Once a year Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have the opportunity to host locally judged art competitions for high school age students within their districts. Since this competition entitled, “An Artistic Discovery,” was created in 1982, hundreds of thousands of high school students have participated at the local level.

The winning piece of art from each Congressional district is displayed in the Cannon tunnel, a pedestrian walkway leading to the United States Capitol, for approximately one year. This walkway is frequented by Members of Congress, staff and the general public as they enter the Capitol Building and thus provides an opportunity for thousands to enjoy the talents of young artists from every region of the country.

Each winning student will be invited to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony in the Cannon tunnel of the Capitol Building.

Significant fire potential map is pictured above.

Texas Comptroller Susan Combs today reminded business owners that April 15 is the deadline to file property tax renditions with their county appraisal districts. To render is to list the taxable inventory, furniture and fixtures, machinery and equipment and other property a business owned or managed as of Jan. 1. The appraisal district may use the information to set property values.

“Rendition helps the appraisal district appraise property fairly and accurately,” Combs said. “If some businesses are not paying their fair share of property tax, it places a greater tax burden on other business owners and homeowners.”

Rendering allows property owners to record their opinion of their property’s value and ensures that the appraisal district sends them a notice before changing a value on their property. Owners do not have to render exempt property, such as church property or a farmer’s equipment used for farming.

Equipment Headed to Japan to Aid in Disaster Relief

AUSTIN -- Three long-haul rigs, each loaded with a transformer, are journeying across the state today to meet a late afternoon shipping deadline tomorrow at the Port of Houston.

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) approved super-heavy permits for a Texas company to haul the loads at gross vehicle weights of 510,000, 430,000 and 420,000 pounds. The transformers are headed to Japan to aid in disaster relief in the aftermath of a destructive earthquake and tsunami.

Texas businesses should be alert that an old office supply scam – the “phoner toner” scam – has resurfaced in recent weeks. Several Texas Attorney General’s Office employees have reported that they received unsolicited telephone calls at work from office supply scam artists.

The “phoner toner” scam usually involves several phone calls. In the first call, the scam artist hopes to find a new or temporary employee who will freely provide information. Posing as the company’s approved vendor or even as a survey taker, the scam artist asks the employee to provide the make and model number off the nearest office printer. Faced with the seemingly harmless request, the employee unwittingly complies.

With technology at their fingertips, drivers are constantly faced with distractions such as talking or texting.  April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month and the Texas Department of Transportation is launching the Talk. Text. Crash. campaign to encourage Texans to put down their cell phones while driving.

The campaign officially launches at 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday with an event on the south steps of the Texas State Capitol in Austin.  A NASCAR driving simulator, provided by Nationwide Insurance, will be available for drivers to experience the impact distracted driving has on their driving abilities.  The simulator will be located at 11th and Colorado (on the west side of the Capitol).

Danger to children rises with temperatures--It's no secret that Texas gets hot in the summer and in spring and fall as well.  Too often adults leave children in cars to dash into a store, thinking they will only be gone a few minutes. But those minutes can turn into a nightmare and even death.

The death of 6-month-old New Braunfels girl on March 8th was the first hot car death of the year in Texas.  She was left unattended for eight hours as temperatures reached 84 degrees. Last year, Texas led the nation with 13 heat-related car deaths.

In hot weather a closed car reaches deadly temperatures quickly. Studies show when the temperature is 85 degrees outside, the temperature inside a closed car can rise 100 degrees in 10 minutes, and 120 degrees in 30 minutes. Children can suffer heat exhaustion or heat stroke, leading to permanent disability or death. Heat stroke, also known as hyperthermia, can cause shock, seizures, irregular heartbeat, heart attack, and damage to the brain, liver, and kidneys.

Although many local schools are finishing up their spring break this week, Texas Department of Public Safety issued the following press release statewide:

Texas Highway Patrol troopers will be out in force during Spring Break looking for drivers who are intoxicated.

The increased patrols will run across the state from March 12 to March 20, in high-risk locations during the times when alcohol-related crashes are most frequent. The patrols are funded through a grant from the Texas Department of Transportation targeting impaired driving.