The start of the 81st Texas Legislature arrived when the gavel fell at noon, and with it the balancing act between the House and Senate, as lawmakers ping-pong policies and maneuver between spending and budgeting.
The session kicked off under a less contentious atmosphere, as Rep. Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, was unanimously elected speaker of the House. However, Monday's news reported by Texas Comptroller Susan Combs – that the Legislature will have almost $10 billion less to work with over the next two years – is not exactly the way lawmakers intended to start the session.
Combs said the state is still better off than other states, but legislators need to be frugal as the biennium estimate for the new budget has dropped 10.5 percent.
Some new state lawmakers are getting to work for the first time, like state Sen.-elect Wendy Davis. She said attending the Legislature for the first time is not unlike attending your first day of school.
"I don't quite know my way around the halls … but I'm just so excited to part of this incredible group of people," she said.
Democrats are excited to have Davis, since they have just enough votes now to block legislation with another Democrat joining the ranks.
"I think it's going to make a real difference," she said. "It's much harder to pick two votes off than it is to pick off one and now we have the luxury of one extra vote."
Davis said they hope to have an impact on issues important to Democrats.
Legislators entering the session were aware that there would be challenges to overcome. Those obstacles include reconciling the damage caused by Hurricane Ike and a shortfall in state revenue.
"Unfortunately, those needs aren't going away and we'll have to be very creative in providing solutions to them," she said.
State Rep. Mark Strama, D-Austin, said though the session will begin on a calmer note, they will still get off to a rocky start with news of state's budget.
"It was bad news. A lot of folks got the misimpression that Texas was immune to the recession and it's not," Strama said. "The real news is that we're seeing our state revenues going down because a lot of families are hurting. It's going to be challenging working with almost $10 billion less than we had 10 years ago."
Strama is a proponent in renewable energy and thinks Austin should be a leader in that field. He said education is the most important issue in his district.
Republican consultant Ray Sullivan said the 81st Legislature will focus on the state budget.
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Showtime for lawmakers
News 8's political reporter gets an early morning glimpse of the scene at the Capitol.
 
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"The budget is always the vast majority of the session's focus. We're expecting a big budget surplus and we're going to have to tighten our spending," Sullivan said.
News 8's political reporter is at the Capitol and will report more at noon when the gavel falls and the curtains drops at the 81st Legislature.
