Lawmakers, who are preempting locals on lot sizes in new subdivisions, have been eyeing ways to allow more homes to be built as the state faces a shortage.
Texas Senate advances bill to allow smaller homes on smaller lots
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Politics
Jackpot withheld, $83 million winner “caught in crossfire” amid lottery courier investigations
The winning ticket, purchased online through the courier Jackpocket, is being scrutinized by lawmakers concerned about the legality of third-party services.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Texas Senate passes hemp ban, a Dan Patrick priority
Patrick says the measure will shut down the dangerous THC products business. The House’s proposal would tighten oversight of the industry without a full ban.
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Environment
Texas farmers say sewage-based fertilizer tainted with “forever chemicals” poisoned their land and killed their livestock
The fertilizer was promoted as an environmental win-win for years. An untold number of farmers and ranchers across Texas have spread it on their land.
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State Government
Trump administration drops challenge to Texas law targeting people who illegally cross the border
Senate Bill 4, the Texas law that makes illegally crossing the border a state crime, will continue to be challenged by two immigrant rights groups and El Paso County.
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Politics
Amanda Edwards to run to succeed the late-U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner
Edwards unsuccessfully ran for the seat twice last year. She faced off against U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in the 2024 Democratic primary. Jackson Lee won the primary but died before the general election, opening the party’s nomination anew
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Investigations
Texas conservatives are using school board elections to exert influence over what students learn
In six Texas districts that used at-large voting systems, ideologically driven groups successfully helped elect school board members who have moved aggressively to ban or remove educational materials that teach children about diversity.
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Environment
Bills seek to improve state’s response to wildfires a year after devastation in Panhandle
A proposal to create a statewide system connecting emergency personnel and agencies is among several bills that target problems exposed in 2024.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Lawmakers want to give schools more leeway to suspend Texas’ youngest and homeless students
The proposal aims to make working conditions safer for teachers but critics worry it could push the state’s most vulnerable students out of the classroom.
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Criminal Justice
Two men convicted in the smuggling deaths of 53 immigrants in San Antonio
The 2022 tragedy was the nation’s deadliest smuggling attempt across the U.S.-Mexico border.
