At 5 p.m. today, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst released Senate committee assignments for the 82nd Texas Legislature. The roster of chairmen was basically established during the summer shake-up of committee chairmen.

"Texas is fortunate to have 31 hardworking and talented State Senators, and the makeup of our Senate committees reflects their considerable leadership skills and depth of experience," Dewhurst said. "From balancing the budget to redistricting, we have a lot to accomplish this session in a relatively short period of time, but I'm confident that our Senators and our Senate Committees are up to the challenge."

Click here to read the full list of committee assignments.

No, we didn't make that name up. At yesterday's Texas Association of Business annual meeting, Rep. Dennis Bonnen (R-Angleton) said of Rep. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood), "This is the trial lawyer slayer. Right here." That line brought the loudest applause of the entire afternoon.

Last year, Taylor engaged in a months-long legal and public relations battle with a series of Galveston attorneys over whether the state-created Texas WIndstorm Insurance Association should disclose the amount of attorneys fees in a settlement of an insurance lawsuit with owners whose homes were leveled by Hurricane Ike. Steve Mostyn, one of the attorneys in the case and current president of the Texas Trial Lawyers Association, filed the legal motions which temporarily kept that information from the public. (The materials were eventually released.) Mostyn is a major donor to Democratic causes and candidates. Bonnen blasted the plaintiff's attorney's saying they "were trying to destroy him [Taylor] for simply wanting true information."

The officers of the State Board of Education have assigned members to committees for 2011-2012. The committees will elect their chairmen and vice-chairmen at later dates. The officers announced the following committee assignments:

The State Board of Education has elected Bob Craig (R-Lubbock) as its vice-chairman by a 9-6 vote and Mary Helen Berlanga (D-Corpus Christi) as secretary by an 8-7 vote. The three board officers (the board chair -- currently Gail Lowe (R-Lampasas) is an appointee of the governor) jointly make the committee assignments.

Members of the board's socially conservative faction nominated Ken Mercer (R-San Antonio) for vice-chairman and Terri Leo (R-Spring) for secretary. The consequence of the vote is the board's socially conservative faction will not control the committee assignments. Unlike legislative committees, however, committees of the State Board of Education cannot unilaterally kill rules or agenda items. Final action from the board is determined by the final full board vote, though the committee's decision and rationale does often influence the final board decision.

The State Board of Education voted 9-6 to retain standards for textbooks in its operating rule. In 1995, the Texas Legislature severly restricted the ability of the board to reject books based on their content. In reaction to that law, the State Board of Education adopted an operating rule creating a procedure for the board to adopt a non-binding resolution expressing an opinion about a textbook. Included in that rule were its prior textbook standards that became non-binding as a result of the 1995 law. Board member Michael Soto (D-San Antonio) tried to remove the section of the board's operating rules that included both the textbook standards and a procedure to pass resolutions on textbooks.

The board rejected Soto's motion 9-6, with the board's four Democrats (Soto, Mary Helen Berlanga (Corpus Christi), Lawrence Allen (Houston), Mavis Knight (Dallas)) and two Republicans (Bob Craig of Lubbock and Thomas Ratliff of Mt. Pleasant) voting to strike the textbook standards, while the remaining board Republicans supported leaving them in place.

Here are some of the textbook content standards Soto wanted to remove from the State Board of Education's rules:

Former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz announced his candidacy for the United States Senate today. "The reason for the campaign is very simple," Cruz said. "President Barack Obama is the most radical president ever to occupy the White House. We are facing the Epic battle of our generation. Does this nation remain a free market nation?"

Cruz joins a crowded field that will likely include Railroad Commissioner Michael Williams and former Secretary of State Roger Williams and may include Railroad Commissioner Elizabeth Ames Jones, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, and many more. Current U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison announced recently that she would not seek re-election in 2012, creating an open seat environment.

