June 2009
Locked In: GEO Group, other private jailers use... →
A private prison firm has spent six figures on well-connected lobbyists, and the investment has apparently paid off. The prison industry escaped this legislative session without a single new…
blogHOUSTON questions mayor’s choice of reviewer... →
When a city is trying to get to the bottom of things, should an official be put in charge of scrutinizing his own actions? Or should someone independent of those actions review them?
The writers at…
The Houston Airport CEO, the mayor and a mystery:... →
There’s more to come from Texas Watchdog as we continue to dig into why many issues concerning the departure of the Houston Airport CEO is being kept such a closely guarded secret by both airport and…
Check out the archived video of this week’s... →
If you missed the discussion of public records our staff participated in this week, you can check it out at New Media TV.
The online discussion is part of a series of webinars aimed at bloggers,…
Former airports chief: No nonprofit work done on... →
The former head of the Houston Airport System says he didn’t do business for a nonprofit airport construction-and-management firm while in Libya, even though public records suggested that the…
Vacar: City Hall signed off on $10,000 biz-class... →
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Vacar said Wednesday that all of his travel on behalf of the nonprofit was paid for by the nonprofit. Indeed, Texas Watchdog did see several records this week during its…
Does Houston city government have a playbook to... →
On a Thursday in May, City Hall reporter Bradley Olson from the Houston Chronicle e-mailed the mayor’s office a series of questions following Houston Airport System head Richard Vacar’s abrupt…
More reports on the Houston airport controversy... →
Our reporting today that sheds more light on the mysterious ouster of the Houston airport chief and the role of Mayor Bill White in the deal has spawned several more stories about how the city runs…
Coming soon: Vacar says everything was above board →
Coming very soon to TexasWatchdog.org: Former Houston Airport System chief Richard Vacar responds to Texas Watchdog’s story from Wednesday, addressing what we wrote about his trip to Libya earlier…
Libyan trip part of city review; taxpayers... →
Mayor Bill White’s office says airport officials’ travel for foreign governments should not be paid for by Houston taxpayers. The mayor’s office is looking into a taxpayer-funded Libyan trip taken by…
Were taxpayers tapped too much for Tripoli trip... →
When you’re doing business from Nicaragua to Macedonia, the frequent flyer miles add up. Too bad former Houston Airport System Director Richard Vacar apparently didn’t use any to fund his February…
Check out Texas Watchdog in the AM: We’ve got... →
In an exclusive story Thursday, Texas Watchdog will shed more light on the abrupt retirement last month of the head of the Houston Airport System.
The story will show:
The amount of foreign travel…
Mayor: Trips ‘don’t seem … out of line’ →
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The records made public Wednesday shed new light on the depth of Houston officials’ involvement in the foreign airport project and the amount of time and energy they have…
Houston Mayor Bill White informed months ago of... →
The mayor was told in mid-January 2008 that the airport system and its top officials were involved in airport projects world-wide. City brass knew at least one trip was paid for with taxpayer…
‘Next steps’: Nicaragua? →
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The records also show Vacar also traveled last November to Managua, Nicaragua, where he met with President Daniel Ortega — the former Communist strongman, now a democratically…
Harris County commissioners pass ethics rules... →
The Harris County Commissioners Court has put in place new ethics rules, according to the Houston Chronicle:
The court unanimously and without discussion passed several measures including online…
Bingo! Settlement letters between lottery... →
Settlement letters between a bingo machine company and the Texas Lottery Commission are public under the Texas Public Information Act, a Texas appellate court has ruled.
