A Texas senator is trying to make it illegal for any government agency to buy Windows Vista without prior approval.

Juan Hinojosa says simply "Don't buy it because it's not worth it." If the law passes, all state agencies in Texas would need written approval from the Legislative Budget Board before buying Vista itself or any machine with the system pre-installed.

The only exception would be for places of higher education.

Anti-Vista Amendment Rides State Budget

The proposal is not a separate law. Instead it's a rider to the budget: one of 800 amendments added during the legislative process. Hinojosa introduced the rider during a committee session and it was approved without any debate. (Source: tx.us)

The final budget plan will be discussed by the Texas Senate next Wednesday. It appears that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to reject Hinojosa's proposal without ditching the entire budget -- something unlikely to happen. The budget covers all government spending for the next two years.

Hinojosa says state officials have already had problems because of bugs in Vista. "It takes up a lot of memory. It's not compatible with other equipment, and it's supposed to be an upgrade from the XP program that is being used by state agencies, and it's not." He admits he hasn't used the system himself, but says he has read about its problems.

Microsoft Says It's Unfair

Microsoft says it is disappointed by the move, pointing to the 1,500 employees it has in the state and the recent opening of a $500 million data center as proof of its commitment to Texas. It says it's unfair for legislation to attack a single company and product in this way.

The San Antonio Express News reports that 44 state agencies are already running Vista in some form, with spending ranging from just $122 to almost $1.6 billion. (Source: mysanantonio.com)