Land around a West Texas roadway used to be flat. Now, it’s fissured, sinking and has cost taxpayers more than a million dollars — all because of a water well that was left unplugged.
Jim Malewitz
Jim Malewitz was a reporter at the Tribune from 2013 to 2017, covering energy and environment and then working on investigations. Previously, he covered those issues for Stateline, a nonprofit news service in Washington, D.C. The Michigan native majored in political science at Grinnell College in Iowa and holds a master’s from the University of Iowa. There, he helped launch the nonprofit Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism, where he currently serves on the board of directors. Jim also coaches the Texas Tribune Runoffs, which, sources say, is the scrappiest coed newsroom softball team west of the Mississippi.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
In dueling budget proposals, Texas House and Senate billions apart
Texas House and Senate leaders are starting out the legislative session nearly $8 billion apart according in dueling budget proposals released Tuesday. Among the sticking points: spending on public education and border security.
Posted in
Energy
Donations pour in for North Texan who couldn’t afford heat
Mary Garcia, an Arlington woman who was struggling to keep her lights on after the demise of Lite-Up Texas, said she is overwhelmed by the help she has received from those who read her story.
Posted in
Politics
For Rep. Dawnna Dukes, delayed resignation yields bigger pension check
State Rep. Dawnna Dukes announced her retirement in September, but doesn’t plan to make it official until Tuesday. That would make her annual pension payout $3,220 bigger.
Posted in
Energy
Poor Texans left in dark as state electricity aid program ends
Low-income Texans are struggling to come to grips with the demise of a longstanding program that helped them pay their electricity bills.
Posted in
Politics
Texas lawmakers file bills to plug “loopholes” keeping government contracts secret
A pair of Texas lawmakers have filed legislation aiming to plug what they called major “loopholes” in public records law that have left taxpayers in the dark about key details of some contracts involving public funds.
Posted in
Politics
Texas elector says he couldn’t vote amid voter ID confusion
Chris Suprun, one of two Texas Republican electors who refused to vote for Donald Trump in the Electoral College, says he was twice turned away from voting in the general election.
Posted in
Energy
Oil prices, pipeline protests top 2016 energy, environment news
From heated pipeline protests to stubbornly low oil prices, these are the top energy and environmental stories the Tribune covered in 2016.
Posted in
Energy
Abandoned Texas oil wells seen as “ticking time bombs” of contamination
Texas is among several states grappling with a surge of abandoned drilling sites and dwindling funds to clean them up.
Posted in
Energy
Rick Perry’s energy legacy is more complicated than you think
With President-elect Donald Trump set to tap former Texas Gov. Rick Perry to head the department of energy, here’s a closer look at the energy legacy of the state’s longest-serving governor.