A Republican-appointed federal appellate judge on Tuesday questioned why the Texas Legislature had not addressed concerns that its four-year-old voter ID law discriminated against minority voters.
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 inState Government
Federal Appeals Court to Scrutinize Voter ID Law
Arguments over whether Texas’ voter ID law was written to intentionally discriminate against minority voters are up before a three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday.
Posted in
Energy
Watchdogs Question Fraser’s Energy Holdings
As the Texas Legislature ponders ethics reforms to increase transparency and reduce conflicts of interests among its members, a key state lawmaker is facing new questions about whether his private business affairs are impacting his public duties.
Posted in
Energy
Justices Prolong North Texas Fracking Battle
In the latest chapter of a long-running legal fight, a Fort Worth oil and gas company has received permission from the Texas Supreme Court to pursue defamation damages from a Parker County man.
Posted inState Government
Aftershocks From SMU Earthquake Report Felt in Austin
Also, another run at changing the name of the Texas Railroad Commission, and a softening job market is attributed in part to the drop in oil prices.
Posted in
Energy
Nonprofits Crowdfunding Power to the People
Trying to create a “new direction in the energy sector,” a computer scientist in Austin is using crowdfunding to help low-income Texans pay their electricity bills.
Posted in
Energy
Study: Gas Activities “Most Likely” Caused Texas Quakes
Gas industry activity “most likely” triggered a series of earthquakes that shook two North Texas towns from late 2013 through early 2014, new peer-reviewed research shows.
Posted in
Energy
Will Texas Ever Change Railroad Commission Name?
A group of lawmakers is trying – again – to change the Railroad Commission’s name to reflect what it does. This time, proponents want to call the agency the Texas Energy Commission.
Posted in
Energy
Lawmaker Urges Colleagues to Act on Climate Change
Pressing Texas leaders to act on climate change, a state lawmaker on Monday appealed to his colleagues’ long-held disdain for federal intervention.
Posted in
Energy
Texas House Approves “Denton Fracking Bill”
UPDATED: The Texas House on Friday approved House Bill 40, which would pre-empt local efforts to regulate a wide variety of oil and gas activities.
