This summer is on track to be among Texas’ most extreme
June was only the 16th-warmest on record in Texas, but a mid-month heatwave brought an unusually high number of 100-degree days. Full Story
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![TxDOT employee Brad Shepard sweeps the road shoulder clean of the asphalt cold mix he put down while doing edge repairs on Interstate 35 in Austin on August 19th, 2013.]()
Credit: Spencer Selvidge for the Texas Tribune -
Acting as Paxton impeachment judge, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick issues sweeping gag order
“Prejudicial and inflammatory statements” from both sides have jeopardized the ability of senators to offer fair and impartial justice, Patrick says. Violators can be found in contempt, jailed and fined. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick gavels in the Senate at the state capitol in Austin on June 20, 2023.]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
500,000 Texans have been dropped from the Medicaid rolls since April
Advocates are calling for a halt to removals until the state can account for why more than 80% of the people who lost Medicaid coverage were eliminated for “procedural” reasons, like not responding to messages from the state. Full Story
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![Nurse Practitioner Anika Barber with a patient at the Legacy Community Health Center in Houston on Aug. 2, 2013.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton, impeached and suspended from office, raised $1.7 million in less than 2 weeks
Paxton’s campaign said 2,343 donors contributed to the Republican attorney general in 12 days when a fundraising freeze lifted after the regular legislative session. Full Story
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![Ken Paxton speaks at his primary election results watch party alongside his wife Senator Angela Paxton in McKinney, TX on March 1, 2022.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Democrats confident U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez will keep his South Texas seat in 2024 election
Republicans recently announced Mayra Flores’ comeback effort with great fanfare, but Democrats argue that a redrawn district — and Flores’ voting record — are hurdles the GOP can’t clear. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen, at a polling location in Mercedes on Nov. 8, 2022. Rep. Gonzalez is running for re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives in a new district, TX-34.]()
Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune -
Mexico files diplomatic complaint over Gov. Greg Abbott’s floating border barriers
The Mexican government plans to send an inspection team to see if Texas’ buoys have crossed into Mexico’s side of the border. Full Story
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![An unfinished strand of orange buoys, meant to deter migrants from crossing the river, sits in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass on July 11, 2023.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Kaylee Greenlee Beal -
A&M faculty leaders decry “appearance of outside influence” in botched hiring of journalism professor
The university announced the hiring of Kathleen McElroy, a Black former New York Times journalist, but later backtracked on its offer amid conservative pushback. Full Story
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![Texas A&M University in College Station.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles for The Texas Tribune -
TribCast: Texas lawmakers approve property tax cuts after 7 months of trying
In this week’s episode, we discuss the winners and losers — politically and financially — after lawmakers approved an $18 billion tax cut bill. Full Story
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![A home in East Austin in 2017.]()
Credit: Shelby Knowles for The Texas Tribune -
“We are dying”: Houston workers protest new state law removing water break requirements
The protesters called House Bill 2127 the “law that kills” and said it will leave those who labor outdoors at the mercy of their employers. Full Story
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![Members of Fe y Justicia Worker Center hold signs in protest of HB-2127 during a press conference at Houston’s City Hall on Friday, July 14, 2023. HB-2127 is a new state law that eliminates many worker protections.]()
Credit: Douglas Sweet Jr. for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz raises $4.4 million in second quarter as he seeks reelection
The Republican’s haul fell short of the money raised by Rep. Colin Allred, a Democratic opponent who collected $6.2 million in a shorter period — but Cruz prevailed in the 2018 election despite getting outraised then. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz signs books and greets supporters during the Republican Party of Texas 2022 Convention in George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston on Friday, June 17, 2022.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
Property tax special session is over, but months of acrimony could complicate Texas lawmakers’ mission as more work awaits
Efforts to repair rifts, particularly among Republican leaders, begin as another contentious special session looms on Gov. Greg Abbott’s call for “school choice.” Full Story
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![Speaker of the House Dade Phelan gavels the House into session on the first day of the second special session at the state Capitol in Austin on June 28, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
U.S. House adopts Texas Republican’s amendment blocking Pentagon abortion policy
Under U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson’s change to the annual defense policy bill, service members could no longer be paid travel expenses if they are stationed in a state where abortion is not available. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Amarillo, speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Orlando on Feb. 28, 2021.]()
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New school safety laws seek to add armed guards, chaplains and mental health training. Here’s what you need to know.
