaker Joe Straus praised McCall as a friend, leader and consensus builder. “His career has been nothing short of outstanding,” said Straus, R-San Antonio. “He helped set the tone for effective governing in the House.” McCall is a well-respected member, and he certainly has my thanks for his...
NewsWatch: Energy (Free subscription) | 11/16/2009
... according to ET, that in 2007 the Texas Legislature passed HB 3693 by then-Rep. (now Speaker) Joe Straus, doubling the mandate on utilities to 20 percent of load growth by 2010. It also directed the PUC to study whether increasing the program to 50 percent of load growth is technically possible. Their findings? Yep, and it could save Texans as much $11.9 billion on their electric bills.The...
