"No more homeless bills!" one staffer muttered today in the Capitol extension. Don't worry, it wasn't some sudden legislative push against those of no fixed abode. Today is the 59th day of the session, meaning Friday the 13th is the final day for "filing bills and joint resolutions other than local bills, emergency appropriations, and bills that have been declared an emergency by the governor" (to quote the House and Senate rules.) What that means is that today lobbyists and other associated issues advocates have been wandering from office to office, legislator to legislator, trying to find someone, anyone, to carry their pet bill for them before the filing deadline. So what this means is that some legislators are now putting signs up on their doors that basically say, "No room on the agenda, come back next session." Staff in several other offices confirmed they'll be putting up their own anti-shingle in the morning.

Gov. Rick Perry, speaking in Houston, announced less than an hour ago that he will reject federal stimulus money to shore up the state's unemployment insurance program. This comes despite a warning from Texas Workforce Commission Chairman Tom Pauken that the UI fund could begin running a deficit this fall, possibly followed by insolvency. “Texans who hire Texans drive our state’s economic engine," Perry said. "During these tough times, Texas employers are working harder than ever to move products to market, make payroll and create jobs. The last thing they need is government burdening them with higher taxes and expanded obligations. I am here today to stand with Texas employers and the millions of Texans they employ to resist further government intrusion into their businesses through an expansion of our state’s unemployment insurance program.” In a press release, Perry's office wrote:

Strings attached to the unemployment insurance stimulus dollars would require an unprecedented change in Texas’ definition of unemployment, increasing the tax burden borne by Texas employers. This increased burden would counteract the stimulus package’s objective of job creation by leading companies to limit hiring and raise prices on products, hindering their ability to overcome the economic crisis and ultimately limiting growth.

Reportedly, Perry is scheduled to be on Fox News within the hour. Reactions from various politicians and interest groups after the jump.

Still have pocket change after getting tickets to the Boss and Leonard Cohen? Kevin Shields’ shoegaze messiahs My Bloody Valentine are coming to the Austin Music Hall on April 21, immediately after an appearance at Coachella, as part of a five-city US tour. Tickets are on sale now and won't be around for long. Asleep at the Wheel’s Ray Benson has high hopes for his tribute musical A Ride with Bob, which runs Friday and Saturday at the Long Center for Performing Arts. “We really want to do the film some day,” he says. “This is a G-rated show, but to be honest with you, Bob Wills lived an X-rated life.”

A huge crowd showed up for Toyota's Taste of the Market event at the Downtown Farmers' Market on a blustery Saturday morning. Shoppers (and dog walkers) were amply rewarded with tasty tidbits while they strolled. An impressive line-up of local chefs was paired with area farmers and livestock producers in order to provide samples of delicious locally-sourced food items to the enthusiastic crowd. I was only there a couple of hours and I managed to sample FINO's rustic Spanish Tortilla topped with a slice of pork sausage from Peach Creek Farm, La Condesa's fish tacos with grouper from San Miguel Seafood, an earthy rabbit and bacon terrine from Dai Due made with rabbit from Countryside Farm and pork from Richardson Farms,a dainty square of Fete Accompli's Mediterranean Fritatta made with vegetables from Milagro Farm, and Lambert's spicy grilled pizza topped with Loncito's Lamb.

Toyota developed the Taste of the Market promotion that debuted in Austin last weekend as a venue to introduce consumers to the new Venza. They did plenty of advance promotion, paid chefs and growers to participate, and made a $5,000 donation to the Sustainable Food Center that runs the market. The successful event moves on to two popular farmers' markets in California this coming weekend. Toyota does seem to be everywhere just now - they also signed on as a sponsor for Bravo's Top Chef and awarded free Venzas to a semi-finalist in each of the last two seasons. I'm not suggesting we all rush out and buy a new Toyota, but I do find it very interesting that a major automobile manufacturer has identified enlightened foodies as a segment of the consumer market worth cultivating, and I'm always glad to see area farmers and food producers get the support they so richly deserve. Oh, and I am very grateful that we all got some rain.

The Austin Aztex were much improved Saturday night, holding the Houston Dynamo to a 2-2 draw in the second of their three-game series hosting MLS clubs. The game was lively and fairly physical, with good chances at both ends, and you could start to see the outlines of a regular lineup for the home side. The gorgeous first goal, for instance, paired two forwards we'll likely see a lot together: Big, experienced English striker Gifton Noel-Williams put speedy Sullivan Silva through with a perfectly weighted pass – and it seemed right that the first goal in team history should come from a Brazilian we found at Okla­homa Baptist. (What would have been even better: if the first winner in team history had been scored by Cuban defector Yordany Alvarez, whose 30-yard rocket in the 87th minute instead clanked off the far post. So that will have to wait.) The finale of MLS Madness is this Saturday, March 14, 7:30pm, at Nelson Field, hosting the MLS champion Colum­bus Crew. There may be more appearances announced, but as of now, this is your last chance to see this young team in action before the April 18 regular season opener hosting the Minnesota Thunder.

Another bill has been filed at the Texas Legislature that would allow breweries to sell their product on-site, as wineries are already allowed to do. This one is by Houston State Rep. Jessica Farrar; it appears to be more limited than Lon Burnam's bill. Read it about it on my personal blog.

After the Voter ID debate last night/this morning, here come the press releases explaining why this saves/damns democracy in Texas. Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst was first out of the gate on post-vote statments. Rather than taking the opportunity to explain why he decided to briefly put down the gavel to take part in the vote, he instead praised Sen. Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay, for "preserving the integrity of one person one vote." While the debate was still roiling, the Republican Party of Texas railed against the Democrats' "childish rants ALL DAY AND ALL NIGHT LONG!" (because using bold is so very, very mature.) They then pleaded that supporters watch "brief video from a handful of our Republican activists." But before that, any chance of a campaign contribution? Texas Democratic Party Chair Boyd Richie simply condemned the GOP for using this non-issue to indulge in "destructive partisanship over preserving the most fundamental cornerstone of our democracy." The full statements after the breaks.

Thank the Beatles for the latest from the Willie Nelson camp. Naked Willie arrives in stores next week, and Mickey Raphael, “unproducer” and longtime harmonica player with Nelson, maintains that hearing Let It Be … Naked sparked the idea in him. “They took off the strings that Phil Spector put on," he explains from his home in Nashville. "I thought it would be great if we did the same thing to some of songs that Willie did. I knew that he had no say in the production. I mean he was happy to be doing it, but back then Chet Atkins produced him, and the artists really didn’t get involved in the production of their records. Knowing Willie like I do now, his mantra is ‘less is more.’ He likes things simple. I thought, ‘These are great songs. It’d be heresy to cut them again. I wonder what would happen if we just stripped everything off and kind of do it like Willie had produced himself.’” When Nelson recorded for RCA from 1965 until 1971, Atkins was famous for his trademark Nashville sound, which included lush orchestral arrangements and backing vocals that often ran counter to the mood or message of the song itself. “It’s not to say that Chet’s production was wrong or bad, I just wanted to look at them through another lens,” Raphael clarifies. “I love these songs. I listen to the RCA era all the time. It’s the first batch of Willie recordings that I ever heard. I didn’t really know about him until I went to work for him. Darrell Royal introduced me to Willie in '72,'73. I was just a struggling harmonica player, hanging out in coffeehouses in Austin. When Willie hired me, I had to do a crash course in country music. So this era was my education.”