TODAY'S TOP STORIES Mayor plans to boost fire staff Mayor Lee Brown on Monday proposed a $68 million plan to add 300 firefighters annually to the Houston Fire Department over six years, taking the offensive in the city's ongoing dispute with the employees' union over staffing levels. 6 DROWN AS CAR ROLLS INTO LAKE Associated Press Bruno Sanchez Martinez escaped from a Ford Taurus after it rolled through a barricade into Lake Lewisville late Sunday, drowning six people. Full story.     Bush unveils budget plan President Bush unveiled details of a $1.96 trillion spending plan Monday that funds his campaign promises while chopping Clinton-era initiatives. But his budget, covering the 2002 fiscal year, likely will be drastically rewritten by a Congress that already has signaled its differences with the new administration over spending and taxes. • NASA may have to rob Pluto to pay for Mars • Effort to trim costs of medications dies • Budget writers take Stones song as theme • Highlights of budget plan Districts feel robbed by 'Robin Hood' law The La Porte school district and three other property-rich Texas districts filed a lawsuit Monday charging that the "Robin Hood" school finance law is an unconstitutional state property tax. China standoff offers few winners, many losers The standoff between the Bush administration and China over 24 Americans held there is a diplomatic game without winners, and the losses can only deepen, analysts said Monday. Includes poll, photos and more. Koch slapped with big penalty A subsidiary of the petrochemical giant Koch Industries Inc. was convicted Monday of concealing environmental violations at its oil refinery in Corpus Christi and assessed the most expensive criminal pollution penalty in Texas history. Traffic plan creates puddle of controversy Police Chief C.O. Bradford apologized Monday for his officers' opening fire hydrants to deter cruising along a busy stretch of Martin Luther King Boulevard in southeast Houston. Aikman calls it quits; cites family concerns, health Troy Aikman is ending his career as a quarterback with the star on his helmet after all. The longtime Dallas Cowboy, who was waived by the team March 7 due to salary-cap and bonus considerations, had said he hoped to continue his NFL career elsewhere. Includes video and photo gallery. OTHER NEWS Metropolitan • Board picks Calif. firm to design water plant • UH closes in on more research money • Family of hogtied shopper sues lawmen, store • Woman set afire by estranged mate State • Debate due over shift of welfare funding • Bill expands college automatic-admission policy Nation • Schools test tactics to calm exam jitters • Agency: 15-passenger vans pose risk of rolling over • Ginsburg backs state moratorium on death penalty World • Palestinians reject Sharon's regrets for attack • EU pressed to review livestock vaccination ban • Japan OKs text ignoring atrocities • Judge returns adopted twins to U.S. • Runner-up in Peru hopes for second chance Sports • U.S. Open next in Tiger's hunt • Astros face tough call making room for Reynolds • Rockets outdone by Jazz in 96-81 rout • Dallas has to wait for NFL draft's second round Business • TWA's folding into American creates No. 1 carrier • Realty giants to unite under Cushman name • Dow ends higher despite early losses Arts and Entertainment • Small venue enhances evening of Rachmaninoff • Frontline to probe issues of kids on medication • All My Sons packs the punch that Miller intended • NYPD Blue actress praises show's writers Back to top

The Chronicle's Online Income Tax Help guides you through a taxing season SCOREBOARD NBA: Jazz 96, Rockets 81 TODAY IN HOUSTON WEATHER: High: 87° Low: 72° Current: 76° Pollen: High Ozone: No warning GETTING AROUND • Road construction: West Loop northbound entry ramp from Beechnut and exit ramp to Bellaire closed. • Real-time traffic DATEBOOK • Free diabetes screening is being offered by the Harris County Hospital District this month. Today's screening runs from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Denver Harbor Community Center, 6402 Market St. Just for fun: • It's pay-what-you-can night for Dinner With Friends at the Alley Theatre. The final preview performance of the Pulitzer-prize winning drama starts at 7:30 p.m. • Contemporary Christian artist Sara Groves will perform a free dinner-time concert at a Woodlands area Chick-fil-A as part of the monthly Brown Bag Concert Series. The concert begins at 6:30 p.m. at 1660 Lake Woodlands, The Woodlands. On TV: • Divas Live.It's The One and Only Aretha Franklin in concert at 8 p.m., VH1. • TV listings COMING THIS WEEK • Join a traditional celebration of Greek Easter in Food on Wednesday. INSIDE Home price trends: Find out how your neighborhood's home prices have fared in the past year. Also get tips on buying or selling a home and more. Summer travel: Whether you want to watch birds in Costa Rica or explore glaciers in Antarctica, if you're thinking about an escorted group tour this summer, it's time to start planning now. Holy Week: A listing of Houston-area church services for Palm Sunday, Good Friday and Easter. Wildflower watch: Print out maps for some of Texas' most colorful wildflower-viewing routes and get regional updates on the best blooms. The News Bizarre: Check out the news that's funny, odd or just downright weird. Take a poll: • Metropolitan: What does requiring students to recite the Declaration of Independence teach? • Nation: If China continues to hold the U.S. spy plane and its crew, how should we respond? • Technology: Got wireless? Our First 100 Years: Follow our city's changes over the past 100 years in stories taken verbatim from the pages of the Houston Chronicle.