Former US President George HW Bush has endorsed former Secretary of State Roger Williams for the US Senate. "Anyone who has met Roger knows he can be trusted to bring a fresh, positive, can-do, real-world perspective that too often is missing in Washington, DC," Bush said. "I have no doubt Roger Williams will be a great senator for our state, our country and our future.”

LSR Managing Editor William Lutz appeared on WFAA's Inside Texas Politics this Sunday to deliver a one-minute commentary called "The RANT." Lutz addressed the continuing controversy over House Speaker Joe Straus. He noted that Joe Straus says he's a fiscal conservative, and Lutz invites him to prove it by appointing a slate of chairmen that stand up to the tax increase lobby consistently. The commentary starts with about eleven minutes to go on the clip posted below. Inside Texas Politics airs every Sunday morning at 9 on WFAA Channel 8 in North Texas.

LSR Managing Editor William Lutz will appear on WFAA's Inside Texas Politics this Sunday. Lutz will give his opinion on whether House Speaker Joe Straus is a fiscal conservative. Inside Texas Politics airs every Sunday at 9 on WFAA, Channel 8 in North Texas.

Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson announced he will consider a run for lieutenant governor. His announcement comes after U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison announced she will not run for re-election in 2012 and current Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst announced he would consider a senate race after the legislative session.

“I am today announcing my interest in seeking the office of Lt. Governor,” Patterson said, “because I am eager to find new ways to put my experience and passion to work for the people of Texas.  I offer a unique skill set for the job and I look forward to bringing that before the people of Texas to once again ask for their trust. A Marine is not easily deterred,” Patterson quipped. “With a lot of years in politics, I’ve both won and lost.  Winning is better, and that is exactly what I intend to do should I run for Lt. Governor.” Patterson's full release can be read here.

Patterson served in the Texas Senate before becoming Land Commissioner and is the author fo the Texas Concealed Carry Law.

Rep. Burt Solomons (R-Carrollton) filed a constitutional amendment banning unfunded mandates to local governments today. The constitutional amendment, HJR 56, would free local government from having to comply with any mandate enacted after Jan. 1, 2012 unless the necessary funding was provided as well.

"All across the State and the nation, for that matter, citizens are telling governments they want them to live within their means and to not pass along unfunded mandates," Solomons said. "People are fed up with the federal government mandating the State of Texas to provide services that were not endorsed by its citizens or funded by the federal government -- Governor Perry campaigned on it. Well, we shouldn't be doing the same thing to our local governments."

This morning, much of the media is celebrating the demise of former Congressman Tom DeLay (R-Sugar Land), sentenced yesterday to three years in prison and ten years probation for campaign finance violations. I'm reminded of the old Mark Twain quote: "The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated."

Rep. Warren Chisum (R-Pampa) issued the following statement today:

 My congratulations to Joe Straus!

It was not easy, but at last the Republicans have met as a unified group. All candidates had their say, and then a solid majority voted to support incumbent Joe Straus for reelection as Speaker of the House.

Speaker Candidate Ken Paxton (R-McKinney) issued the following statement yesterday evening:

“On the eve of tomorrow’s official vote for Speaker, I’m proud to have the support of my good friend Warren Chisum.   He has waged a valiant and principled fight with honor and distinction.  Texans who provided us with our historic governing mandate should be embraced and welcomed into the process.   They deserve openness and transparency - including a public vote - and that is why I will remain a candidate for Speaker on the floor of the Texas House.”

Comptroller Susan Combs released a $72.2 billion revenue estimate this morning. That is down 2.9 percent from the year prior. Anemic reveue growth combined with the likelihood the state will finish in a deficit combined to produce a lower revenue estimate than last year. "The recent recession has had its impact on the state revenue outlook as major revenue sources such as the sales tax generated less money in the last couple of years," Combs said. "While we have turned the corner to an economic recovery, the revenue estimate I'm releasing today is for moderate growth."

Click here to view the full revenue estimate.

