Megan Kimble

Austin

Political Economy Reporter at Houston Chronicle

Texas political economy reporter @HoustonChron. Stories @nytimes @citylab @texasmonthly. Author of CITY LIMITS @CrownPublishing. Professionally curious.

Articles

Texas lawmakers reach deal to spend billions shoring up water supply

1 week ago | houstonchronicle.com | Megan Kimble

State lawmakers have reached a deal on how to begin spending billions of dollars meant to shore up Texas’ struggling water infrastructure and supply. The deal allocates $1 billion a year for water and splits that funding equally between new water supply projects, like pipelines and desalination plants, and aging infrastructure in need of repair. “It will be viewed in historical context looking back that this is where Texas chose to meet one of the biggest unmet needs in the state,” said state Sen.
Texas lawmakers reach deal to spend billions shoring up water supply

1 week ago | expressnews.com | Megan Kimble

State lawmakers have reached a deal on how to begin spending billions of dollars meant to shore up Texas' struggling water infrastructure and supply. The deal allocates $1 billion a year for water and splits that funding equally between new water supply projects, like pipelines and desalination plants, and aging infrastructure in need of repair. "It will be viewed in historical context looking back that this is where Texas chose to meet one of the biggest unmet needs in the state," said state Sen.
Texas lawmakers reach deal to spend billions shoring up water supply

1 week ago | statesman.com | Megan Kimble

The deal allocates $1 billion a year for water and splits that funding equally between new water supply projects, like pipelines and desalination plants, and aging infrastructure in need of repair. “It will be viewed in historical context looking back that this is where Texas chose to meet one of the biggest unmet needs in the state,” said state Sen. Charles Perry, a Lubbock Republican who has been the leading voice on water issues, in a committee hearing on Sunday.
A new round of property tax cuts is headed to Abbott and Texas voters

1 week ago | houstonchronicle.com | Megan Kimble

New property tax relief for homeowners and businesses is headed to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk and onto the November ballot. The proposal raises the homestead exemption from $100,000 to $140,000 for most homeowners, effectively reducing the taxable value of a home.
A new round of property tax cuts is headed to Abbott and Texas voters

1 week ago | expressnews.com | Megan Kimble

New property tax relief for homeowners and businesses is headed to Gov. Greg Abbott's desk and onto the November ballot. The proposal raises the homestead exemption from $100,000 to $140,000 for most homeowners, effectively reducing the taxable value of a home.
Texas bill diverting Harris County toll funds to Houston dies

1 week ago | houstonchronicle.com | Megan Kimble

A handful of bills that would have stopped local governments from enacting their transportation priorities and hamstrung local transit efforts are likely dead. The measures failed to pass before key deadlines as the legislative session draws to a close. One controversial measure, authored by state Sen.
Texas House passes watered-down evictions overhaul after GOP pushback

2 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | Megan Kimble

Texas lawmakers voted on Friday to accelerate the legal process for ousting squatters on private property and to streamline parts of the eviction process for landlords, while nixing more sweeping reforms that tenant advocates have warned would endanger millions of Texas renters.
How a bill to speed up evictions is testing Texas’ powerful landlord lobby

2 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | Megan Kimble |Matt Zdun

Putting the TAA’s contributions into contextNearly 300 state lawmakers or those seeking those offices received about $2.7 million from TAA and its affiliates over the past decade. To put that number in perspective, Hearst identified what other state political committees have given sizable sums to these same lawmakers and office seekers. TAA and its affiliates have not given the most.
As Texas looks to invest in desalination, critics want protections for the coast

4 weeks ago | houstonchronicle.com | Megan Kimble

In an effort to shore up the state’s future water supply, Texas lawmakers have stressed the need to secure new sources and point to desalination as a potential solution to looming shortages. But environmentalists, coastal residents, and some legislators caution that without stronger regulation, the build-out of half a dozen proposed desalination plants threatens to harm coastal bays and estuaries that drive tourism and host dozens of endangered species.
Texas lawmakers reach a deal that will give property tax breaks to homeowners

1 month ago | houstonchronicle.com | Megan Kimble

State lawmakers have reached a deal on how to allocate more than $3 billion in new property tax relief, with the bulk of the cuts set to benefit homeowners. The agreement, revealed in Senate and House committee hearings Monday, would increase the homestead exemption to $140,000 for most homeowners and to $200,000 for seniors and those with disabilities.