TribCast: Is the school choice bill dead in the Texas House?
In this week’s episode, we discuss whether the House’s recent vote to ban school vouchers means a top Gov. Greg Abbott priority is doomed. Full Story
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![Students sit in art class at Lufkin High School in Lufkin, Texas, U.S., on Friday, January 29, 2023. Public school officials in rural areas like Lufkin face budget challenges because of proposed school choice legislation, which provides taxpayer-funded alternatives to sending a child to a local public school.]()
Credit: Callghan O'Hare for The Texas Tribune -
In East Texas, skepticism over private school tuition assistance persists despite push from conservative leaders
Gov. Greg Abbott and other conservatives say families need options to escape “woke” education in public schools. East Texas parents and school leaders say the national talking points are off base. Full Story
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![The Grace Community campus in Tyler on Tuesday, April 4, 2023.]()
Credit: Emil T. Lippe for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House approves $302.6 billion state budget with tax cuts and teacher and state employee raises
After a marathon debate, the bill will head to the Senate, where lawmakers have been crafting their own version of the spending plan. Full Story
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![State Rep. Mihaela Plesa, D-Dallas, rushes to the front of the House floor during budget discussions at the state Capitol on April 6, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Budget day in the House: Texas lawmakers keep anti-DEI proposal
House Bill 1 is being debated on the floor of the lower chamber, where representatives are hammering out details on the next two years of state spending. Full Story
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![Lawmakers gather around House Parliamentarian Sharon Carter during budget discussions on the House floor of the state Capitol in Austin on April 6, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate approves education savings account bill — but House signals a tough road ahead
A Texas House vote earlier in the day suggests Senate Bill 8 might be short of the votes needed to pass in the lower chamber. Senators also passed a bill on Thursday that would give teachers a one-time bonus. Full Story
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![Elementary students learn about amphibians at REACH Homeschool Co-op in Clear Lake, TX on Friday, Oct. 14, 2022.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Greg Abbott launches $10 million effort to combat fentanyl crisis, sends overdose-reversing meds to all 254 counties
The “One Pill Kills” campaign is funded with the help of a federal grant, and the statewide Narcan distribution is being paid for with funds from Texas’ settlement agreement with opioid manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott, center, is flanked by Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd, Health and Human Services Commissioner Cecile Young, Texas Against Fentanyl founder Stefanie Turner, and state Rep. Dr. Tom Oliverson, R-Cypress.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Limited trans athlete bans in competitive sports would be allowed under proposed Biden administration policy
The proposal was met with mixed reaction from transgender rights activists, with some saying that it provided a welcome set of protections for trans students and others saying the regulations could offer a roadmap for those who want to discriminate. Full Story
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![A basketball going through the hoop prior to the game between the Texas A&M Aggies and the Missouri Tigers at Reed Arena in College Station on Jan. 11, 2023.]()
Credit: Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports via REUTERS -
At schools across Houston, students and parents protest Texas Education Agency’s takeover of state’s largest district
At one elementary school, protesters chanted as the school day was about to begin. Parents sought petition signatures at a high school. The demonstrations are planned throughout the day. Full Story
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![Parents and students gather in front of Sinclair Elementary in Houston,TX., to protest the state takeover off HISD on April 6,2023.]()
Credit: Douglas Sweet Jr. for The Texas Tribune -
Former elections chief Chris Hollins drops bid for Houston mayor
Facing a crowded field, Hollins, who served briefly as Harris County clerk in 2020, announced Thursday he will instead run to be Houston’s chief financial officer. Full Story
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![Harris County Clerk Chris Hollins at election headquarters inside the NRG Arena on Oct. 5, 2020.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Texas billionaire Harlan Crow treated Justice Clarence Thomas to luxury trips that weren’t disclosed
Island-hopping on a superyacht. Private jet rides around the world. The undisclosed gifts to Thomas have no known precedent in the modern history of the Supreme Court. Full Story
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![Associate Justice Clarence Thomas during the formal group photograph at the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 7, 2022.]()
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Sen. Kelly Hancock opens up about rare kidney disease, as he advocates for Texas bill to increase living organ donors
