Legislators Guide to the Issues 2007-2008

Growing Pains: The Cost and Contribution of Impact Fees in Texas

Texas’s rapidly growing population requires new infrastructure and improvements, which oftentimes come at great expense. To fund these projects, local officials often impose impact fees on new development—but their use comes at a cost. Key points: Texas is the fastest-growing state in the nation. As such, it has robust infrastructure requirements. To help finance capital...

From Clipboard to Cloud: Ensuring Patient Privacy and Portability in Health Records

From Clipboard to Cloud: Ensuring Patient Privacy and Portability in Health Records Key Points HIPAA protects institutions, not information. Once health data leaves a covered entity for an app, vendor, or broker, federal protection ends, and Texas law leaves that gap open. The interest at stake is not only access to clinical records. It is...

Michael Petrick v. City of Austin

Date Filed: July 27, 2026 Original Court: Western District of Texas, Austin Division Case Status: Active Litigation Case Summary: In August 2025, Michael Petrick purchased a home on a 0.28-acre lot in Austin, Texas, in preparation for the birth of his first child. The property contained three overgrown trees. One tree was splitting and posed...