Texas is illegally keeping people with disabilities in nursing homes, federal judge rules
A federal judge determined the state illegally institutionalized severely disabled people for decades, often in poorly run facilities. Full Story
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Zach Despart
Enterprise and Investigative Reporter
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Zach Despart is an enterprise and investigative reporter focusing on state government. His work on a team investigating the flawed police response to the Uvalde school shooting was awarded the 2024 Collier Prize and was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize in explanatory reporting. He led the Tribune’s effort to become the first news organization to determine where Texas has built 50 miles of border wall, a project that also found the state struggles with holdout landowners along the route. He previously covered Harris County for the Houston Chronicle, where he reported on corruption, elections, disaster preparedness and the region’s recovery from Hurricane Harvey. An upstate New York native, he received his bachelor’s degree in political science and film from the University of Vermont.
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![An employee of the Amistad Nursing and Rehabilitation Center walks with a resident on April 1, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Former Texas state Sen. Kelly Hancock to become acting comptroller, run for permanent job
Hancock, a North Richland Hills Republican, announced his candidacy shortly after being sworn in as chief clerk at the comptroller’s office. Full Story
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![Sen. KELLY HANCOCK, R-North Richland Hills, on the Senate floor on May 12, 2023.]()
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With only 8% built, Texas quietly defunds state border wall program
Texas officials suggested the federal government could pick up construction. However, during President Trump’s first term, his administration built about one-third of what the state was able to put up in the same amount of time. Full Story
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![A section of state-built border wall under construction near the banks of the Rio Grande south of Laredo in Zapata Co. on Sept. 23, 2024.]()
Credit: Ben Lowy for The Texas Tribune -
Top deputies to Attorney General Ken Paxton pushed out over sexual harassment allegations, lawsuit says
The harassment allegedly took place while the two were on leave from the agency working on Paxton’s impeachment defense. Full Story
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![Then-Texas Solicitor General Judd Stone II speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on April 26, 2022.]()
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“Anti-Red Flag Act” that would limit when guns can be taken from people advances in Texas House
Senate Bill 1362 would prevent officials from taking someone’s firearms if they haven’t been charged with a crime or aren’t subject to a protective order under the Texas Family Code. Full Story
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![Patrons of the SAXET Gun Show look at handguns at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds in Robstown on Feb. 26, 2023.]()
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Ken Paxton says Google will pay Texas $1.4 billion to settle privacy suit
The state attorney general sued Google in 2022, alleging it unlawfully tracked and collected users’ private data. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at a press conference in front of the Supreme Court building in Washington on Jan. 15, 2025.]()
Credit: Luke Johnson for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate advances bill to allow smaller homes on smaller lots
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
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![The Mueller neighborhood in East Austin on Oct. 7, 2023.]()
Credit: John Jordan/The Texas Tribune -
In Texas, private firms cash in on property tax late fees, piling debt onto struggling homeowners
Texans who fall behind on their property taxes face one of the most punitive systems in the nation, where private collection companies can tack up to 20% onto their bill. Full Story
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![Sarah Rojo disscuses hardships of being delinquent property taxpayers on Febuary, 23 2025 in Gardendale, Texas.]()
Credit: Callie Cummings for The Texas Tribune -
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick says Legislature should clarify Texas abortion law to protect mothers at risk
Patrick on Sunday said the Legislature should amend the language of the state’s near-total abortion ban to address confusion over when doctors may terminate pregnancies. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick speaks at the Texas GOP Convention on Thursday, May 23, 2024, in San Antonio.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Feds refer Texas’ Harvey funding discrimination case to Justice Department
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development confirmed its finding that Texas unfairly favored white residents in rural areas when it distributed $1 billion in Harvey aid in 2021. Full Story
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![Texas Land commissioner George P. Bush speaks to Texas House of Representatives Committee on Urban Affairs hearing on Harvey in Houston Monday, October 2, 2017.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune