Although Texas Central isn’t planning on using state funds for its Dallas-Houston line, it says language in the spending plan could impede the project until a court definitively affirms the company’s ability to use eminent domain.
Arya Sundaram
Arya Sundaram was a reporting fellow for The Texas Tribune in 2019. She graduated from Yale University with a degree in American Studies and a concentration in ethnic studies and migrant communities. Before coming to the Tribune, Arya interned at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as a Paul Block Journalism Fellow and the Argentine Council for International Relations. She served as managing editor for The New Journal, the oldest longform magazine about Yale and New Haven.
Posted in
State Government
Texas Senate declares migrant surge an emergency
Republican state senators passed a resolution that would declare a crisis at the Texas-Mexico border and request Congress to fully fund border security measures. Democratic senators say they never saw the measure until it hit the floor.
Posted in
Health care
Texas Senate moves to block local governments from partnering with abortion providers
Supporters say Senate Bill 22 would terminate “sweetheart rent deals,” but abortion rights advocates say the legislation is the latest attempt in the legislature’s years-long battle to reduce funding for abortion providers.
Posted in
Higher Education
UT System names Heather Wilson next UTEP president, despite objections from Democrats and LGBTQ activists
Wilson is a former member of Congress and the secretary of the Air Force. Her nomination has generated backlash over her anti-LGBTQ voting record.
Posted in
Health care
Three Texas abortion bills pass committees, gaining momentum in Senate
Anti-abortion bills have gathered steam in the upper chamber — including a proposal to limit local funding for abortion providers and another to protect infants born alive after an abortion.
Posted in
Higher Education
UT faculty, students feel the impact of Airbnb blacklist
Texas added Airbnb to a short list of companies that can’t receive state money because they boycott Israel, though Airbnb says it does not. Now, employees at the University of Texas at Austin can no longer stay in Airbnbs while on school business.
Posted in
Higher Education
Backlash builds against UTEP president nominee Heather Wilson
Student activists, professors and community members have rallied to oppose Wilson’s nomination, citing her anti-LGBTQ voting record.
Posted in
Politics
Debate over Texas abortion bill prompts tears, frustration and a boycott from Democrats
The hearing on a bill regarding “the rights of a living child born after an abortion” was delayed Monday morning due to a lack of a quorum.
Posted in
Environment
Laredo officials want to use border wall money to fund a riverfront project
A decade ago, Laredo leaders hatched an idea for a riverfront development aimed at luring more people to downtown. Now they’re trying to get the federal government to make it part of President Donald Trump’s border wall.
Posted inState Government
Justice Department reaches agreement with Harris County to ensure polling place accessibility for disabled voters
Under the settlement, Harris County will have to alter its polling places to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
