A Travis County woman has won her long battle to be acknowledged as her deceased partner's legal spouse, marking the first time in Texas a same-sex common-law marriage has been recognized in a court ruling. Attorney General Ken Paxton is mulling whether to challenge the marriage's legality, however, a move the woman's lawyer calls unnecessary, illegal and offensive.
- Star-Telegram: Let’s be honest about the cost of a watered-downeducation.
Once again the Texas Supreme Court is considering the constitutionality of our school finance system, and, once again, school districts are hoping for a lot more money. My issue is not with spending more money on education if that is what is needed. My issue deals with how the plaintiffs have undermined the very goal they say is what merits increased education spending: college readiness.Note that the author of this op-ed is Bill Hammond the CEO of the Texas Association of Business.
- Texas Tribune: Experts: Expect Early 2016 School Finance Ruling.
Earlier this month, the Texas Supreme Court heard hours of arguments in the latest challenge of the way the state funds its public schools. Now, the big questions — other than exactly how the high court will rule — are when the court will rule and whether the decision will require the Legislature to come back to Austin to craft a fix before the 2017 regular legislative session.
Given past rulings and politics — three justices on the nine-member, all-Republican court are up for re-election next year — the consensus among experts and insiders is that a decision will come early next year and likely will require a 2016 special legislative session because it will favor, at least in part, the 600 school districts suing the state. That could mean that a school finance fix is in place before the next school year.
- Houston Chronicle: Challenges loom as Houston grows.
Houston is poised to change and grow rapidly in the coming years, as already is apparent from the sea of cranes building everything from downtown high-rises to mixed-use projects inside the 610 Loop to swaths of new housing near the Grand Parkway in the region's outlying areas. Projections show Houston's population outpacing Chicago's to become the third-largest city in the U.S. in the next decade.
During this time, the region will be forced to grapple with its slipping reputation as an affordable city, increasing congestion, income inequality and a lack of long-term planning, a panel of local housing experts said in Houston Wednesday at Zillow's Housing Roadmap to 2016 event, a national tour exploring issues Americans face in their neighborhoods and communities.
- Texas Tribune: Rate of Poverty Dips in Texas, But Some Metro Areas See Rise.
The share of Texans living in poverty continued to dip slightly in 2014, according to census figures released Thursday. But poverty is prevalent in many parts of the state, with the share of poor people rising in several metropolitan areas.
Estimates from the 2014 American Community Survey show that the percentage of poor Texas residents declined in 2014 — dropping to 17.2 percent from 17.5 percent in 2013 — as part of a gradual drop in poverty in the state in recent years. But the share of poor Texans in 11 of the state’s 25 metropolitan areas surpassed the state’s overall share of poor residents.
- TribTalk: Austin's lawsuit is an abuse of the property tax code.
