Tag Archives: Harold Dutton

Pot bills get their own post

Posted on November 20, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

They got their own story in the Trib, so why not their own post. Texas lawmakers across the state say they want leniency in how the state prosecutes marijuana crimes. In an interview with Texas Tribune CEO Evan Smith Monday, … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Labor for Thompson, the Mayor for Miles

Posted on July 10, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The Texas Gulf Coast Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO today announced their support of Senfronia Thompson for State Senator District 13. “Our unions screened two candidates for Senate District 13 — Representatives Senfronia Thompson and Borris Miles,” said … Continue reading →

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Here come the candidates for SD13

Posted on June 29, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Here we go again. State Rep. Borris Miles came prepared with signs Saturday when Rodney Ellis all but secured a seat on Harris County’s Commissioners Court – not in support of Ellis, but to launch his own campaign. Ellis’ selection … Continue reading →

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Filibuster threat for open carry

Posted on May 29, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We could have some end of session drama this year again. State Sen. José Rodríguez said Thursday that if the opportunity arises, he plans to filibuster a bill allowing the open carry of handguns in Texas. Speaking at a Texas … Continue reading →

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The fallout from the chubfest

Posted on May 28, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Cleaning up some loose ends…The campus carry bill that was the subject of much chubbing passed on final reading. The battle over “campus carry” is headed back to the Texas Senate after House lawmakers gave final approval Wednesday to legislation … Continue reading →

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Where the education reform bills stand

Posted on May 21, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the attempt to take a first stab at school finance reform did not make it to the House floor. That doesn’t mean there wasn’t some action on school-related issues. This Chron story from the weekend recapped a … Continue reading →

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Grand jury reform bill in trouble

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Not good. Six weeks after sailing through the Texas Senate, efforts to reform the state’s controversial grand jury selection system have stalled in the House. A closely watched bill to end the “pick-a-pal” system suffered an unexpected setback late Monday … Continue reading →

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Marijuana reform advocates get their day

Posted on April 8, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

This will be worth watching closely. Four proposals to relax penalties for possessing pot have been scheduled for a hearing Wednesday in the Texas House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee, setting up what is sure to be a closely-watched debate in the … Continue reading →

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Budget passes House as most amendments get pulled

Posted on April 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

It was a long day in the House on Tuesday and Wednesday but not a terribly bloody one as many of the budget amendments and riders that had been queued up got withdrawn. A brief recap of the action: Border … Continue reading →

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The Dave Wilson bill

Posted on February 1, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

A little too little and a little too late, if you ask me. Houston Community College Trustee Dave Wilson has made his way to Austin — in spirit, at least. A bill filed by state Rep. Harold Dutton of Houston … Continue reading →

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When might marijuana be legalized in Texas?

Posted on June 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting debate going on in the Baker Institute Blog about when marijuana might be legalized in Texas. Here are the posts they’ve published, in decreasing order of optimism: Texas will legalize medical marijuana in 2015 and regulate marijuana similarly … Continue reading →

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Combs tells strip clubs to pay up

Posted on May 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. Texas Comptroller Susan Combs is pressing the state’s strip clubs to cough up millions of dollars she says they owe under a new “pole tax” even though the $5-a-patron fee still faces a court challenge. “Any claim that ongoing … Continue reading →

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Wilson sued over residency for HCC

Posted on December 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Dave Wilson and lawsuits go together like peanut butter and jelly. The Harris County attorney sued Houston Community College trustee-elect Dave Wilson on Thursday, alleging the small business owner and anti-gay activist was not a resident of District II when … Continue reading →

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Final filings: We have a statewide Democrat

Posted on December 10, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Boy, I didn’t see this coming. Longtime Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Lawrence “Larry” Meyers announced Monday that he is leaving the Republican Party to run as a Democrat for the Texas Supreme Court. Meyers, of Fort Worth, filed … Continue reading →

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Filing deadline today

Posted on December 9, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Before I get into the details of who has or hasn’t filed for what, I have a bone to pick with this AP story. Perhaps what the candidate filings reveal most is the relative strength and depth of the political … Continue reading →

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LaCroix files in SD15

Posted on December 4, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

As of the Monday candidate filing update from the HCDP, Damian LaCroix has made official his primary challenge to Sen. John Whitmire in SD15. He announced his challenge in August, and what I said at that time still holds true … Continue reading →

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Pot policy

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From Hair Balls: Rehman Bhalesha was raised around marijuana. That’s not to say that he dealt, or that he pushed, or that he used. He didn’t have to. Weed, growing up, turned wherever he went. “Living in South Texas, you … Continue reading →

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Water, water, not so fast

Posted on May 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

So much for that. A major bill on the top of Gov. Rick Perry’s priority list that would authorize spending billions of dollars on state water projects faltered in the Texas House on Monday night after a contentious debate over … Continue reading →

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House passes major changes to testing and graduation requirements

Posted on March 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is a big deal. Texas public high school students would face far fewer high-stakes exams and gain more freedom in choosing courses under a major education bill approved by the state House on Tuesday. Hours of debate among lawmakers … Continue reading →

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Knife rights

Posted on February 26, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

With all the talk about guns this year, it should be noted that they are not the only weapons under consideration in the Legislature. HB936 by Rep. Harold Dutton would decriminalize the possession, manufacture, transfer, repair, or sale of switchblade … Continue reading →

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African-American State Reps state their map objections

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Black-lawmakers-blast-revised-Texas-voting-maps-2346838.php Contending that African Americans have been an afterthought during the contentious yearlong redistricting process, four Houston lawmakers on Monday voiced their objections to the interim House map a three-judge panel drew recently. “A lot of emphasis over the past … Continue reading →

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More redistricting lawsuits filed

Posted on May 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

And to think, we don’t even have a Congressional plan yet. A federal lawsuit filed Monday by some Texas House members blasts the use of “inaccurate” 2010 Census data in the remapping of state political jurisdictions. The lawsuit by the … Continue reading →

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House passes its budget

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib has a good writeup of how it went down on Sunday. Mot of the heavy lifting was done before then, in the bills that closed the books on the previous biennium and allocated Rainy Day funds for them … Continue reading →

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The “Dan Patrick thinks you’re too stupid to know what you’re voting for” bill

Posted on March 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Ugh. A bill that would remove churches and schools from the drainage fee Houston voters narrowly approved last November as part of Proposition 1 is scheduled for a public hearing Wednesday before the Senate Intergovernmental Relations Committee. Dubbed Rebuild Houston, … Continue reading →

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Sonogram bill passes the House

Posted on March 5, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It was inevitable. Flexing their super-majority muscle in the Texas House, Republican lawmakers swatted away a swarm of amendments offered by the Democratic minority on Thursday and gave preliminary approval to a House version of a bill requiring doctors to … Continue reading →

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House adopts rules

Posted on January 29, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Once again, not much drama in the lower chamber. After an all-day debate, the House approved its rules for the 2009 legislative session in a relaxed atmosphere overseen by new Speaker Joe Straus. The most intense squabble came when the … Continue reading →

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