The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Texas can ban license plates with the Confederate flag, with the 5-4 majority agreeing that the plates would "constitute government speech" with a message that the government would seem to endorse. Justice Stephen Breyer, who wrote the majority opinion, said people wanting to display that message could do so "on a bumper sticker right next to the plate."

Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller is eliminating a ban on deep fryers and soda machines in schools, saying the policy was a "one-size-fits-all approach mandated from Austin" and that school district should be able to decide on the issue. Critics say the policy change will hinder efforts to reduce Texas' high childhood obesity rates, but Miller said his plan will also bring more local food from farmers into schools and promote healthy options.

Denton's City Council repealed its ban on fracking early Wednesday in response to House Bill 40, a new law that prohibits those bans. The city's ban — which its voters approved last year — was facing a lawsuit from the state and the Texas Oil and Gas Association.

State Rep. Jim Keffer, R-Eastland, announced he won't run for re-election after serving 10 terms in the House. Keffer, an ally of House Speaker Joe Straus, was already facing a primary challenge from the right, as are some other Straus backers.

Gov. Greg Abbott predicted a "new era of job growth" as he signed a $2.56 billion bill reducing business franchise tax rates by 25 percent, along with other tax cuts. The overall package, Abbott said, will make it "so easy to sell Texas" as he travels around the country hoping to get businesses to relocate to Texas. Already, Abbott had made a push to bring General Electric here, away from proposed tax increases in Connecticut.

A broad review of athletes' academics is underway at the University of Texas at Austin, following a report in the Chronicle of Higher Education that basketball players cheated under former men's coach Rick Barnes. Greg Fenves, the university's new president, said the "top-to-bottom review" will help him get a better understanding of UT athletes' academic life and that the university has "always been dedicated to winning with integrity."

San Antonio's interim mayor, Ivy Taylor, said her supporters "defeated a political machine" in narrowly beating former state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte for a full term as mayor. Josh Robinson, a Taylor strategist, called it a "new day in San Antonio," while Van de Putte's campaign manager, Christian Archer, said the low Democratic turnout in the race should "scare every Democrat in Bexar County."

Gov. Greg Abbott signed the open carry and campus carry legislation into law over the weekend, saying the gun rights groups who supported the measures "worked profoundly to ensure that the Constitution is lived up to." Meanwhile, a discussion is underway at college campuses about how they'll establish the gun-free zones the campus carry law allows.

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