A Tale of Two Energy Efficiency Bills in the Last Days of the Session
May 20, 2015
Two bills to add energy efficiency programs at the State Energy Conservation Office, or SECO (under the Comptroller of Public Accounts), were discussed on the House Floor on the last days to get a House bill approved and sent to the Senate. Despite...
Merz: How A Sales-Tax Holiday For Guns Would Hurt Texas State Parks
May 18, 2015
[Original post: Evelyn Merz, Houston Chronicle, May 18, 2015]
The Texas Legislature, while opening a door to adequately fund the Texas state park system via appropriation of the sporting-goods sales tax, is quietly closing a window so that less...
Texas Could Probably Meet EPA’s Carbon Goals If State Lawmakers Leave the Energy Market Alone
May 13, 2015
If you were to read the pretty, glossy one-pagers from the Texas Public Policy Foundation, or listen to the testimony by the Public Utility Commission, or lobbyists representing American Electric Power, or those entities suing the EPA over its...
Action Alert: Time for the Senate to Step Up and Reject the Water Gridzilla!
May 13, 2015
To those of you who took action on our alert opposing legislation to create an ill-advised state water grid for Texas, thank you!. Unfortunately – despite our best efforts – House Bill 3298 passed the Texas House and is now in the Texas Senate....
Something Good Passes the House
May 12, 2015
In what has turned out to be an unequivocal disaster of a legislative session for the environment and individual rights, good legislation may yet pass into law. By an overwhelming majority, the Texas House of Representatives approved HB 14 by Rep....
Sierra Club Warns of Disaster in the Making if Water Grid Bill Becomes Law
May 12, 2015
Sierra Club warned today that a California-style approach to water management could have disastrous consequences for Texas. A bill designed to “study” a so-called “water grid”, House Bill 3298, could be up for a vote soon in the Senate after it...
Fond Farewell to Our Spring Intern Nikki Whitehead
May 8, 2015
The end of the semester is upon us, which means another great internship at the Lone Star Chapter draws to a close. This week, we say goodbye to Nikki Whitehead, our stellar Media & Communications Intern in our Austin office. Nikki will continue...
Whitehead: Ongoing Texas Drought Affects Wildlife
May 8, 2015
The ongoing Texas drought has thrown nature out of balance and has had a devastating impact on wildlife, especially aquatic and bird species. The majority of Texas lakes are extremely low or have dried up completely. According to the 2012 Texas...
Action Alert: Stop the Monstrous Water Gridzilla!
May 4, 2015
The Texas House of Representatives will make a major decision this week that could lead to the same water mistakes California made decades ago. Tell your State Representative that the California approach of moving massive volumes of water around the...
Lone Star Sierran - April 2015
April 30, 2015
Polluters Flex Muscle at the Capitol, Citizens Fight Back