And in coming down on the…
Gov. Rick Perry vetoes plan for cooling-off period... →
From the Houston Chronicle’s weekend story:
Gov. Rick Perry on Saturday defended his veto of a bill that would have required a waiting period before former Harris County employees could lobby the…
Harris County commissioners to consider revised... →
Harris County Judge Ed Emmett has requested that the commissioners’ court consider a revised list of ethics reforms, perhaps a last-ditch effort to see some of the changes proposed by his ethics…
Houston Press Hair Balls blog and Chronicle’s Rick... →
Thanks to the Houston Press‘ Richard Connelly and to the Houston Chronicle’s Rick Casey, who have written on Texas Watchdog’s recent effort to get salary records from the airport authority. The…
Texas Watchdog can help you make sense of the... →
We’ve blogged recently about our training services for the public, especially bloggers and citizen-journalists who want to shine a light on their government. We also held a session in April on…
Protecting information, or hiding it? →
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This wouldn’t be the first time that government officials have waved the banner of homeland security to try to close off basic information that would have easily been deemed…
Leavin’, but not on a jet plane →
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The airport system’s boss, Richard Vacar, retired suddenly in May. While Vacar hasn’t said much about why he left, Mayor Bill White told the Houston Chronicle in an interview…
You’re invited to join in a discussion Tuesday on... →
Trying to get records out of your City Hall? Want to keep a closer watch on your local politicians? Then tune in for an interactive episode of Trent TV, where we’ll have a great group of journalists,…
Houston Airport System: Releasing salary list... →
In response to a request from Texas Watchdog, the Houston Airport System says releasing a list of how much employees make could compromise security at Bush Intercontinental and Hobby Airport. Was…
Hill Country blues: Travis County officials’... →
In Texas Watchdog’s ongoing quest to review and post ethics forms from around the state, we’ve hit roadblocks from high charges to concealed information.
Officials gave us a variety of responses…
Travis County commissioners, other local... →
Our collection of local elected officials’ financial disclosure statements continues to expand. The documents are required by law and detail high-profile politicians’ financial and business dealings….
Temple Daily Telegram reports on city officials... →
In the Central Texas town of Temple, elected officials have been making big money off city contracts.
On Sunday, the Temple Daily Telegram reported that District 4 council member Russell Schneider…
Chronicle: Houston Rep. Garnet Coleman fined for... →
The Houston Chronicle reports that Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston, has been fined for errors in his campaign reporting, specifically “for failing to report $107,577 in political expenditures in 2006…
Nonprofit journalism discussions a highlight of... →
Watchdog journalism was the topic of the day — or more like three days — when the group Investigative Reporters and Editors Inc. held its annual conference this past weekend in Baltimore. My boss,…
Houston ISD superintendent candidates to be kept... →
The Houston ISD board has voted to keep the names of superintendent candidates mum as it searches for a successor to schools chief Abelardo Saavedra, the Houston Chronicle reports today.
Although not…
Legislative privilege used to delay court dates,... →
The Austin American-Statesman’s Danny Yadron recently reported on a tactic used by lawyers who are lawmakers to delay court dates. The story highlights a few cases of lawmakers using the exception…
Ethics overhauls in state government all but... →
The Associated Press’ Jay Root has a breakdown of the ethics reforms — or the lack thereof — on Texas’ Capitol Hill this session. The ethics story was picked up by the Dallas Morning News this…
Texas Watchdog maps Corpus Christi codes fines... →
The city of Corpus Christi is owed $5 million in unpaid codes fines — and Texas Watchdog has mapped the violations and posted an online spreadsheet of the totals.
You may have seen our post from…
Dead Dallas voter controversy comes on heels of... →
Our story about how someone may have cast a vote for a dead woman in the fiercely waged Dallas District 1 city council election could renew the debate on voter ID legislation, which House Democrats…
Dead voter’s name used to vote in Dallas city... →
An Oak Cliff woman died in February but was recorded as voting in the recent city elections, a county commissioner says. The woman lived in a council district which has gone to a runoff after top…
Mayor Will Wynn and other Austin officials’ ethics... →
Texas Watchdog has been requesting and publishing here at www.texaswatchdog.org the personal financial disclosures for state and local officials. We’ve concentrated on state lawmakers but have…
Public records show county owes Corpus City Hall... →
The city of Corpus Christi is owed some $5 million in unpaid old codes enforcement fines dating back to the 1970s — and guess who the biggest single debtor is. It’s Nueces County. Sara Foley, who…
Houston Chronicle: State Rep. Wayne Christian... →
The Houston Chronicle has a nice scoop about a potential conflict of interest for one House Republican:
“Texas law prevents building on the public beach, but in the chaotic final hours of the…
City e-mails to be deleted after 90 days: Dallas... →
E-mails and text messages between city officials often shed light on public decisions and conduct, from how a budget is crafted to whether a mayor is taking his mistress on a taxpayer-funded…