Tag Archives: The Lege

The Republican attack on Harris County voting

Posted on March 15, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

It’s straight up retaliation for Harris County getting positive national attention for going out of its way to make it easier to vote in 2020. Harris County made a big push to expand mail-in and early voting during the 2020 … Continue reading →

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Dutton files bill to enable HISD takeover

Posted on March 12, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever else you may say, this is true to his beliefs. Texas House Public Education Chairman Harold Dutton Jr. filed a bill Tuesday that, if it passes and withstands any legal challenge, would virtually guarantee the ouster of Houston ISD’s … Continue reading →

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Bills to allow casinos filed

Posted on March 11, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t bet on them, that’s my advice. Two Texas lawmakers on Tuesday filed legislation backed by the gaming empire Las Vegas Sands that would legalize casino gambling in Texas. The legislation was filed by Rep. John Kuempel, R-Seguin, in the … Continue reading →

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Beto’s “We can win” message

Posted on March 11, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Beto O’Rourke offers a blueprint for how Democrats can win in Texas. In 2020, Joe Biden lost by less than Hillary Clinton did in 2016; eleven of the twelve State House seats we won in 2018 were successfully defended, and … Continue reading →

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Twitter sues Paxton

Posted on March 10, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

How the tables have turned. Twitter filed a lawsuit against Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a California federal court Monday and asked a judge to halt the state’s top lawyer from investigating the company. The social media giant’s … Continue reading →

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The opening bid on power outage response

Posted on March 9, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Not bad, but there’s a long way to go and not a lot of detail just yet. Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan on Monday announced seven priority bills responding to the winter weather crisis last month that left millions of … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: Brazoria County

Posted on March 8, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial Other jurisdictions Appellate courts, Part 1 Appellate courts, Part 2 Judicial averages Other cities District Attorney County Attorney Sheriff Tax Assessor County Clerk HCDE Fort … Continue reading →

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Again with defining the Governor’s powers in an emergency

Posted on March 7, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

The legislative process has begun, and I feel like we’ve already lost the plot. For roughly the past year, Republicans and Democrats have picked apart the state’s response to the coronavirus pandemic — and particularly how Gov. Greg Abbott has … Continue reading →

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ERCOT’s overcharges

Posted on March 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas made a $16 billion error in pricing during the week of the winter storm that caused power outages across the state, according to a filing by its market monitor. Potomac Economics, the independent … Continue reading →

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PUC Chair resigns

Posted on March 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

The body count increases. The chairwoman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas, the agency that regulates the state’s electric, telecommunication, and water and sewer utilities, resigned Monday, according to a resignation letter provided to the Texas Tribune. The Gov. … Continue reading →

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Has Ken Paxton been lying about his travel schedule?

Posted on March 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Would anyone be surprised if he had been? When the media reported that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton had flown to Utah with his wife in the middle of the state’s power crisis last week, Paxton called it a business … Continue reading →

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Who watches the utility overseers?

Posted on February 27, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Apparently, nobody. At least, not anymore. Late last year, as winter approached and power companies prepared for cold weather, Gov. Greg Abbott’s hand-picked utility regulators decided they no longer wanted to work with a nonprofit organization they had hired to … Continue reading →

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Another look at how redistricting may go

Posted on February 27, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

RG Ratcliffe analyzes the geographic and political realities the Republicans face as they try to maximize their haul from the 2021 reapportionment. Rick Perry famously called West Texas—a sparse land with few trees or humans—the Big Empty. The 92,016 square … Continue reading →

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Dan Patrick’s priorities

Posted on February 26, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

They haven’t changed. He might have had to shoehorn in a thing or two because he’s not stupid and he knows he had a close call in 2018, but the essence of Dan Patrick is eternal. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick … Continue reading →

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We need more focus on the Public Utility Commission

Posted on February 25, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s start with this tweet: . Just to repeat again. ERCOT is not a state regulator. It is a group overseen by the Public Utility Commission, a group that has so far escaped much of the scrutiny focused on ERCOT. … Continue reading →

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Harris County considers its ERCOT responses

Posted on February 25, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe ERCOT isn’t right for us. Harris County should consider leaving the state’s main power grid after it failed to prevent widespread blackouts for more than half of Houston-area residents last week, Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia said Monday. Garcia … Continue reading →

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Suing Griddy

Posted on February 24, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This is going to be interesting. A Chambers County resident filed a class-action lawsuit against electricity retailer Griddy on Monday, accusing the provider of price gouging customers during last week’s freeze. She is seeking $1 billion in relief for affected … Continue reading →

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Have Texas Republicans finally damaged themselves?

