UPDATE: Lawmakers negotiating the state budget agreed late tonight to give retired teachers and state workers one-time, $500 bonuses, as a gesture of appreciation in tight fiscal times. However, the retired teachers' bonuses could only be paid if the Legislature...
The House's chief budget writer, Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, drew chuckles at a symposium today with a jibe at his own party. The back story: At the session's start, GOP leaders submitted a bare bones budget. It was a few billion,...