Regional

Austin—The Senate Education committee gave the public its first look at that chamber's proposal for sweeping education finance reform on Thursday, April 25. The bill would include property tax relief, a teacher pay raise, and funding provisions aimed at making the system more equitable and effective. Committee chair and Friendswood Senator Larry Taylor says the plan focuses resources on those students that need the most help.

Music fans will get a rare opportunity to hear an award-winning songwriter perform his own songs, when Jimmy Webb appears at the Cailloux Theater in Kerrville on Saturday, May 11 at 7:30 p.m. Webb penned some of the top hits of the 1960s and 70s, including “MacArthur Park” and “Up, Up, and Away”.

AUSTIN—Only a month is left for lawmakers to get the state’s business done in the 86th regular session of the Texas Legislature. Still unfinished are the issues at the top of a list shared by Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dennis Bonnen: the passage of a state budget for fiscal years 2020-2021, property tax reform and school finance reform.  Last week, a conference committee of 10 House and Senate budget writers began negotiations over the two chambers’ bu ...

Learning how to grow something in your garden can be hard enough, but after you harvest, you may be left wondering “What do I do with this now?”. The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension office in Gillespie County can help you. We are pleased to announce that the second program in our three-part program series “Grow it Cook it” will be held on May 10, from 12:00 p.m.

This is the wildflower extravaganza! Everywhere you go is filled with the beauty of the Hill Country's oaks, towering pecan trees, and a deep flowering layer of every color imaginable. There is flowing as far as you can see. No need to take any special drives; simply go outside. With our rainstorms that have been rolling through, they are nitrogen-rich and making seeds for their reproduction. Nature is consistent in its continued restoration and making ready for next year.

The Lower Colorado River Authority Transmission Services Corporation (LCRA TSC) has developed a proposed plan to minimize potential impacts of power transmission line construction and maintenance across 241 Texas counties on 22 federally listed endangered species of birds, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates and a mammal, and one non-listed lizard species. LCRA TSC is a significant electricity provider in Texas.

Rockets2019, the event where students from 21 high schools across Texas launch 50 rockets, will be held this week in Stonewall, Texas, on Thursday, May 2, through Saturday, May 4. This is the first time Rockets2019, the culminating event for students in the SystemsGo program, will happen in Stonewall. Launches take place on the Segner Ranch, located at 2187 Double Horn Road, Stonewall, Texas.

On Friday, May 3, at 9 a.m. a check for the High-Demand Job Training Grant will be presented at River City Grill, located at 700 1st St., Marble Falls. The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) has awarded Workforce Solutions Rural Capital Area (WSRCA) in collaboration with Workforce Network, Inc., and the Marble Falls, Burnet, and Llano Economic Development Corporations (EDCs) a $52,500 High-Demand Job Training grant.

Writer/historian Bob Alexander, author of Texas Rangers: Lives, Legend, and Legacy, will speak on the Texas Rangers on Thursday, May 9 at the Herman Brown Free Library. The presentation is part of the library’s free lecture series, Coffee Talks. Coffee Talks brings authors to the library in Burnet to speak on topics related to their books.

To sit in the courtroom of the Supreme Court of the United States and watch the nine justices in action is one thing. To sit in the courtroom and watch the justices in action when the issue is about freedom of information and the public’s right to know in America is a privilege. It was on April 22 that I witnessed the Supreme Court hear oral arguments in the case of Food Marketing Institute v.