TribCast: Big changes in Houston ISD after state takeover
In this week’s episode, we discuss the changes at Houston ISD after a state takeover in June. Full Story
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![Students at Houston’s Northside High School hold up signs in protest of the state takeover of HISD on April 6, 2023.]()
Credit: Douglas Sweet for The Texas Tribune -
New allegations against Ken Paxton raise stakes for early votes in impeachment trial
Before 30 senators take on their role as impeachment trial jurors, they face a series of momentous decisions on whether to dismiss the charges as requested by the attorney general. Full Story
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![Rep. Andrew Murr delivers the Articles of Impeachment to Secretary of the Senate Patsy Spaw on May 29, 2023.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
For deaf children in Texas foster care, limited accessibility compounds trauma
Advocates say better accounting of deaf and hard-of-hearing children in the state’s care and better access to translators are needed. Full Story
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![A sign for the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services building in Austin on Nov. 14, 2019.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
The national debate over books has come to West Texas. And librarians are stuck in the middle.
West Texas residents are organizing over their love — or concern — for books. Meanwhile, from Lubbock to Midland and Odessa, librarians are trying to reaffirm libraries’ role as community hubs. Full Story
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![Library clerk Cencee Gordon returns a children's book to its proper location on a shelf in the children section of the Ector County Library in Odessa on Aug. 14, 2023.]()
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Texas drivers vexed by toll road payment problems got little relief from state lawmakers
Double billing, rejected automatic payments and expensive late fees are the most frequent complaints about a toll system with different operators and rules across the state. Full Story
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![Tolls in Austin.]()
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Smaller Texas counties could face a poll worker shortage due to new state requirements
A law that will give voters more time to vote across the state means election offices have to find more workers. That isn’t an easy task in rural Texas. Full Story
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![Voters walk up to the New Berlin City Hall voting center to cast their vote on Election Day Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in New Berlin, Texas.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman for The Texas Tribune -
University of Houston students brace for LGBTQ Resource Center closure in response to Texas’ DEI ban
The announcement confronted students with the impact of a new law that will require all state-funded colleges and universities to close their diversity, equity and inclusion offices. Full Story
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![The LGBTQ Resource Center at University of Houston, Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2023, in Houston. (Antranik Tavitian/Houston Landing)]()
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State grid operator asks Texans to reduce energy use Thursday afternoon as demand spikes
This is the second voluntary conservation notice issued this summer by ERCOT, which hopes to lower electricity use and avoid tight grid conditions amid an ongoing heat wave. Full Story
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Kyle Rittenhouse launches nonprofit with far-right Texans as he ramps up political engagement in the state
The activist known for shooting Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020 has created the Rittenhouse Foundation, which promises to fight for gun rights and includes leaders who have close ties to ultraconservative megadonors from West Texas. Full Story
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Texas’ environmental agency enables companies to increase oilfield wastewater disposal in rivers
Researchers are still studying the chemical makeup of “produced water” from Permian Basin oil fields. But regulators say they’re ready to issue permits to discharge the water into rivers and creeks. Full Story
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![Fracking's water demand requires the construction of ponds like these, which store millions of gallons of fresh water. Aug. 21, 2013.]()
Credit: Tamir Kalifa for The Texas Tribune -
Legal fight over Texas law banning transgender health care for youth centers on whether treatments help or hurt
Texas families and health care providers sued the state over Senate Bill 14, which restricts transgender youth from accessing gender-affirming care. The groups are requesting an injunction from a state district court judge before the law goes into effect on Sept. 1. Full Story
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![Laura’s son holds his Pride flag at Discovery Green in downtown Houston on Sunday, June 25, 2023.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
New accusations: Ken Paxton used burner phone, secret email account, fake Uber name to hide ties to Nate Paul
After Paxton’s lawyers sought to dismiss articles of impeachment as unsubstantiated, House managers responded by accusing the suspended attorney general of going to great lengths to cover up his relationship to the real estate investor. Full Story
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![House General Investigating Committee impeachment managers led by Rep. Andrew Murr, R-Junction, answer questions at a press conference on May 29, 2023.]()
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Texas counties don’t have the power to ban solar farms, attorney general finds
The opinion comes as communities across the country fight solar and wind development, which play an important role in slowing climate change but use a lot of land. Full Story
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![Jerry Cooper, County Commissioner District 1 of Franklin County, drives past solar panels near Cunningham on April 10, 2023. "I don't like the term 'solar farm', it feels disingenuous to me," said Cooper, "I realize things are changing, but this feels like an awful fast change."]()
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Despite post-pandemic improvements, STAAR scores show Texas students are still struggling with math and reading
Test results have gone up since the pandemic in both subjects, but math scores are still below 2019 levels and about half of Texas students read below the level appropriate for most children in their grade. Full Story
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![A calculator and a test sheet on a desk at Elsik High School in 2018.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Appeals court rules abortion pill can remain on market with restrictions
But the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals also ruled it was unlawful for the FDA to allow mifepristone to be taken later in pregnancy, be mailed directly to patients and be prescribed by a medical professional other than a doctor. Full Story
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![SCOTUS, Washington, DC - Demonstrators march to the Capitol Reflection Pool as Women’s March leads a protest against federal judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling at imposing a national ban on mifepristone at the Supreme Court of the United States on Saturday, April 15, 2023.]()
Credit: Shuran Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Heat, drought and population growth have stressed aquifers that supply water to millions of Texans
Diminishing springs and aquifers due to heat, drought and high for demand water highlight the urgency for Central Texas conservation districts to prioritize climate-focused management, potentially involving reduced pumping for sustainability. Full Story
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![David Baker, founder and director of the Wimberley Watershed Association, said he's never seen the water level so low in Jacob's Well. Photographed on Thursday, August 10, 2023.]()
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T-Squared: Texas Tribune wins two national Edward R. Murrow Awards
We were recognized for breaking news coverage of the Uvalde school shooting and for overall excellence among large digital news organizations. Full Story
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Texas names new head of child abuse investigations after high turnover and heavy criticism
The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services’ investigations division has seen record-high staff turnover, with 4 in 10 investigators leaving their jobs in 2022. Full Story
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![The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) Council met and listened to testimony in Austin on March 10, 2023.]()
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Texas parents see their own health spiral when kids’ mental illnesses worsen
The stress of locating and maintaining regular care for a mentally ill child can take a toll on their caretakers’ well-being. Full Story
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![Brandon Masters at his home in San Antonio. Masters spent about $22,000 last year caring for his teenage son Braylon, who has bipolar disorder. When Masters developed a rash on the back of his arms and neck last year, his doctor told him it was connected to stress.]()
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Harris County’s election chief remains in legal limbo after judge rules that lawmakers can’t dissolve the position
Republican lawmakers targeted the Harris County elections department during this year’s regular session after numerous issues arose out of the 2022 election. Full Story
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![Harris County Elections Staff members sort ballot bags at the Elections Technology Center in northwest Houston on Tuesday, March 1, 2022.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune
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