Texas Lottery to pay winner of $83.5M jackpot after withholding prize for months
The agency initially blocked the payout because of two state investigations into now-banned lottery courier services, one of which sold the winning ticket. Full Story
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![Lottery tickets sit near the entrance of Hyde Park Market in Austin on May 5, 2025.]()
Credit: Lorianne Willett/The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ proposed congressional map dismantles districts flagged by DOJ
The Department of Justice said four districts unconstitutionally combined Black and Hispanic voters, a charge the state disputes. If the proposed map passes, two will still be multiracial. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Al Green, D-Houston, walks to a Congressional Redistricting meeting at the University of Houston campus in Houston, Texas, on July 26, 2025.]()
Credit: Danielle Villasana for The Texas Tribune -
Overhauling STAAR test is back on the table this special session. But the clock is ticking.
An effort to replace the state's standardized test fell apart in the final stretch of this year's regular session. Texas lawmakers have two weeks left to find middle ground. Full Story
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![Students attend a math and reading workshop at a summer camp held at Dobie Middle School at July 23, 2025. The camp, hosted by Austin Voices for Education and Youth, hosts workshops to help students prepare for standarized testing.]()
Credit: Ilana Panich-Linsman for The Texas Tribune -
Texas is redrawing congressional map for GOP gains, House Republicans acknowledge
States can draw electoral maps for partisan gain, but not if it dilutes the power of voters of color, courts have found. Full Story
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![State Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christ, makes introductory remarks during the Texas House special committee hearing on redistricting August 1, 2025.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas cities, counties may face new limits on raising property taxes
Republican state lawmakers want to curb property tax bills by further limiting how much can be collected by cities and counties. Full Story
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![Cars drive on Intersate 35 East with the downtown Dallas skyline looming in the distance on Sunday, July 27, 2025.]()
Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune -
Join us Aug. 26 for a conversation about the future of Texas public media
With cuts in federal funding, we’ll chat with public media leaders about the impact and where their stations go from here. Full Story
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Lawmakers advance bill to protect Texans from real estate fraudsters
Senate Bill 15 seeks to prevent the use of fraudulent deeds to sell someone else’s property or take out loans. Gov. Greg Abbott vetoed a previous version of the bill. Full Story
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![A San Antonio neighborhood on Saturday, May 25, 2024.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Texas bills increasing youth camp safety face long odds, even after Hill Country floods
Competing legislative priorities and an industry that has pushed against certain regulations could challenge a suite of camp safety bills this special legislative session. Full Story
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![Texas game wardens search the area across the river from Camp Mystic on July 5, 2025.]()
Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune -
Some rural Texans see THC as a lifeline for their health and economy
As lawmakers continue to debate banning hemp-derived THC, some rural Texans say it helps ease addiction, health concerns and economic woes that hit their communities the hardest. Full Story
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![Romana Harding greets goats and miniature horses on her farm outside of Midway, TX, on Tuesday, July 29, 2025. Romana plans use the 10 acres she owns to make a farm for other veterans to visit and experience healing.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Kerr County officials failed to follow certain aspects of disaster plan during Texas floods
The five-year-old plan, required by the state, detailed when additional monitoring was to take place and who was responsible for alerting the public to evacuate. Full Story
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![A woman looks at a pile of debris in Hunt on July 8, 2025.]()
Credit: Brenda Bazán for The Texas Tribune -
Why the proposed Texas congressional map may not be a lock to net five new GOP seats
The new proposed lines would also prevent few, if any, opportunities for Democrats hoping that an aggressive gerrymander could backfire on Republicans. Full Story
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![From left: U.S. Reps. Greg Casar, D-Austin, Al green, D-Houston, and Julie Johnson, D-Farmers Branch]()
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Draft Texas congressional map pits Democratic incumbents against each other, spelling possible primary clashes
Multiple Democratic members have been packed into blue districts in Austin, Dallas and Houston to make way for newly crafted Republican districts in those areas. Full Story
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Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
How a rural Texas sheriff became a poster child for serving Trump’s immigration goals
Roy Boyd has also become one of the loudest cheerleaders for partnerships between sheriffs and ICE to offer the federal agency unprecedented access to jails and deputies. Full Story
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![From left: Tom Homan, President Donald Trump's "border czar," Goliad Co. Sheriff Roy Boyd and Gov. Greg Abbott in a panel discussion during the Sheriff's Association of Texas 147th Annual Training on July 15, 2025, in Fort Worth.]()
Credit: Camilo Diaz Jr. for The Texas Tribune -
Former Sid Miller allies told police the ag commissioner feared the DEA, told a friend to get rid of marijuana
Miller denies wrongdoing after allegations surfaced during an investigation into one of his aides, who pled guilty to bribery. The agriculture commissioner has not been charged with a crime. Full Story
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![Commissioner of Agriculture Sid Miller speaks to press during a Trump Rally at Million Air in Austin on Oct. 25, 2024.]()
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Texas GOP once again tries to ban local governments from hiring lobbyists in Austin
Critics of the bill say the state’s smallest cities and school districts will be silenced at the Capitol. Full Story
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![Texas state senators take care of business at their desks during floor debate on SB5 the THC regulation bill on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. Clockwise from upper left are Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, Sen. Adam Hinojosa, D-Corpus Christi, Sen Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown and Sen. Donna Campbell, R-New Braunfels.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate once again tries to give the attorney general authority to prosecute election crimes
A similar proposal stalled out earlier this year over disagreements between the House and Senate. This time, lawmakers might clash over whether to approve the new bill along with a constitutional amendment. Full Story
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![Texas Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, argues a point of order on CSSB11 a bill that authorizes the Texas Attorney General to prosecute certain election-related crimes.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Newsom will move to redraw California map if Texas redistricts, teeing up national fight
The governor plans to go through the Legislature to usher in a map with more Democratic seats if Texas tilts its map to the right, according to a person with knowledge of Newsom’s thinking. Full Story
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![California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a news conference with Texas state representatives about redistricting at the Governor's Mansion in downtown Sacramento, California, on Friday, July 25, 2025, after meeting with Texas lawmakers about Republican plans to redraw districts in Texas.]()
Credit: DANIEL HEUER/The Sacramento Bee via ZUMA Press Wire via REUTERS -
Texas Senate passes bill to ban THC — again
The Senate’s decision signals another potential standoff with Gov. Greg Abbott, who vetoed a similar ban earlier this year as he called for more regulations instead. Full Story
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![Employees trim leaves off a hemp flower at Caprock Family Farms, Friday, May 23, 2025, in Lubbock. The farm harvests the hemp and then manufactures the product to businesses, if requested.]()
Credit: Annie Rice for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House Republicans unveil new congressional map that looks to pick up five GOP seats
The first draft of the lower chamber’s new redistricting map targets Democratic members of Congress in the Austin, Dallas and Houston metro areas and in South Texas. Full Story
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TribCast: What’s next for Republicans?
Mark Davis, the dean of Texas conservative talk radio, joins TribCast to talk about the GOP’s outlook for 2026. Full Story
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![A Texas representatives speak on House floor during the opening day of the 89th Texas special legislative session Monday, July 21, 2025 in Austin, Texas.]()
Credit: Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune