Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth and Austin all ranked among the top 10 cities for new eviction filings in early April, among the 31 cities tracked by Eviction Lab.
Joshua Fechter
Joshua Fechter is the Dallas-based urban affairs reporter for The Texas Tribune, covering policy — including housing affordability, housing and property taxes, evictions, policing and transportation — and politics in Texas' major metropolitan areas. Before joining the Tribune in August 2021, Joshua covered City Hall for the San Antonio Express-News. He holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin.
Posted in
State Government
San Antonio settles lawsuits alleging police violated state’s “sanctuary city” law
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued San Antonio officials over how police handled a 2017 smuggling incident, and the city agreed to pay $300,000 to settle the lawsuits.
Posted in
Coronavirus in Texas
Some landlords got a piece of Texas’ $2 billion in rent relief money — and evicted their struggling tenants anyway
It’s unclear whether landlords face any penalties from state agencies for improperly evicting tenants while receiving rent relief dollars intended to help those tenants stay housed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Posted in
Transportation
Buttigieg thinks high-speed rail would be good for Texas, wants highway expansions to consider neighborhood impacts
The U.S. transportation secretary says high-growth areas will need to pave more highway lanes — but that state and local officials should minimize environmental and community impacts.
Posted in
Politics
Feds say Texas discriminated against communities of color when it denied Houston flood aid
Land Commissioner George P. Bush is in the middle of a fierce runoff in the Republican primary for Texas attorney general against incumbent Ken Paxton. During the race, several of Bush’s opponents have criticized his office’s work in distributing Hurricane Harvey relief funds.
Posted in
Economy
A year after feds allocate funds, Texas launches program to help homeowners avoid foreclosure because of COVID-19
Twenty-five states, including California and New York, preceded Texas in getting federally backed programs up and running to help homeowners suffering financial hardship because of COVID-19.
Posted in
Texas 2022 Elections
Parties’ activist wings see mixed results in Texas as Abbott advances, progressives fall short of goals
Gov. Greg Abbott and most other statewide elected officials won their primaries Tuesday night. But Attorney General Ken Paxton was forced into a runoff, and progressive Democrats fell short of their congressional goals.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Gov. Greg Abbott floats pardons for Austin police officers charged with excessive force in 2020 protests
Abbott’s move is the latest in a long clash between Texas Republicans and Austin-area officials over policing — and comes as the push for reform in the Texas capital enters a more complex and uncertain chapter.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
19 Austin police officers accused of excessive force during 2020 protests are indicted
Austin officials also agreed to a $10 million settlement with two men who were injured by police with beanbag rounds during the protests.
Posted in
Politics
Texas voters will decide whether to lower some property tax bills in May election
If two propositions pass, the state will increase school funding to make up for revenues lost from a decrease in property taxes.
