The top local stories this morning from KERA News: Texas House budget writers meet this morning to figure out how much falling oil prices have hurt the state’s bottom line.
Prices fell in the past two years from more than $100 a barrel to under $30 at times, plunging to 12-year lows. Oil and gas taxes account for about nine percent of the state’s revenue, but make up most of its Rainy Day Fund.
SMU Economist Bernard Weinstein estimates Texas may have $5 billion less to spend over the next two years than estimated.
But state Republican leaders have urged calm. The budget Governor Abbott signed last year left billions of dollars unspent. And they say the Texas economy is more diversified now than during previous busts.
Other stories this morning:
- New York voters will cast ballots in the Republican and Democratic primaries. The state’s mostly blue, but GOP presidential candidates have been banking on the suburban vote. We’ll have live coverage of the results tonight at 8.
- McKinney voters head to the polls May 7 to vote on a $220 million dollar school district bond package. School officials hope to use part of that money to build a 12,000 seat athletic stadium, but residents have mixed feelings about the proposal.
- Playoff fever continues for fans of Dallas basketball and hockey. The Mavs last night recovered from a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder Saturday to win Game. The Stars fell to the Minnesota Wild last night, but Dallas is 2-1 in the playoffs.
You can listen to North Texas stories at 8:22 a.m. and 6:20 p.m. on KERA 90.1 FM.