(More updates to be posted later in the day)

For months, the Capitol press corps has debated a made-up, unoffical concept. They've been debating how big is the so-called shortfall. For one thing, there's no agreed-to definition of shorthall. Everyone defines it differently, and no state agency produces it. Comptroller Susan Combs declined to give a shortfall estimate when asked, noting that her job is to estimate revenue, not spending. That said, some of the interest groups at the Capitol have given their estimates.

Texans for Fiscal Responsibility's Michael Quinn Sullivan blasted proposals to vote in secret for Speaker of the House.

"Disturbingly, a story in the Texas Tribune this morning suggests some might try to have the speakership vote hidden from public view," Sullivan said. "That would be a mistake. Every vote on the people’s business – including the selection of the third-ranking constitutional officer -- should be held on the record and in full view of the public, available for scrutiny and posterity. Therefore, we will negatively score voting for any motion that shields the 'speaker vote' from the public record. Whoever one chooses to support for speaker sets in play the kind of policy leadership coming from the Texas House."

So far, we've received reactions from elected officials and interest groups to the biennial revenue estimate. We reprint excerpts below:

Rep. Pete Gallego (D-Alpine) suggested that if the Speaker of the Texas House is selected in the Republican caucus, then Democratic leaders should be able to pick the Democrats on key house committees. "If the Speaker of the House is selected by party caucus, I propose an amendment to the House rules that would effectively allow the minority party to select and assign its own membership for each committee of the Texas House," Gallego said. He also knocked the idea of picking the speaker in caucus.

A new coalition calling itself Texas Forward held a news conference at the Capitol Wednesday encouraging lawmakers to spend every dime in the Economic Stabilization Fund (often called the Rainy Day Fund). The coalition seeks to educate Texans on what would happen if the budget is balanced with spending cuts. While the coalition may be new, most of the organizations with representatives at the news conference are not. They include the Center for Public Policy Priorities, the AFL-CIO, the teacher's unions, the various groups representing people with disabilities, etc.  For a full list, click here.

The Lone Star Report does not publish an issue this week, in observance of Christmas day. Our next issue will publish Jan. 7, 2011. We wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy holiday season. Our offices are closed Dec. 24, but will be open next week.

The Travis County District Attorney's office has declined to open an investigation into charges that Rep. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood) engaged in "double-dipping," meaning he took reimbursements from both his state and campaign accounts for the same expense. "the Public Integrity Unit is declining to open formal investigation and will consider this matter closed," wrote Gregg Cox with the Travis County Public Integrity Unit in a letter to Taylor. "We appreciate your cooperation in providing documents that helped lay this issue to rest," Cox continued.

In an earlier interview with LSR, Taylor said his office keeps a detailed spreadsheet of reimbursements and that when expenses first paid by the campaign  are later reimbused by the state, those reimbursements go straight back into the campaign. The Travis County District Attorney has now examined the documents Taylor referenced and declined to prosecute. "I appreciate the Public Integrity Unit's prompt review and response," Taylor said. "They had my full cooperation in their effort. My campaign finance reports are a matter of public record and I followed the ethics laws and guidelines in filling out the reports."

Earlier this year, Taylor asked for financial information on a settlement between the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) and a group of plaintiffs whose homes were damaged by Hurricane Ike. One of the lawyers involved in the settlement -- Texas Trial Lawyers Association President Steve Mostyn -- sought a court order, which has since been dissolved, directing the state-financed insurance organization not to give representative samples of the documents Taylor requested to the Attorney General of Texas as required by law. Around that time a series of left-leaning non-profits began filing open records requests about Taylor's reimbursement practices and his work as an insurance agent. Unlike the plaintiff's attorneys, Taylor fully disclosed the requested information, did not challenge disclosure, and cooperated fully with law enforcement.

Speaker Candidate Warren Chisum (R-Pampa) announced his plans to call for a GOP caucus to discuss leadership of the Texas House.

