Texas Senate passes hemp ban, a Dan Patrick priority

Latest News

• Texas’ first abortion arrests stem from monthlong attorney general investigation

  By Eleanor Klibanoff Updated: 10 minutes ago

  These represent the first criminal charges under Texas’ near-total abortion ban. Full Story 

• Texas Senate advances bill to allow smaller homes on smaller lots

  By Joshua Fechter and Zach Despart 44 minutes ago

  Lawmakers, who are preempting locals on lot sizes in new subdivisions, have been eyeing ways to allow more homes to be built as the state faces a shortage. Full Story 

• Texas Senate advances bill banning DEI in K-12 public schools

  By Jaden Edison and Pavan Acharya Updated: 3 hours ago

  Sen. Brandon Creighton has filed a bill that would ban diversity, equity and inclusion policies related to hiring and programming, while creating ways for parents to complain about violations to the DEI ban. Full Story 

• Texas AG Ken Paxton accuses Coppell ISD of violating Texas’ “critical race theory” ban

  By Alejandro Serrano 3 hours ago

  The attorney general office’s lawsuit is based on an undercover video published in February by a conservative activist group. Full Story 

• Texas farmers say sewage-based fertilizer tainted with “forever chemicals” poisoned their land and killed their livestock

  By Alejandra Martinez Updated: 9 hours ago

  The fertilizer was promoted as an environmental win-win for years. An untold number of farmers and ranchers across Texas have spread it on their land. Full Story 

• Trump administration drops challenge to Texas law targeting people who illegally cross the border

  By Uriel J. García 9 hours ago

  Senate Bill 4, the Texas law that makes illegally crossing the border a state crime, will continue to be challenged by two immigrant rights groups and El Paso County. Full Story 

• Amanda Edwards to run to succeed the late-U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner

  By Matthew Choi and Renzo Downey 10 hours ago

  Edwards unsuccessfully ran for the seat twice last year. She faced off against U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in the 2024 Democratic primary. Jackson Lee won the primary but died before the general election, opening the party’s nomination anew Full Story 

• Bills seek to improve state’s response to wildfires a year after devastation in Panhandle

  By Jayme Lozano Carver March 19, 2025

  A proposal to create a statewide system connecting emergency personnel and agencies is among several bills that target problems exposed in 2024. Full Story 

• Texas conservatives are using school board elections to exert influence over what students learn

  By Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Dan Keemahill, The Texas Tribune, Photos by Shelby Tauber, for The Texas Tribune and ProPublica March 19, 2025

  In six Texas districts that used at-large voting systems, ideologically driven groups successfully helped elect school board members who have moved aggressively to ban or remove educational materials that teach children about diversity. Full Story 

• Lawmakers want to give schools more leeway to suspend Texas’ youngest and homeless students

  By Sneha Dey Updated: March 19, 2025

  The proposal aims to make working conditions safer for teachers but critics worry it could push the state’s most vulnerable students out of the classroom. Full Story 

• Two men convicted in the smuggling deaths of 53 immigrants in San Antonio

  By Associated Press March 18, 2025

  The 2022 tragedy was the nation’s deadliest smuggling attempt across the U.S.-Mexico border. Full Story 

• Texas Senate advances school prayer, Ten Commandment bills

  By Robert Downen and Pavan Acharya Updated: March 18, 2025

  The vote comes amid a broader push by conservative Christians to infuse more religion into public schools and life. Full Story 

• Texas bill would ban K-12 students from using cell phones during school hours

  By Pavan Acharya March 18, 2025

  If the proposal becomes law, Texas would follow in the footsteps of several Democrat- and Republican-led states that have enacted similar bans. Full Story 

• University of Texas System bans drag shows in campus facilities

  By Jessica Priest Updated: March 18, 2025

  The move comes a few weeks after the Texas A&M System issued a similar ban, which is being challenged in court. Full Story 

• TribCast: Measles, COVID and the state of our public health system

  By Matthew Watkins March 18, 2025

  On the fifth anniversary of the start of the COVID pandemic, we discuss the measles outbreak and the state’s ability to respond to health crises. Full Story 

• Texas measles cases rise to 279. Here is what you need to know.

  By Terri Langford, Stephen Simpson and Eleanor Klibanoff Updated: March 18, 2025

  West Texas measles outbreak still limited to 11 counties, as of Tuesday. All but two of 279 infected patients were unvaccinated. Full Story