Budget proposals would boost state spending for the current budget cycle for projects ranging from mental health hospitals to state pay raises. This would leave $27 billion in surplus for the next two years.
March 2023
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Texas Legislature 2023
Texas Senate passes first bill this session, a bipartisan effort to close teen gun loophole
In its first bill passed this session, the Texas Senate sought to ensure juvenile mental health hospitalizations are reported to the federal firearm background check system.
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The Texas Tribune-ProPublica Investigative Unit
Uvalde district attorney fights release of public records against wishes of most families
Joining the Texas Department of Public Safety’s fight against the release of records, the district attorney claims the support of every family who lost a child in the 2022 mass shooting. Attorneys representing many of the families refute that claim.
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Asking to be Heard
At a Korean community center in Houston, the struggle immigrant Texans face with language barriers is clear
Texas largely conducts its state business in English and Spanish. It falls to interpreters like Terry Yun to help people scale the wall dividing them from crucial government services.
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Economy
Texas lawmakers propose historic investments to broadband and water infrastructure — but voters will have the last word
If passed during this legislative session, this would be the state’s biggest investment in broadband, but some local officials question whether it would make the service more affordable in areas with few providers.
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Transportation
After a two-year pause, feds give Texas the go-ahead to resume a major Houston highway expansion
Across the state, major projects have drawn fierce opposition in recent years amid a reckoning over how freeway construction in the mid-20th century created and exacerbated racial and economic segregation.
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Criminal Justice
Texas death row inmate Andre Thomas’ execution date was postponed to allow his legal team reasonable time to prove his incompetence
At issue is whether Thomas, who gouged out his eyes after confessing to a 2004 triple murder in Sherman, is competent to be executed.
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Texas Abortion Restrictions
Women denied abortions sue Texas to clarify exceptions to the laws
Five women announced a new lawsuit Tuesday, marking the first time patients directly affected by new abortion laws have sought to challenge them in court.
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Criminal Justice
Texas executes Gary Green for 2009 murder of his wife and her 6-year-old daughter
Green’s appellate attorneys unsuccessfully argued that his intellectual impairments and mental health status made him ineligible for the death penalty.
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The 2023 Texas Tribune Festival
T-Squared: This year’s Texas Tribune Festival is Sept. 21-23
Texas and America are at a pivotal moment. With the 2024 elections looming, we have a cornucopia of talks and ideas planned.