Chisum, in a press statement released this morning, said he would deliver a letter to Republican Caucus Chairman Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood) on Dec. 29 calling for a meeting. The letter would request that the House Republican Caucus discuss the Speaker's race, which right now is a three-way contest between Chisum, Rep. Ken Paxton (R-McKinney) and Speaker Joe Straus (R-San Antonio).

Caucus by-laws require scheduling a meeting within seven days upon the request of 10 Republican House members, and it appears there are enough Republicans wanting a caucus meeting to pull this off.

Texas will gain four seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, starting with the 2012 election, according to the official Census count released today by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. A map of states gaining and losing Congressional seats can be found here. In a nutshell, Texas gains four, Florida gains two. Gaining one each are Washington, Arizona, Utah, Nevada, Georgia, and South Carolina. Losing one seat each are Louisiana, Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. New York and Ohio each lose two congressional seats.

Besides the obvious effect on redistricting, this count also effects the electorial college for the 2012 general election, resulting in a shift of electorial votes from states Barack Obama carried to states John McCain won.

This Sunday, LSR Managing Editor William Lutz appeared on WFAA's Inside Texas Politics. He blasted lawyers for the Plano Independent School District for arguing in federal court that elementary school students don't have First Amendment Rights. Lutz is referring to the infamous "Candy Cane Case," where the Liberty Legal Institute is suing Plano ISD because it wouldn't let an elementary school student pass out a note at the winter party telling his fellow students that a candy cane has a Christian origin or pencils that say "Jesus is the reason for the season." Lutz argues that organizations like the ACLU have created an environment where public schools often inadvertently discriminate against Christian students.

Earlier this year, the elected State Board of Education passed new social studies standards that insist that children learn why America is unique and special among nations. The State Board of Education wants kids to know more about Thomas Jefferson and George Washington than just the fact that they owned slaves.

But that doesn't sit well with the Obama administration. The U.S. Department of Education is mad at Texas because Gov. Rick Perry refuses to hand over the authority to decide what Texans learn in schools to unelected bureaucrats in Washington DC. Specifically, the Texas Education Agency declined to participate in the federal government's "Race to the Top" program that required adopting federal government curriculum standards. ...

The land developer in the Dallas City Hall corruption trial -- Brian Potashnik -- received a sentence of 14 months in prison Friday. Cheryl Potashnik, who offered Rep. Terri Hodge (D-Dallas) free rent, got probation. The full story is available on WFAA.com. We post a clip below:

For our North Texas readers, LSR Managing Editor William Lutz will appear on WFAA's Inside Texas Politics this Sunday at 9. Lutz will be blasting school officials for making it difficult for Christian students to exercise their First Amendment rights. Inside Texas Politics airs every Sunday on WFAA, Channel 8 in North Texas.

Is expanded gambling really dead or are gambling lobbyists just being really, really quiet right now because the gambling crowd doesn't want an anti-gambling legislator to win the Speaker's race?

It's a fair question. Last night, LSR Managing Editor William Lutz received a phone call at his home. It was a robo-dial poll consisting of three questions:

Rep. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood) issued the following statement on Galveston District Judge Susan Criss's decision to dissolve her order (sought by plaintiff's lawyer Steve Mostyn) prohibiting the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association -- a state-financed Coastal insurance company -- from giving financial documents to him:

Plaintiff's attorney Steve Mostyn, current president of the Texas Trial Lawyer's Association, testified before the Joint Committee on Oversight of Windstorm Insurance today. Mostyn is the liaison counsel for the Hurricane Ike cases in Galveston County, but he said he is not the lead counsel for the "slab" claims in Galveston. His testimony gave Mostyn the opportunity to clarify some issues that have been discussed in the press and discuss with lawmakers his concerns about how TWIA adjusted Hurricane Ike claims.

