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In Depth: Dueling Tax Cuts And Much More In Texas

The Senate has approved its budget featuring $4-plus billion in property tax cuts. The House is advancing its plan spending slightly more on Texas' first-ever sales tax reduction.

As both chambers speed toward a tax-cut showdown that could leave the roughly $210-billion state budget in limbo, could Gov. Greg Abbott step in?

No. At least not yet.

Abbott has declined to take sides, saying only that the Legislature should settle on a blend of tax cuts worth "$4 billion or more" by the end of the legislative session June 1.

The Senate plan would save households around $200 a year. The House proposal would benefit all Texans, not just homeowners, but translate to about $170 in annual savings for a family of four.

A state budget is the lone item the Legislature is constitutionally obligated to pass. So failure to come to a tax-cutting compromise could leave Abbott mulling something else he's not taken sides on publicly — calling a special session this summer.

Here's a look at other people and issues that had strong weeks — and didn't — in Texas politics.

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WHO'S UP

Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio

It's been a tough couple months for Martinez Fischer, whose special election bid to move over to the state Senate fizzled against a less-high-profile House Democratic colleague. But the lawmaker commonly known by his initials "TMF" again seized the spotlight this past week, raising a key rules objection. That delayed for three days major GOP-backed bills on open carry of handguns and a state ban on municipalities imposing their own local limits on hydraulic fracturing. Martinez Fischer, who has long thrived during sharp-tongued floor debate, said he so opposed open carry that he had staff members scour the bill and its journey through committee and onto the House floor, looking for loopholes that could stall the process. He found one that worked — though the victory was short-lived.

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WHAT'S DOWN

Transgender School Bathroom Bill

An effort to limit transgender students' use of school bathrooms has gone too far — even for the staunchly conservative Texas Legislature. Pasadena Republican Rep. Gilbert Pena's proposal mandates that only people of the same "biological sex" share a bathroom or locker room, allowing students to collect $2,000 from their school districts if they catch a classmate violating that rule. But Pena's bill was delayed a week by fellow Republican Rep. Byron Cook, who said it would have to be "toned down" before being heard by the powerful House State Affairs Committee. With just six weeks left in the session, the delay may permanently derail Pena's bill.

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WHAT'S IN-BETWEEN

"Marlise's Law"

A proposal by Austin Democratic Rep. Elliott Naishtat would overturn current law that pregnant women not be denied "life-sustaining treatment," including being removed from life support, in order to protect their unborn child. During an emotional House committee hearing, relatives of Marlise Munoz, a pregnant Fort Worth woman who was kept on life support after a pulmonary embolism in 2013, talked of watching her waste away against their wishes. Conservatives, though, maintained that Texas must protect fetuses. Naishtat's proposal is named for Munoz and was left pending in committee. It's unlikely to become law — but at least it's now had a Texas Capitol hearing.

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.