University leaders began this year expecting a bruising Texas legislative session, but they came out mostly unscathed - MATTHEW WATKINS, Texas Tribune

University leaders knew the 2017 legislative session would be tough. Lawmakers didn't have much money to toss around, and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the Republican leader of the Senate, was angry at colleges and universities for raising tuition in recent years. Still, school officials were alarmed when the first version of the Senate budget included the elimination of a funding category called "special items" — home to about $1 billion worth of programs and initiatives on college campuses. Some schools warned they might have to shut down if the special items were zeroed out as proposed. https://www.texastribune.org/2017/12/23/fights-over-money-dominated-year-texas-higher-education/