AUSTIN, Texas — The good news Texas lawmakers will head back to work with on Tuesday is there’s more money to spend. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar offered his estimate Monday, giving lawmakers nearly $9 billion more for the next budget.

Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar told lawmakers Monday they need to set aside $211 million in the next biennium to cover a projected shortfall in the state’s original prepaid tuition plan, the first time the financially ailing program is expected to see its assets drop below zero.

Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN, Texas — The gavel is about to fall to convene the 86th Regular Session of the Texas Legislature. There’s always a bunch of sideline political noise on “must pass” issues, but in fact, lawmakers really have to pass only one bill: The State Budget.

Despite a decline in oil and gas prices, the Texas economy is still growing and state revenue is increasing, Texas’ top accountant announced Monday. Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar estimated that lawmakers returning to the Capitol on Tuesday will have as much as $119.1 billion in revenue available for general-purpose spending in the 2020-21 budget. That’s…

AUSTIN — Mary Nethery used to complain when the yearly property tax bill hit $5,000 for her 1,900-square-foot home in San Antonio. Now it’s pushing $9,000. In recent years, Nethery and other homeowners have shouldered an increasing burden for funding public schools in Texas, where property taxes climbed to the sixth-highest in the nation.