On Thursday we reported that there was a possibility that some Texas prisons could be closing. Today, the word is that  Texas prisons will not be closing because of a budget-cutting plan said Brad Livingston, executive director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. According to the Austin American Statesman, Livingston said, a document outlining a 5-percent cut in the agency's nearly $3 billion, two-year budget "will not specifically propose closing any units."

State agencies have been asked to submit to top state officials a plan to cut their budgets by 5 percent. Legislative leaders debated about whether Texas should consider closing or mothballing some prisons to save money. The state has more than 2,000 empty prison beds in its 112 state prisons. Prison officials are faced with looking for as much as $300 million in savings.