December 2008
Texas Watchdog’s top 10 posts for 2008 →
With the year coming to a close, it’s time to get all misty-eyed about all things 2008. So here’s a wrapup of our most popular stories from this year, in case you missed any:
+ Ballots cast in…
Happy Holidays from Texas Watchdog →
The staff here at Texas Watchdog is visiting family over the Christmas season and during the New Year’s celebration. There may be some occasional posts on our blog, but please come back after January…
Comptroller’s office explains why ‘Where the Money... →
You might have seen our story last week on how some 1,700-plus state workers made $100,000 or more in 2007. We paired with it a database of those workers’ names and total pay amounts.
I couldn’t help…
Jobs report: Government grows fastest; more... →
What do you make of this? Government is the fastest-growing business sector in the Houston area, even as Houston’s jobless rate inches up. That’s according to this weekend piece in The Chronicle.
In…
Nacogdoches prison opponents use public records... →
I blogged last week on how open government laws can help people learn about both big things and little things when it comes to what their government is doing. Oftentimes, it’s us professional…
Big Oil, groceries and country music give big... →
Several of the largest donors to the efforts to rebuild the burned structure also have business before the state government and its regulatory arms, a Texas Watchdog analysis has found. Others giving…
Now that does smart: CenterPoint meter project to... →
Houston-area homeowners should plan to chip in more than $400 each over 12 years toward a system of “smart” meters aimed at making homes more energy-efficient, the Houston Chronicle reports…
Will Texas seal off public access to state... →
Should public employees’ home addresses be public record? Texas Watchdog says yes. But a state lawmaker has pre-filed a bill for the upcoming legislative session that looks like it would make state…
Softball coaches, math classes, chef’s salad:... →
Thank goodness for freedom of information laws. Without them, there’s all kinds of stuff we wouldn’t know. Without them, folks in Detroit wouldn’t know about all the shady deals their (now-former)…
Dallas-area town won’t turn over records on... →
From the Star-Telegram:
A former Farmers Branch City Council member is suing her city for not complying with the state’s freedom of information law.
Carol Dingman filed suit in a state civil court in…
CPS sits on report about FLDS abuse, denies... →
Remember that big fuss about that unusual church group that went by the name FLDS, where folks were alleged to be practicing polygamy and kids were getting abused, and the state went in and took like…
$313 billion: Price tag for Texas transportation... →
Taxpayers can expect a $313 billion bill to keep the roads up for the next two decades, the Houston Chronicle reports. The estimate comes as legislators consider tightening control over the…
State worker pay follow-up: DPS officers make OT... →
Two of three state Department of Public Safety officers who made more than $100,000 last year through big overtime checks are on the governor’s security detail, and a third spent six months as a…
Texas ranks near the top nationally in public... →
Texans want to be No. 1. They want to be bigger, better, faster, at the very top of every list.
Well, Texas, here’s a ranking where you’re almost at the very top. In fact, you’re No. 3 in the entire…
Huffman defeats Bell in Senate District 17:... →
Republican Joan Huffman was leading with 56 percent of the vote and only two precincts not yet reported, The Chronicle’s Alan Bernstein is reporting tonight.
4 hours left to vote in runoff election for Senate... →
Click here to find information on voting today in the state Senate District 17 runoff election between Democrat Chris Bell and Republican Joan Huffman.
Top state worker pay last year: $530,595 →
More than 1,700 state workers made six figures or more in total pay in 2007, according to a new Texas Watchdog analysis of state records. Search our database of workers making $100,000 or more.
Database of state workers making $100K+ launched →
Texas Watchdog is launching today a searchable database of state employees who made $100,000 or more in 2007.
The analysis includes the employees’ salaries, bonuses, longevity pay, overtime and other…
Jaworski: Allegations of favoritism on hurricane... →
It was a serious charge, even though it was never substantiated: AshBritt, a debris removal company with a checkered past, claimed that Joe Jaworski, the former mayor pro tem of Galveston, used…
Flores got cabin from racetrack developers: AP →
When you go to Rep. Kino Flores’ campaign Web site, you hear a sound file of Flores talking, saying “It is better to give than to receive.” Does that explain the fishing cabin on South Padre?
Violent offenders’ records shielded by state law... →
If you ever wondered how important it is for the public to have access to government information, here’s your answer: Your own personal safety might be at risk.
From a story everyone should read in…
Beaumont prisoners not evacuated for Hurricane Ike... →
Prisoners in Beaumont have brought more than 130 lawsuits in the past month, claiming that their rights were violated when they were not evacuated from the LeBlanc Unit at the state prison during…
Whatameeting: Open meetings question arises over... →
No, I know what you’re thinking now that you’ve read the headline: A bunch of city councilmembers probably wanted to have a meeting at a Whataburger.
No, not quite.
The Whataburger chain’s corporate…
Texas gives out tax dollars to movie makers →
Here’s a question: In this time of economic recession, do you reckon that the people who run Sony Corp. are doing better financially than you are?
What if you knew that the state took money out of…
Texas Watchdog voter fraud story spotlighted in... →
The Dallas Morning News has a report that highlights our October investigation into the listing of people on the Dallas County voter rolls who may be deceased.
