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• U.S. declares military zone around El Paso, allowing soldiers to arrest migrants

  By Uriel J. García 8 hours ago

  It’s the second military zone the Trump administration has created at the border, following one on the New Mexico-Mexico border, where a group of migrants were arrested on Monday. Full Story 

• Texas measles cases grow to 683. Track the spread here.

  By Terri Langford, Yuriko Schumacher and Stephen Simpson Updated: 9 hours ago

  Three more counties – Upshur, Eastland and Hardeman – report their first cases of measles in the ongoing historic outbreak. Full Story 

• How Greg Abbott took a flailing school voucher movement and turned it into a winning issue

  By Jasper Scherer May 2, 2025

  Abbott tapped into a powerful national conservative movement and his own campaign war chest to turn legislative races into multimillion-dollar affairs. Full Story 

• Everything we know about the 3 people who want to run Starbase, Texas’ next city

  By Berenice Garcia May 2, 2025

  All three — running unopposed — have longstanding connections with SpaceX, Elon Musk’s company headquartered in South Texas. Full Story 

• Bill that would make vaccine exemptions easier advances in the Texas House

  By Terri Langford May 1, 2025

  As the state faces a multimillion dollar measles outbreak in West Texas, the House Public Health Committee passes HB 1586 along party lines. Full Story 

• A 20-hour wait to speak: A pre-dawn House panel takes up Ten Commandments bill

  By Sameea Kamal Updated: May 1, 2025

  Dozens of people who signed up to speak were ready at 4 a.m. to debate whether public school classrooms should have to display the Ten Commandments. Full Story 

• University of Texas at Austin sued over arrests during 2024 pro-Palestinian protests

  By Becky Fogel, KUT News May 1, 2025

  The two graduates and two current students who are also suing UT trustees and other officials say they were unlawfully targeted because they expressed pro-Palestinian views. Full Story 

• Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to lead Trump’s commission on religious liberty

  By Katharine Wilson May 1, 2025

  The commission includes Ben Carson, “Dr. Phil” McGraw and religious figures. Full Story 

• How state lawmakers are trying to crack down on illegal immigration

  By Alejandro Serrano and Uriel J. García Updated: May 1, 2025

  From requiring law enforcement agencies to cooperate with federal officials to forcing state contractors to use E-Verify to spot undocumented workers, here are the bills that could reshape the state’s immigration policies. Full Story 

• Texas House panel advances THC bill with stricter regulations — but no ban — for hemp industry

  By Jasper Scherer May 1, 2025

  Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has called banning THC products a top priority. The latest draft of the lower chamber’s THC regulation bill would allow retailers to continue selling edibles and drinks. Full Story 

• Plans advance for $10 billion Exxon plastics plant on the Texas coast

  By Dylan Baddour, Inside Climate News May 1, 2025

  Officials at a rural school district voted on Tuesday to begin developing a tax break agreement intended to draw Exxon to their stretch of the Gulf Coast north of Corpus Christi. Full Story 

• Judge bars deportations of Venezuelans from South Texas under 18th Century wartime law

  By Nicholas Riccardi, Associated Press May 1, 2025

  The federal judge is the first to rule that the Alien Enemies Act can’t be used against immigrants that the Trump administration claims are gang members invading the U.S. Full Story 

• Can Texas clean up fracking water enough to use for farming? One company thinks so.

  By Carlos Nogueras Ramos, Graphics by Carla Astudillo May 1, 2025

  The Texas Legislature has also invested millions in research to clean the fracking wastewater. Critics say it’s not a viable solution to the state’s water crisis. Full Story 

• Texas will share equipment database with local fire departments to help beat wildfires

  By Jayme Lozano Carver May 1, 2025

  The legislation, which won unanimous approval in both chambers, was written following the state’s historic Panhandle wildfires last year. Full Story 

• Weary from COVID deaths, Hispanic Texans embraced vaccines. It saved their lives.

  By Terri Langford and Yuriko Schumacher May 1, 2025

  In the deadly summer of 2020, Hispanics in Texas were half of all COVID-19 deaths, spurring many to vaccinate. Today, in a startling flip, Hispanics make up less than a quarter of deaths from the disease. Full Story 

• Wide-ranging crackdown on abortion pills passes Texas Senate

  By Eleanor Klibanoff Updated: April 30, 2025

  The bill gives the state new tools to try to stop the flow of abortion pills, but critics say it’s legally dubious on several fronts. Full Story