Experts say many of the changes will bolster school safety but some requirements may be challenging for public schools to implement by the upcoming school year with limited funding and staffing constraints. Full Story
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![Austin Police Department officer Cory Ehrler monitors the entrance to Ridgetop Elementary School in Austin, Texas shortly after classes start on the Monday following the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. As the 83rd Legislature approaches, Texas lawmakers are considering making firearms more available to teachers and other school personnel. The Texas Tribune (Smith: School Security). Credit: Tamir Kalifa for The Texas Tribune.]()
Credit: Tamir Kalifa/The Texas Tribune -
At a shuttered Texas coal mine, a 1-acre garden is helping feed 2,000 people per month
The garden in the middle of a 35,000-acre former mine is supplying thousands of pounds of fresh produce to families in three counties that have few grocery stores. Full Story
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![From left: Ava Moore, 18; Caleb Rappolee, 17; Pera Taylor, 11; and Salaya Henderson, 11, volunteer gardeners, pick fresh onions at the Dewey Prairie Garden in Donie on June 29, 2023. The Dewey Prairie Garden is a pilot program that practices the final stages of NRG Jewett Mine’s environmental reclamation process that takes on average 12 years from start to finish.]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Long-awaited $18 billion property tax-cut deal heads to Gov. Greg Abbott
House Democrats attempted to insert benefits for renters and more money for public education into the tax-cuts package in a series of floor amendments but were unsuccessful. Full Story
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![An Aerial image of a suburban neighborhood in San Marcos on October 18, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott sends more state police to patrol Austin after city leaders call for end to partnership
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson had said that troopers pulling a gun on a 10-year-old prompted the end of the agreement. A video of that encounter shows troopers with guns pointed at the ground, not the child. Full Story
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![Increased presence of DPS at the state Capitol after a suspicious package was reported in Austin on Oct. 30, 2018.]()
Credit: John Jordan/The Texas Tribune -
Investigation finds no fraud by Texas prison contractor that was paid despite cutting inmate therapy services
Management & Training Corporation had been accused of defrauding the state by charging for services it didn’t provide and directing prisoners to falsify paperwork about their treatment. Full Story
Credit: Martin do Nascimento for The Texas Tribune -
Harriet O’Neill, former GOP justice on Texas Supreme Court, joins impeachment prosecutors against Ken Paxton
After 18 years as a district and appellate judge, O’Neill returned to private practice in 2010. She called the case against Paxton “clear, compelling and decisive.” Full Story
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![Former Texas Supreme court Justice Harriet ONeill in a 2010 interview with The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Justin Dehn/The Texas Tribune -
Texas judge who doesn’t want to perform gay marriage ceremonies hopes web designer’s Supreme Court case helps her fight
McLennan County Justice of the Peace Dianne Hensley filed a lawsuit after a state agency warned her about refusing to marry gay couples. She hopes a recent U.S. Supreme Court case about religious freedom helps her cause. Full Story
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![Gay marriage supporters hold a pride flag in front of the Supreme Court before a hearing about gay marriage in Washington, D.C., on April 28, 2015.]()
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Company confirms it has found new funding to build a massive gas terminal at the Port of Brownsville
Brownsville is the last major deepwater port in Texas that doesn’t have large fossil fuel projects. The 750-acre facility will export Texas natural gas to other countries. Full Story
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![The Boca Chica Wildlife Refuge on the Rio Grande delta, about six miles east of the proposed 750-acre site of the Rio Grande LNG facility.]()
Credit: Dylan Baddour/Inside Climate News
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