Today's Committee Meetings on the LRL website is a calendar of interim committee hearings with links to agendas. Below are resources related to upcoming Interim Hearings, and a list of upcoming Budget Hearings.
October 15th
House Committee on Public Health
Charge: Texas Health Care Transformation and Quality Improvement Program Medicaid 1115 Waiver
- "Medicaid Waiver May Bring in Federal Dollars for Health Initiatives," Austin American Statesman, September 27, 2012
- Medicaid Transformation Waiver including overview, timeline, background resources, and proposed rules, Texas Health and Human Services Commission
- Medicaid 1115 Waiver - Texas Health Care Transformation and Quality Improvement Program, Texas Hospital Association
Charge: Delivery of dental services in Medicaid
- "Bridging the Dental Divide," Austin American Statesman, September 29, 2012
- "Whistleblowers Help Texas in Medicaid Fraud Cases," Texas Tribune, September 27, 2012
- Medicaid Dentistry Tackles Patient Abandonment After Investigation, WFAA-TV News, July 27, 2012
- Uncovering Waste, Fraud, and Abuse in the Medicaid Program (see Case Study #3: Medicaid Fraud in Dental Services in Texas on p. 16), U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, April 25, 2012
Joint Committee on Cruise Industry Development
Charge: Cruise industry in South Texas
- "Port Officials Mull Borrowing $12 Million for Upgrades," Galveston Daily News, September 16, 2012
- "Texas No. 4 for Cruise Industry Expenditures, Study Says," Houston Business Journal, September 6, 2012
- 2012 Cruise Industry Update and 2012 CLIA Industry Update, Cruise Lines International Association, February 2012
October 17th
House Committee on Appropriations - S/C on Current Fiscal Condition
Charge: Timing imbalance of state's revenues and expenditures, ways to minimize short-term borrowing need
- "Texas Achieves Record Low Interest Rate on Short-Term Debt Sale," San Antonio Business Journal, August 21, 2012
- "Texas Short Term Notes Receive Highest Ratings," Texas Comptroller, August 14, 2012
- Texas by the Numbers: Revenue, Expenditures and Cash Condition, Texas Comptroller, updated August 2012
- "Documents Reveal Deficit in Texas State Budget," Texas Tribune, August 18, 2010
- "The Constitutional Law of State Debt," Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy, 2012
- Smoothing Out: Adjusting the Foundation School Program Payment Schedule, Texas Association of School Boards, October 2008
Charge: Monitor performance of agencies, including operating budgets
October 18th
House Committee on Culture, Recreation & Tourism
Charge: Invasive aquatic species
- The Texas State Comprehensive Management Plan for Aquatic Nuisance Species, Texas Parks and Wildlife, September 11, 2012
- Exotic and Invasive Species: A Threat to Texas Waterways, Texas Parks and Wildlife
- TexasInvasives.org, Texas Invasive Plant and Pest Council
- National Invasive Species Information Center (Texas), U.S. Department of Agriculture
Charge: Effect of drought and wildfires on tourism and recreation
- "Drought Curbs Tourism as Boat Docks Stand on Dry Ground in Texas," Bloomberg Businessweek, August 7, 2012
- Texas State Legislative Priorities (Witness testimony on Interim Charge # 4 for House Committee on Culture, Recreation and Tourism), The Nature Conservancy, January 24, 2012
- Global Warming's Impact on the Drought and Wildfires (Written testimony on Interim Charge #4 for House Committee Culture, Recreation & Tourism), Environment Texas, January 24, 2012
Charge: Implementation of HB 3726 (administration of the Alamo)
- "A New Era at the Alamo," KXAN, October 7, 2012 (video report)
- "Alamo Gift Shop Will be Placed Under Private Management," San Antonio Business Journal, September 26, 2012
- "Decision to Allow Alcohol at Alamo Sites Riles Heritage Group," Fort Worth Star-Telegram, July 16, 2012
- Alamo Annual Management Plan, The Alamo, June 2012
- Interim Management and Operating Agreement Between Texas General Land Office and the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, Texas General Land Office, November 7, 2011
Topic: Status of Battleship Texas
- "'Hard Hat' Tours Will Reveal Seldom-Seen Portions of Battleship Texas," Houston Chronicle, October 8, 2012
- "Dry Berth for USS Texas Off the Table, for Now," Houston Chronicle, July 20, 2012
- "Old Battleship Reopens, Its Future Course Unclear," The Wall Street Journal, July 8, 2012
- Battleship Texas Dry Berth Project - Reports and Correspondence, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, May 2012
Senate Committee on State Affairs CANCELLED
Charge: State authority and protection from federal overreach
- State Sovereignty and Nullification Legislation, State Legislation and Actions Challenging Certain Health Reforms, 2011-2012, National Conference of State Legislatures, Updated September 10, 2012
- "Facing Off With the Feds," State Legislatures, National Conference of State Legislatures, February 2010
- "Court Right to Side With Texas Property Owners," Austin American-Statesman, March 11, 2012
- Private Real Property Rights Preservation Act Guidelines, Texas Attorney General, Revised May 3, 2011
- Regulatory Takings: The Next Step in Protecting Property Rights in Texas (discusses municipal exemption), Texas Public Policy Foundation, July 22, 2010
October 19th
House Committee on Higher Education
Charge: Master plan for higher education beyond 2015
- Closing the Gaps Progress Report 2012, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, June 2012
- Closing the Gaps: The Texas Higher Education Plan (with Goals and Targets for 2000-2005), Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, 2000
- Master Plan for Higher Education in California, University of California, 1960, and 2009-2010 review
Joint Committee on Oversight of Windstorm Insurance CANCELLED (meeting will be rescheduled)
Charge: Windstorm insurance in Texas
- "TWIA Study Recommends Lowering Agent Commissions," Insurance Journal, October 2, 2012; and related study, Texas Windstorm Insurance Association: Restructuring Options Report, Texas Department of Insurance/Alvarez & Marsal Holdings, LLC, September 7, 2012
- "Joint Committee Considers Financial Solutions for TWIA," Texas Tribune, September 12, 2012 (summary of Joint Committee on Seacoast Territory Insurance hearing, September 12)
- "Windstorm Forum Raises Questions," Corpus Christi Caller-Times, September 6, 2012 (summary of Coastal Windstorm Task Force meeting, September 5)
October 22nd
House Committee on Ways & Means CANCELLED
Charge: Property tax administration
- Property Tax Basics, 2012 and Property Tax Assistance, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
Senate Committee on State Affairs CANCELLED
Charge: Texas Workers' Compensation system
- Dispute resolution process and benefits available from employers that do not subscribe to workers' compensation
- Dispute Resolution for Injured Employees, Texas Department of Insurance – Division of Workers' Compensation, last updated October 15, 2012
- Final Report: Division of Workers' Compensation – Texas Department of Insurance, Office of Injured Employee Counsel, Issue 1 – Dispute Resolution Process, Sunset Advisory Commission, July 2011
- Adequacy of income benefits in the workers' compensation system, specifically on high wage earners receiving the maximum compensation rate
- Workers' Compensation Reform and Return to Work: The California Experience [see chapter 7], RAND Center for Health and Safety in the Workplace, January 2011
- Income Replacement Adequacy in the Texas Workers' Compensation System, Texas Department of Insurance, August 2010
- Fatalities in the Workers' Compensation System, including the amount of death and burial benefits paid to beneficiaries and the Subsequent Injury Fund since 2000
- Appeals Panel Decision Manual – Death Benefits Issues, Texas Department of Insurance – Division of Workers' Compensation, updated August 10, 2011
- "$17 Million in Death Benefits Bypassed Families," Houston Chronicle, May 13, 2007
- Return-to-work numbers and results for injured employees in the Workers' Compensation System that are referred to the Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services
- Return-to-Work Outcomes for Texas Injured Employees, Workers' Compensation Research and Evaluation Group, September 30, 2011
- Statistics (see Division for Rehabilitation Services), Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services
- Return to Work/Stay at Work, Texas Department of Insurance – Workers' Compensation
- New Approaches to Providing Vocational Rehabilitation Services to Injured Employees in the Texas Workers' Compensation System (Joint Report to the Legislature), Texas Department of Insurance – Division of Workers' Compensation and Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services, August 2006
Charge: Monitor the implementation of legislation, specifically, SB 100, 82nd Regular Session, relating to implementation and impact of the Military Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act
- Assessment of the Federal Voting Assistance Program Implementation of the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act, U.S. Department of Defense, Office of Inspector General, August 31, 2012
- The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act: Overview and Issues, Congressional Research Service, July 11, 2012
- Democracy From Afar: States Show Progress on Military and Overseas Voting, Pew Center on the States, January 27, 2012
- Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, Annual Report to Congress 2010, U.S. Department of Justice, 2010
- Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, as amended by the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act, U.S. Department of Justice
October 24th
House Committee on County Affairs
Charge: Population growth in unincorporated areas and provision of services, including garbage disposal, fire protection, road maintenance, electricity, and water and wastewater service
- "Give Counties Power Over Trash Pickup," San Antonio Express-News, editorial, October 5, 2012
- County Fire Protection 2025: A Study Concept Guide (future direction of fire protection services in unincorporated areas of Harris County), Harris County Fire Marshal, 2011
Charge: Monitor the agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction and 82nd legislation:
- Texas Healthcare Transformation and Quality Improvement Program Medicaid 1115 Waiver
- "Medicaid Waiver May Bring in Federal Dollars for Health Initiatives," Austin American Statesman, September 27, 2012
- Medicaid Transformation Waiver including overview, timeline, background resources, and proposed rules, Texas Health and Human Services Commission
- Medicaid 1115 Waiver - Texas Health Care Transformation and Quality Improvement Program, Texas Hospital Association
- Councils of Governments (COGs)
- Region Map, Councils of Governments, Texas Association of Regional Councils
House Committee on State Affairs
Charge: Resource adequacy in the Texas electricity market
- Seasonal Assessment of Resource Adequacy for the ERCOT Region: Fall 2012, ERCOT, September 4, 2012
- Annual Energy Outlook 2012, U.S. Energy Information Administration, June 25, 2012
- ERCOT Investment Incentives and Resource Adequacy, The Brattle Group/ERCOT, June 1, 2012
- Report on the Capacity, Demand, and Reserves in the ERCOT Region, ERCOT, May 22, 2012
- Texas Electricity Profile 2010, U.S. Energy Information Administration, January 30, 2012
Charge: Inefficiencies in the regulation of public utilities to minimize cost to consumers
- Consumer Expenditures on Utilities in 2010, Institute on Public Utilities, March 2012
- Electricity Regulation in the US: A Guide, Regulatory Assistance Project, May 2011
- Energy, Utilities & Telecommunications, National Consumer Law Center
Upcoming Budget Hearings
October 19th
Public Safety, Department of
