Screwworm is a parasitic fly that targets warm-blooded animals and has the potential to disrupt Texas’ $15 billion cattle industry.
Berenice Garcia
Berenice Garcia is a regional reporter covering the Rio Grande Valley. She works at the Tribune as a corps members with Report for America. She previously covered local government, crime, healthcare and general assignments for The Monitor in McAllen where she was born. Though she's spent the majority of her life in the Valley, she traveled east to attend New York University where she studied journalism and politics. While there, she interned at the New York Daily News, the Daily Beast and NBC News. When she’s not working, she enjoys fighting for her life at the gym. Berenice is based in McAllen.
Posted in
Environment
South Padre Island officials worried about FEMA’s potential disaster spending cuts
The Trump administration is proposing limits to the recreational facilities — including beaches — that are eligible for federal assistance.
Posted in
Politics
As Trump celebrates military, Texans protest president’s aggressive immigration enforcement
Demonstrations in McAllen, Midland, Odessa, Austin and elsewhere in Texas were largely peaceful, as some protests went well into the night.
Posted in
2025 Legislative Recap
A look at the wins rural Texas scored in this year’s legislative session
Lawmakers sought to close gaps in education and support funding for agriculture, disaster preparedness and health care this year.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2025
Texas Legislature gives new city of Starbase authority to shut down local beach for SpaceX launches
Local organizations strongly opposed the measure, hosting phone banking events to urge lawmakers to vote against the bill.
Posted in
Economy
Starbase, Texas’ newest city, has liftoff; seeks $1.5 million loan from Elon Musk’s SpaceX
City leaders held their first public meetings this week since voters approved the South Texas city’s incorporation.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2025
Starbase could shut down Boca Chica Beach more frequently under Texas legislation
The Texas Senate agreed Friday to make it easier for the new city, home to Elon Musk’s SpaceX, to shutter the beach during rocket launches.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2025
It’s “Texas Time”: Legislature OKs permanent daylight saving time, but Congress must also act
Federal action would be needed to make the change legal. Lawmakers at both the state and federal levels have debated the question for decades.
Posted in
Economy
Texas braces for an imminent screwworm infestation, a threat to the state’s cattle industry
U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz hope to fund an operation to kill the parasitic fly before too much damage is done.
Posted in
Economy
SpaceX wins federal approval to launch more rockets in South Texas
The federal approval comes after vote from residents — mostly SpaceX employees — to form a new city at the Rio Grande Valley beach.