Most of the hearing surrounded the nuts and bolts of the state-financed Texas Windstorm Insurance Association and the subsidies that are paid by policy holders statewide (and indirectly state general revenue) to keep windstorm rates low along the coast. It was not a "showdown" between Mostyn and supporters of tort reform but an extremely civil discussion of insurance issues.

We'll post a more detailed treatment of this topic later in the week. But here are a few notes from the hearing:

During our conversation with Rep. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood), we asked him about his role as chairman of the House Republican Caucus during the Speaker's race. We print his answer below:

In this week's issue for our subscribers, we are pleased to publish an interview with Rep. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood) on the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association and his battle with some plaintiff's attorneys to get financial information on the association. For space reasons, we had to condense part of the interview published in the issue. We print additional comments from Taylor on the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association and some ideas to solve its problems below:

During our interview with Rep. Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood), most of which is published in this week's issue, he asked for the opportunity to clarify that he is actively following state ethics laws and and state reimbursements for activities initially paid for by his campaign go right back into his campaign. We print his comments below:

At this weekend's State Republican Executive Committee meeting, Chairman Steve Munisteri told committee members that the party is now officially debt-free for the first time in a long time. That means that Munisteri -- with the help of office-holders and Repbulican donors statewide -- has retired the $708,494 of debt he inherited. He also noted that the party spent more than $900,000 on behalf of candidates this cycle.

The Texas Public Policy Foundation released a poll yesterday taken by Baselice and Associates showing the public wants more efficiency and less spending in higher education. “Texas voters want more value and higher quality teaching for the tax dollars they pay to support higher education,” said Justin Keener, TPPF vice president of policy and communications. “The results give lawmakers and university officials clear marching orders for how Texans want them to address budget shortfalls and rising tuition costs: put our students first and cut higher education overhead.”

Specifically, 87 percent responded that universities' top priority should be educating students, with only 6 percent stating that conducting research should be the top priority. The poll shows strong support for making professors teach more.

Today, Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, and Speaker Joe Straus sent state agencies a letter asking them to identify an additional 2.5 percent in budget reductions for Fiscal Year 2011. The letter, which can be read here, contains some rather concerning statistics about where state finances are. Specifically, the letter states "overall state revenue receipts for fiscal year 2010 came $2 billion below estimate." The letter then notes that sales tax numbers are rebounding but "we still anticipate insufficient revenue to cover general revenue spending needs in the current biennium." The 2.5 percent reductions will be memorizalized in a 2011 supplemental appropriations bill, the letter continues.

Undoubtedly in a few minutes, presidents of state universities will start hyperventalating because cost control is not in their vocabulary. And the Capitol press corps will try and recite the tired refrain about a so-called "structural deficit," but that's not what's really happening here.

Steve Taylor of the Rio Grande Guardian is one of the most knowledgable writers about the politics in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Yesterday, he published an extremely insightful interview with Rep. Aaron Pena (D-Edinburg), which is a must-read. Here are a couple of key excerpts:

“The Democratic Party in Texas has got decades of rebuilding to do. Their dream of demographic salvation is an illusion ... Hispanics are not being engaged with by the Texas Democratic Party. In percentages, they are moving over to the Republican ranks, as we saw in Corpus Christi,” Peña said. “As long as Republicans can get over 40 percent of the Hispanic vote, they will dominate Texas for my lifetime. And that is what is happening. That is why, after the next redistricting, not the one coming up, you will see Cameron County with a Republican leadership.”

“They have completely ignored South Texas and other parts of urban Texas. They have spent a disproportionate amount of time and money on swing voters who never come over. It has happened in every race since we started losing. They have not engaged with the base of the Democratic Party. You need to do both (swing voters and base party voters) but they have spent nearly every penny on swing voters,” Peña said. "Unfortunately, a handful of people in Dallas and Austin have led the debate. The Democratic Party, unfortunately, is standing on one financial leg and that is the trial lawyers.” ...

