Texas

Trustees of the Lake Travis Independent School District voted last week to put a $158.5 million general obligation bond proposal to voters on Nov. 8.

DALLAS — Texas budget negotiators agreed late Thursday to accept the Senate’s plan for a $4 billion reduction to state aid for public education over the next two years, ditching the House’s proposal for cuts totaling $7.8 billion.

DALLAS — Texas lawmakers will have to come back for a special session to complete the state’s next two-year budget unless the House quickly accepts the Senate’s plan to bring in $2.6 billion of new non-tax revenue, leaders from both chambers said Tuesday.

DALLAS — A series of financial blows suffered over the past year by the Hallsville Independent School District in East Texas continued Monday as Moody’s Investors Service dropped its unenhanced debt rating to A3 from A1, with a negative outlook.

DALLAS — Amid objections from environmentalists, the Texas Legislature is moving toward expanding a bond-financed radioactive waste dump site in a sparsely populated West Texas county.

DALLAS — A multibillion-dollar series of projects to reshape how travelers get to and through Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport have all begun construction, with completion expected to take six years.

DALLAS — Texas voters gave their approval Saturday to almost 70% of the 56 school bond proposals they faced in elections across the state, giving 39 districts the go-ahead to issue new debt.

Texas sales tax collections in April totaled $1.87 billion, up 11.4% from April 2010 collections, Comptroller Susan Combs said last week.

DALLAS — The Texas House’s chief budget writer warned his colleagues Thursday that funding for state aid to public education and Medicaid could run out before the end of the next two-year budget cycle.

DALLAS — The Northside Independent School District in San Antonio is planning to sell nearly $130 million of general obligation refunding bonds before the end of the month in variable-rate mode.

DALLAS — With $15 million in federal grants for a high-speed rail study, Texas officials see the state as well-positioned for developing a Houston-to-Dallas corridor.

The Seguin Independent School District’s request for $97.5 million of general obligation bonds won the support last week of the Seguin Chamber of Commerce.

Officials in Georgetown said the passage of a $29.5 million general obligation bond proposal on May 14 would allow the city to replace outdated public service facilities and upgrade municipal operations.

The only municipal school district in Texas is asking voters to approve a four-part, $49.9 million bond proposal on May 14 to upgrade and maintain district facilities.

DALLAS — As its Legislature prepares to close the state’s biggest budget gap in decades, Texas will test the market’s appetite for $133.5 million of general obligation bonds that carry top marks from two of the three rating agencies.

DALLAS — The Texas Department of Transportation would be spared the kind of funding cuts hitting other agencies under a budget bill approved by the state Senate last week.

DALLAS — The Texas Senate approved a two-year state budget Wednesday on a straight 19-12 party-line vote after Republican leaders outflanked Democratic opposition to considering the $176.5 billion spending plan.

DALLAS — More than 40 years after it hosted the 1968 World’s Fair, San Antonio’s HemisFair Park is targeted for the largest redevelopment project in its history.

DALLAS — The Texas Senate’s $176.5 billion budget bill remained stalled in legislative limbo Friday over resistance to proposed revenue increases and continuing calls to tap into the state’s $9 billion rainy-day fund.

DALLAS — Seeking to forestall default on $127 million of stadium bonds, the Harris County Houston Sports Authority is challenging a UBS Investment Bank demand for a $26.75 million swap termination fee issued last week.