Tag Archives: Comptroller

Court blocks changes to Historically Underutilized Business Program

Posted on April 14, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A Travis County district court judge granted a request for a temporary injunction to block the latest rule changes to the state’s Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) program. The injunction reverts HUB program back to its original regulations, but the … Continue reading →

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We have our first real voucher loophole

Posted on April 9, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Surely not the last. A Florida-based virtual school could receive Texas taxpayer funds through the state’s new $1 billion private school voucher program, despite provisions in the law meant to block out-of-state schools from joining the program. State records show … Continue reading →

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Harris County files amicus brief in lawsuit over the Historically Underutilized Business Program

Posted on April 5, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Harris County filed an amicus brief supporting plaintiffs in Ipsum General Contractors, LLC, et al. v. Kelly Hancock, et al., urging the court to restore the State of Texas’s Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Program and halt recent … Continue reading →

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Vouchers are for white private school kids

Posted on April 4, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Shocking, I know. Most of Texas’ school voucher applications come from white families and children who previously attended a private school or home-school. The Texas comptroller’s office, which manages the program, released preliminary data before applications for families interested in … Continue reading →

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Paxton-Hancock slap fight

Posted on March 27, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Oh yeah. Bring it on. Attorney General Ken Paxton has called for acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock to be removed from office, in a fiery social media tirade responding to a letter Hancock sent accusing Paxton of falling short in his efforts to … Continue reading →

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Voucher deadline extended after hearing in Islamic schools’ lawsuit

Posted on March 19, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Not a surprise, at least to me. Texas families now have two more weeks to apply to the state’s new voucher program after a federal judge the deadline extended to March 31, citing concerns that no Islamic schools have been … Continue reading →

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Second lawsuit filed over Muslim schools’ exclusion from voucher program

Posted on March 14, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Not a surprise. A group of Islamic schools and Muslim parents sued the Texas Comptroller’s office Wednesday, accusing state leaders of religious discrimination for blocking Islamic schools from Texas’ $1 billion private school voucher program. The case marks the second lawsuit this … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over Comptroller’s anti-minority business program shenanigans

Posted on March 7, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Four business owners and a trade association sued the state of Texas on Monday, seeking to reverse acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock’s emergency rules altering a state program intended to give additional exposure to economically disadvantaged groups in government contracting. … Continue reading →

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Initial thoughts on the 2026 primaries

Posted on March 5, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

We don’t have full turnout numbers yet, but as of Wednesday some 363,826 votes were cast in the Democratic primary for Senate in Harris County, while there were 197,389 votes cast on the Republican side. About 140K votes were cast … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over Muslim schools’ exclusion from voucher program

Posted on March 5, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Yet another seemingly clear-cut First Amendment violation. It’s like it’s a habit around here. A Houston-area parent is suing state officials, accusing them of religious discrimination for barring Islamic schools from participating in Texas’ private school voucher program. The plaintiff, Mehdi Cherkaoui, … Continue reading →

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2026 primary results: Statewide

Posted on March 4, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

We have to start with this: The Texas Supreme Court suspended a district court’s decision Tuesday to extend voting by two hours in Dallas County and ordered that any votes cast by people who got in line after 7 p.m. … Continue reading →

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Anti-fossil fuel boycott law ruled unconstitutional

Posted on February 8, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A federal district judge on Wednesday declared a 2021 law restricting state investments in companies boycotting the fossil fuel industry unconstitutional, calling it “facially overbroad” and citing First and Fourteenth Amendment concerns. Legislators passed Senate Bill 13 as a … Continue reading →

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Of course Republicans have a big financial edge in the statewide races

Posted on January 20, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

What did you expect? Republicans running for state-level offices in Texas vastly outraised their Democratic counterparts in the second half of 2025, raising questions about whether the minority party’s statewide nominees will have enough resources to seize on what is … Continue reading →

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We bought some strategic Bitcoin

Posted on December 12, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Yippie. The state of Texas recently purchased about $5 million worth of bitcoin through a BlackRock-administered exchange-traded fund, a representative for the state comptroller’s office confirmed in an email to The Dallas Morning News on Monday. The purchase came several months after … Continue reading →

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Deadline Day roundup, part 2

Posted on December 10, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Part 1 is here. So far I haven’t found much that wasn’t known at deadline time. It’s an odd year for there to be so few true last-minute surprises, but here we are. A few items to note: – There’s … Continue reading →

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Deadline Day roundup, part 1

Posted on December 9, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I’m putting Part 1 in the headline because there’s always some delays between filings at county headquarters and what you can see on the SOS candidate filings page. I was waiting on the Jasmine Crockett announcement as I began this, … Continue reading →

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SD09 special election set for November

Posted on July 1, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

This could, and hopefully will, be interesting. Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday set a special election for Nov. 4 to fill the Texas Senate seat vacated by Republican Kelly Hancock, who resigned from the Legislature earlier this month to become the acting state comptroller. The … Continue reading →

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Abbott appoints Sen. Hancock as Comptroller

Posted on June 20, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

New guy alert. Republican state Sen. Kelly Hancock launched his campaign for state comptroller Thursday shortly after taking a senior position at the comptroller’s office. His appointment as chief clerk to Comptroller Glenn Hegar paves the way for Hanock, a … Continue reading →

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Abbott will be appointing a new Comptroller soon

Posted on June 5, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Just a reminder. And that person will have a lot more influence than usual coming out of the gate. Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to choose a new state comptroller in the next few weeks, who will have an outsized … Continue reading →

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Comptroller Hegar to be next A&M Chancellor

Posted on March 9, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Congrats, now try not to screw it up. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar will be the next chancellor of the Texas A&M University System, overseeing 11 universities that educate more than 157,000 students and eight state agencies, including the Texas Division … Continue reading →

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What can the state do to help create more affordable housing?

Posted on September 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Probably a few things, though it’s not clear what is on tap at this time. If Texas wants to rein in its high housing costs, it needs more homes, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar’s office said Tuesday — the latest sign … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed over Texas anti-ESG law

Posted on August 30, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting. A coalition of progressive business organizations is suing Texas over a 2021 law that blocks the state from investing in and contracting with companies that boycott the fossil fuel industry. The suit, filed in federal court in Austin … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: For that amendment, you know the one

Posted on September 21, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron approves an amendment but forgets to tell us which one. So much has changed in the 15 years since Renu Khator became UH’s president. She set a clear goal for Tier 1 status and worked toward it step … Continue reading →

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No pay for Paxton while he’s on the sidelines

Posted on June 27, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Poor baby. The Texas attorney general’s office attempted an end-run around a ruling from the state’s top accountant to pay Attorney General Ken Paxton despite his impeachment, documents indicated. Paxton has remained suspended from duty since the House overwhelmingly voted … Continue reading →

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Hegar caves on phony “defunding” claim again

Posted on April 4, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Clown the Comptroller II: Electric Boogaloo. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar on Monday backed off his claim that Harris County “defunded” a constable’s office in violation of a state law intended to prevent cities and counties from cutting their police budgets, … Continue reading →

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Court blocks phony “defunding” claim again

Posted on March 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: A Travis County District Court temporarily blocked Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar’s determination that Harris County defunded the Precinct 5 Constable’s office in violation of state law. The order means the Comptroller’s determination as to Harris County’s budget … Continue reading →

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Harris County votes to sue Hegar again

Posted on February 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Phony Defunding Claims II: Electric Boogaloo. Harris County Commissioners Court on Thursday voted to sue Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar‘s office in response to his comments accusing the county of defunding law enforcement. Hegar’s claim is a repeat of a fight that already played out between the … Continue reading →

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Here we go again with the “defunding” baloney

Posted on February 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I was all set to have a peaceful weekend when I came across a press release from Commissioner Ellis’ office on Friday afternoon about this. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar on Friday accused Harris County of defunding law enforcement, rekindling a feud from … Continue reading →

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Precinct analysis: The not-as-good statewide races

Posted on January 2, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

PREVIOUSLY Beto versus Abbott Beto versus the spread Hidalgo versus Mealer Better statewide races The difference between these statewide races and the ones we have already looked at, including the Governor’s race, is very simple: These Republican candidates did better … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Dudding and Warford

Posted on October 22, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron endorses Janet Dudding for Comptroller. In 2005, Janet Dudding found herself mucking out her home in Bay St. Louis-Waveland, Mississippi, after Hurricane Katrina sent a 32-foot storm surge across the town. “The first time I cried was when … Continue reading →

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Just keep staying away, Commissioners

Posted on October 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

At this point the pattern is clear. They’re just going to keep staying away, at least until after the election. At which point one can hope that one of them will have a more permanent vacation from these duties. For … Continue reading →

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Interviews with Janet Dudding and Jay Kleberg

Posted on October 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We are at the point of the calendar where there are only a few interviews left for me to do, and everyone is super busy and has things come up at inconvenient times. The upshot is that I don’t have … Continue reading →

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Hispanic Policy Foundation: Abbott 51, Beto 44

Posted on September 28, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

One more poll to look at. There’s an old adage that says the more things change, the more they stay the same. And according to our new poll, that applies to politics in Texas as well, as support for Republicans … Continue reading →

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Republican Commissioners skip out again

Posted on September 16, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Cowards. Harris County’s two Republican commissioners skipped Tuesday’s Commissioners Court meeting, preventing county leaders from passing a property tax rate and proposed budget for the next fiscal year beginning on Oct. 1. State law requires four members of the court … Continue reading →

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