We reviewed four years of data and…
Mayor Bill White looking at Kay Bailey Hutchison’s... →
People across Houston have been speculating about Democratic Mayor Bill White’s political future — and now they know. He’s eyeing the U.S. Senate seat held by Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison, if she…
More controversy surrounding election →
A judicial candidate who lost his race by 230 votes wants a court to name him the winner, the Chronicle reports, based on the allegations of improper vote count and voter registration practices…
Head of troubled Fort Worth hospital raked in the... →
Public records show that the head of a troubled Fort Worth public hospital earned nearly $800,000 in salary and benefits in the last fiscal year, the Star-Telegram reported today.
It’s hard to forget…
Watchdog staffer on Society of Professional... →
The Society of Professional Journalists is an important group, even if you’re not a journalist and you’ve never heard of them. I’m proud to be a member of SPJ. And I’m proud that the folks on its…
Railroaded: Overhaul urged for state railroad... →
Vince at Capitol Annex is taking on Texas’ least appropriately named state agency, the Texas Railroad Commission, and Sen. Jeff Wentworth’s proposal to rename it as the Texas Energy Commission: In…
Houston, Harris County: Spending a lot of green... →
The Local 2 Investigative team spent some time recently burning the midnight oil seeing why Houston and Harris County buildings have the lights on all night long.
From last night’s Local 2…
Senate District 17: Chris Bell, Joan Huffman in... →
Texas Watchdog has original mp3 audio clips of candidates Bell and Huffman on some of the key issues and what’s important to them in the Dec. 16 election. Listen and see what they say.
Houston is on the list of cities seeking not a... →
Some of the top brass in the U.S. Conference of Mayors are in Washington this week, eagerly presenting public works programs they say are needed. And they come with the added bonus, the mayors said…
House lounge renovations create ‘a place that... →
The House has been spending big bucks on granite countertops and chandeliers in its quest to keep up with the Senate’s finery. Thanks to these and other additions totaling $140,000, the legislature’s…
Comptroller’s new sites get plaudits from national... →
State Comptroller Susan Combs‘ Open Book Texas and Texas Transparency Check-Up sites are getting pats on the back from no less an authority than the Sunlight Foundation, a DC-based nonprofit…
Public records law, volleyball cross paths in... →
It sure piqued my curiosity a few weeks ago when I read that someone wanted a whole bunch of information about Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s athletic programs, and the state attorney general’s office…
Delving into Texas’ advocacy groups and their... →
The Houston Chronicle’s R.G. Ratcliffe takes a deeper look at the advocacy groups on Capitol Hill that will work to shape legislation in the coming legislative session:
AUSTIN — Advocacy groups on…
Bettencourt, Harris County’s top tax, voter... →
Just a month after he was re-elected for a third term, Harris County’s tax-assessor-collector — who is also in charge of voter registration — is stepping down from office.
Houston’s Fox26 television…
Dallas convention center hotel could cost $356... →
A publicly owned hotel at the Dallas convention center could cost $356 million, the Dallas Observer’s Unfair Park blog is reporting.
Neerman says Dallas GOP ‘Obama’ed’ — but he thinks... →
The Dallas Observer has a substantive profile and interview with Dallas County Republican Party chairman Jonathan Neerman, the man who wants to try to turn around the county’s headlong slide into…
Off the Kuff: Justice Hecht the focus of another... →
Justice Nathan Hecht, who was punished Thursday by the Texas Ethics Commission for failing to report an illegal campaign contribution, is the focus of another ethics complaint. This from Off the…
Judge fined $29K for failing to disclose political... →
State Supreme Court Justice Nathan Hecht was fined $29,000 Thursday for taking an illegal political contribution and then failing to report it, the Dallas Morning News reports.
Rep. Flores’ land dealings being probed by Austin... →
From the McAllen Monitor:
Smoke continues to billow from an ongoing criminal investigation into state Rep. Ismael “Kino” Flores, but prosecutors remain mum about the possibility of fire.
The Travis…
Judge broke the law in not disclosing reduced... →
From the AP: Ethics investigators say a state Supreme Court justice broke the law when he failed to disclose a six-figure discount he received in personal legal fees.
Petition to stop convention center hotel costs... →
A petition drive to stop a planned publicly owned hotel for the Dallas convention center will cost taxpayers $41,125.55, the Dallas Morning News reported today, citing public records.
From reporter…
Craddick’s pay, insurance for grown daughter... →
State House Speaker Tom Craddick — who may or may not have that post much longer, depending on who you ask — has paid his 30-something lawyer daughter $625,000 in salary from his campaign account…
Docs caught not washing hands at Houston’s public... →
Harris County’s public hospitals apparently have a problem with doctors not washing their hands or wearing gloves — so the hospital district is asking patients to “gently remind” their docs to do so,…
Do red light cameras prevent wrecks? TxDOT says... →
TxDOT has come out with a new study suggesting that red light cameras have been sharply curtailing accidents at Texas intersections — but the Grits for Breakfast blog picks apart the data and finds…
Harris County elections officials to review voters... →
Harris County elections officials plan a review of the more than 4,000 voters Texas Watchdog found may be deceased, but the review will be after the first of next year, an official said Tuesday.
No criminal charges for ex-DA Rosenthal; current... →
The former district attorney of Harris County who left office earlier this year after pornographic and racist e-mails were found on his computer will not be prosecuted criminally for those and other…