Posted on February 22, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Some of them have. How much remains to be seen. The brutal winter storm that turned Texas roads to ice, burst pipes across the state and left millions of residents shivering and without power has also damaged the reputations of three of the … Continue reading →

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Republicans are determined to learn the wrong lessons from the blackouts

Posted on February 20, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

It’s kind of amazing, and yet completely on brand. With millions of Texans having lost power during the winter storms, key players in the Legislature say one of the most immediate reforms they will push for is recalibrating the state’s … Continue reading →

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It could have been worse

Posted on February 19, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Hard to imagine, but this would qualify. Texas’ power grid was “seconds and minutes” away from a catastrophic failure that could have left Texans in the dark for months, officials with the entity that operates the grid said Thursday. As … Continue reading →

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So what’s going on with the power supply?

Posted on February 17, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

First, as a personal update, we have been without power at our house since about 7 PM on Monday, and we had no Internet on Tuesday morning. I’m writing this on Tuesday evening from my in-laws’ house, where they have … Continue reading →

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Getting rid of racist deed restrictions

Posted on February 15, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Let’s get this done. A bill was proposed in the Texas Legislature two years ago that sought to make it easier for homeowners to remove unconstitutional, unenforceable and discriminatory provisions from real property records. State Sen. John Whitmire said he … Continue reading →

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We’re not going to be able to have our primaries in March

Posted on February 14, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the obvious conclusion from this. Texas lawmakers will almost certainly be back for a rare special legislative session in the fall now that the U.S. Census Bureau has set a September deadline for releasing the 2020 census results. Facing … Continue reading →

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The “Star Spangled Banner Protection Act”

Posted on February 13, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

You can’t make this stuff up. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced Wednesday that requiring the national anthem to be played “at all events which receive public funding” will be among his top legislative priorities this session. The “Star Spangled … Continue reading →

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Appellate court redistricting

Posted on February 10, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll need to keep an eye on this. Justices on the state’s 14 intermediate appellate courts are talking—some are concerned—about a pair of bills filed in the Texas Legislature that propose redistricting the courts’ boundaries. House Bill 339 by Rep. … Continue reading →

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The Sports Betting Alliance

Posted on February 10, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Keep an eye on this. A new alliance of major Texas sports teams has announced they will be backing legislation to allow for sports betting in Texas. The Dallas Cowboys, the Texas Rangers, and the Dallas Mavericks are among the … Continue reading →

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Will the Lege cut Ken Paxton’s budget?

Posted on February 9, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

The first draft budget includes a significant cut, but it’s early days. Already under investigation by the FBI and facing calls to resign from both the left and the right, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton now has the Texas Legislature … Continue reading →

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Abortion’s going to get more illegal

Posted on February 7, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

It’s just a question of how much. Republican lawmakers, buoyed by a conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court and the trouncing of state-level Democrats in the November election, are pushing to reclaim Texas’ role as the vanguard among states … Continue reading →

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How Greg Abbott wants to restrict voting

Posted on February 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

More from that Trib story following the State of the State address. As part of his State of the State speech, Abbott designated five emergency items, or items that lawmakers can vote on within the first 60 days of session. … Continue reading →

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Getting the kids caught up at school

Posted on February 6, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Gonna be a big job, and hopefully we can do it in earnest beginning in August. With students finally settling into a pandemic-altered routine and widespread vaccine access on the horizon, Texas education leaders are turning to their next great … Continue reading →

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What should the Governor’s powers be in a future emergency?

Posted on February 5, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

He admits there could maybe be some limits, but as is often the case has no great idea what they might be. Gov. Greg Abbott said Tuesday he is open to reconsidering his executive powers during state emergencies, a point … Continue reading →

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Why isn’t COVID an emergency item?

Posted on February 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Ask Greg Abbott. Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday unveiled a legislative agenda centered on the state’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic and a series of more politically charged issues such as police funding and “election integrity.” In his biennial State … Continue reading →

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It’s not a legislative session without an attack on transgender rights

Posted on February 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

They’re targeting kids, because of course they are. Texas Republicans are again trying to limit the ways transgender youth can participate in athletics. Lawmakers have filed legislation that would ban transgender girls and women who attend public K-12 schools, colleges … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: Fort Bend County, part 1

Posted on February 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Introduction Congressional districts State Rep districts Commissioners Court/JP precincts Comparing 2012 and 2016 Statewide judicial Other jurisdictions Appellate courts, Part 1 Appellate courts, Part 2 Judicial averages Other cities District Attorney County Attorney Sheriff Tax Assessor County Clerk HCDE I’ve … Continue reading →

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