Hancock, a North Richland Hills Republican, was diagnosed at age 27 with a rare genetic kidney disease that occurs when the immunoglobulin A antibody builds up in the kidneys. Full Story
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![State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, reads his resolution that would have the Texas Legislation recognize March 9 as World Kidney Day, on the Senate floor at the state Capitol in Austin on March 14, 2023. As a young adult, Sen. Hancock was diagnosed with a rare genetic kidney disease and received a live kidney donation in July of 2022.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Feds advance portable generator safety rule to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning
Saying that manufacturers failed to make generators safer, the Consumer Product Safety Commission is moving forward with proposed regulations to bolster protections. The proposal comes after reporting by ProPublica, The Texas Tribune and NBC News. Full Story
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What you need to know about education savings accounts, the voucher-like program championed by Gov. Greg Abbott
Texas is the latest state to pitch a version of the program, which lets parents who opt out of their local school districts use tax dollars to pay for private schooling. Full Story
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![Isabel Suarez works on homework prior to the start of the school day from her home in Pflugerville on Dec 9, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Bills aimed at adding more natural gas power to Texas grid clear Senate
Critics say the bills could lead to untold billions in added costs to customers and minimal benefits while ignoring needed efforts to reduce electricity demand. Full Story
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![Vistra Corp.’s Midlothian Power Plant opened its doors to media on October 15, 2021 to show the plant’s weatherization process. Energy providers like Vistra are preparing their plants for extreme weather conditions following the February winter storm Uri, which disrupted the Texas electric grid and led to the deaths of more than 200 people.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate votes to defund libraries where drag queens read to kids as it tries to limit the performances kids can attend
The Senate expanded the bill targeting drag queen story hours to target all public funding for libraries. The upper chamber also approved a bill limiting other drag performances kids can see. Full Story
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![Drag queen Nadine Hughes performs in the Capitol Rotunda during the Youth Capitol Takeover on Mar. 29, 2023.]()
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Texas Supreme Court chief justice calls for higher judicial salaries, business courts
In his biennial state of the judiciary, Texas Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan Hecht also warned against politics’ encroachment into the third branch of government. Full Story
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![Chief Justice Nathan Hecht delivers the State of the Judiciary speech at the Texas Supreme Court building in Austin on April 5, 2023.]()
Credit: Leila Saidane/The Texas Tribune -
Bill intended to force Texas prosecutors to pursue abortion, election cases passes Senate
The bill, a priority for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, is part of a larger effort to limit the power of elected prosecutors, especially in Texas’ largest, left-leaning counties. Full Story
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![The Travis County Justice Complex on July 6, 2022.]()
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Texas House passes bill barring the death penalty for some mentally ill defendants
The chamber has repeatedly passed legislation in recent sessions eliminating the death penalty in cases of severe mental illness, but this year the measure faced increased pushback from conservative lawmakers. Full Story
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![Interior of Death Chamber by Texas Department of Criminal Justice.]()
Credit: Photo Illustration by Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Staff of Houston state Rep. Jolanda Jones resigns, citing hostile work environment
Jones said in a new statement that she was outraged at the allegations the former employees made about her son, who works in the office, which she said are false. Full Story
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![State Rep. Jolanda Jones, D-Houston, speaks at a rally at the Texas State Capitol demanding lawmakers address the state’s overdose crisis in Austin on Feb. 15, 2023. Jones and other representatives from six Texas cities–– El Paso, Laredo, West Texas, San Antonio, Austin and Houston–– gave speeches to call for increased harm reduction in response to a spike in fentanyl deaths statewide.]()
Credit: Leila Saidane/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate approves bill that would create mandatory prison or probation terms for some gun crimes
Sen. Joan Huffman said the bill was in response to increased violent crime since 2019. Legislative researchers could not determine how the bill would affect the state’s prison population. Full Story
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![A handgun with a magazine which holds 17 rounds is displayed by an employee of McBride’s Guns in Central Austin on April 20, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune