Texas House passes three immigration bills after contentious night of debate
Democrats fumed when Republicans tried to block more amendments on a bill that would create a new state crime for illegally crossing the border into Texas. Full Story
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Uriel J. García is an immigration reporter based in El Paso. Before joining the Tribune in 2021, he worked at the Arizona Republic where he covered police violence and immigration enforcement. He started his journalism career at the Santa Fe New Mexican where he covered the city's immigrant community and criminal justice issues. Originally from Mexico and a native Spanish speaker, Uriel grew up in Phoenix and graduated from Arizona State University.
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![Asylum-seeking migrant families surrendered themselves to the U.S. Border Patrol, after crossing the Rio Grande river into the United States from Mexico, in Roma, Texas, on April 16, 2021.]()
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Texas sues to stop Border Patrol agents from cutting state’s razor wire at the border
Attorney General Ken Paxton’s latest lawsuit against the federal government claims Border Patrol agents cut through concertina wire purchased and deployed at the border by the state. Full Story
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![A U.S. Border Patrol agent cuts through razor wire to let in a group of asylum seekers who crossed the Rio Grande in Eagle Pass, Texas, U.S., September 28, 2023.]()
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Texas lawmakers weigh spending $1.5 billion on more border barriers. Experts say walls alone won’t stop migrants.
The House Appropriations Committee passed House Bill 6 on Monday. If it becomes law, the bill would fund an estimated 50 miles of new barriers at the 1,200-mile Texas-Mexico border. Full Story
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![Immigrants who illegally crossed the Mexico-U.S. border are apprehended by the U.S. border patrol in the Rio Grande Valley sector, near McAllen, Texas, U.S., April 5, 2018.]()
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Texas strings concertina wire along New Mexico border to deter migrants
Gov. Greg Abbott said the barrier — two rows of wire strung between metal posts near Interstate 10 — was necessary because migrants are crossing the border at New Mexico and walking into El Paso. Full Story
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![A Welcome to Texas sign stands behind concertina wire set up along the Rio Grande, close to the Texas-New Mexico border in El Paso on Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023. Texas National Guard troops installed the concertina to prevent migrants who cross in New Mexico from entering Texas.]()
Credit: Paul Ratje for The Texas Tribune -
Biden administration settles lawsuit over Trump-era migrant family separation policy
If the settlement is approved, the federal government would be prohibited from adopting a similar policy for the next eight years. Affected immigrants would be allowed to be in the country legally and receive work permits and other benefits. Full Story
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![Migrants who have turned themselves in to Border Patrol are processed by state troopers before being transported to a border patrol detainment facility in Eagle Pass on July 14, 2023.]()
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Immigrating legally means navigating a system both political parties say is broken. Here’s why it’s so difficult.
After her brother was gunned down in 2012, Jessica Mejía and her mother wanted to legally migrate to the U.S. But like millions of migrants who want to move to the U.S., they discovered how difficult it is. Full Story
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![Carmen Ramirez and her daughter, Jessica Mejia in their Baytown, Texas home on Thursday, August 24, 2023. Ramirez and Mejia, originally from Colombia, are pursuing US citizenship and preparing to take the naturalization test together.]()
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Texas Senate moves border bill that allows state police to arrest migrants at U.S.-Mexico border
Two immigration bills advanced in the Senate on Thursday evening. A bill that would increase the minimum sentence for smuggling migrants passed with bipartisan support and will head to the House. Full Story
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![Smugglers use a raft to transport migrants from Mexico across the Rio Grande into the United States, in Roma, on Aug. 26, 2022.]()
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Houston-area development has become a right-wing lightning rod on immigration
After conservative media portrayed the Colony Ridge development north of Houston as a haven for illegal immigrants, Gov. Greg Abbott said the upcoming special legislative session will look into the issue. Full Story
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![Governor Greg Abbott remarks on the property tax cut bill for Texas Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2023, in New Caney.]()
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Mexico agrees to deport migrants after El Paso reaches “breaking point”
Mexican immigration officials said they will negotiate with five countries’ governments to ensure they will take back their citizens. The agreement was announced after shelters in El Paso said they are over capacity. Full Story
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![Migrants, mostly from Venezuela, gather near the border wall after crossing the Rio Bravo river with the intention of turning themselves in to the U.S. Border Patrol agents to request asylum, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico September 22, 2023.]()
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Texas border cities scramble to shelter thousands of newly-arrived migrants
Thousands of migrants have crossed the border into Eagle Pass and El Paso in recent days, the highest number since the emergency health order known as Title 42 expired in May. Full Story
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![Lighting strikes and dust blows in the background from an incoming thunderstorm as hundreds of migrants line up under the Puente Negro Ferrocarril train bridge in Eagle Pass, waiting to surrender to authorities after wading across the Rio Grande into the U.S. from Mexico on September 15, 2023.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Adrees Latif