Former Harris County Republican Chairman Gary Polland has endorsed Joe Straus for re-election as House Speaker. Polland is a long-time conservative activist who has sought to move the GOP to the right, particularly on taxation and spending issues. Polland's endorsement can be read at his online newsletter, Texas Conservative Review.

 "And for those who say he isn't conservative enough, we say look at his plans with a super-majority in the House as opposed to a nail-biting majority he dealt with last session: a real voter ID bill, balancing the Texas budget without raising taxes, and strengthen border security," Polland wrote. "... This is not a case where we are dealing with a RINO (Republican in name only)."

Health care policy expert Troy Alexander rejoined the Texas Medical Association's staff, now working in the legislative affairs department, a TMA press release noted.

Alexander worked for TMA 1999-2003 as its director of political education. Alexander then worked as a senior health and human services policy analyst for then-Speaker Tom Craddick. Since 2009, he has worked for the Department of Health Services.

The Lone Star Report will not be publishing this Friday, Nov. 26, 2010.

A Travis County Jury has convicted former U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay on money laundering and conspiracy charges. The story is in most of the state's newspapers. Click here to read the Houston Chronicle's account.

The Austin American-Statesman published an interesting article today on the attempt by some city officials to have the Texas Open Meetings Act declared unconstitutional. The officials argue it violates their First Amendment rights to be prevented from emailing a quorum of, say, a city council and having a virtual discussion about agenda items (or the future agenda of the city council). The case is being heard in the District Court by federal judge and former legislator Rob Junell.

We wish to draw our readers' attention to one section in the story:

With help from the Texas Municipal League, [attorney Dick] DeGuerin recruited current city officials to join a new lawsuit, including Pflugerville City Council Member Victor Gonzales, who was on the witness list but did not testify Tuesday.

First the big-government city lobbyists work to make sure it's next to impossible for voters to rollback excessive property tax increases. Now they're trying to get a federal judge to throw out the Texas Open Meetings Act so they can do public business in secret.

Texans for Lawsuit Reform President Richard J. Trabulsi, Jr. issued the following statement on the Attorney General's ruling that many documents in the TWIA settlement, including bills for legal fees, constitutes public information:

“Restoring and maintaining public trust in our civil justice system has always been a primary goal of TLR.  In September, TLR requested that all important information regarding the TWIA-Ike settlements be released.  The public absolutely has a right to know the details surrounding the TWIA-Ike settlements because of the unique nature of TWIA, the involvement of elected officials in its oversight, the potential impact on premiums paid by Texans for insurance, and the possibility that our State’s general revenue fund might be impacted.”

At today's news conference, LSR asked Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst what he thinks of proposals from school lobbyists and superintendents to spend billions more on public education. "Everyone in America realizes that the message of this last election, whether you're living in Washington DC or you're living in Texas or you're living in the state of Washington or Maine or Florida or California -- all across this great land -- is that we've got to live within our means," Dewhurst said. "TThat's what people want they don't want to go into debt. They don't want to mortgage their kids' future ... What I would say to superintendents is public education is a huge priority, and we're going to do everything we can in the Legislature ... to put more new money into public education. But these are challenging times ... We've got to live within our means, and everybody from the Legislature has got to look at ways we can do the same job or better for less money... And we've got to figure out -- whether we're a public education superintendent or lieutenant governor -- how to do the job smarter with less resources."

Republican Party of Texas Chairman Steve Munisteri and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst unveiled a rainy day fund for the Republican Party of Texas today. The party has established a $100,000 Certificate of Deposit to save for a rainy day. Dewhurst contributed $65,000 directly to RPT and helped to raise an additional $100,000 -- which the party decided to use to open its Rainy Day Fund.

"I have been so impressed with what our new chairman Steve Munisteri has done since June," Dewhurst said. "... The turnaround we've seen is nothing short of incredible ... I'm very anxious to do anything I can to help the party."

Munisteri's statement can be read here.