Lawmakers have said school safety is a priority this session, but it is still unclear whether they’ll listen to Uvalde families who want to raise the minimum age to purchase semi-automatic guns from 18 to 21.
Texas House votes to require panic buttons in every classroom and armed guards in every school
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2023
House passes bill to rein in “rogue” prosecutors
The legislation is in response to elected prosecutors in Texas’ large, left-leaning counties who have said they will not prosecute abortion cases.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2023
Watch: Texas immigrants “shocked” by bill that would have prevented them from buying homes
Initially, Senate Bill 147 would have prevented legal Texas residents from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea from buying land. Pushback from immigrant groups persuaded senators to soften the proposal.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas imprisoned Joshua Keith Beasley Jr. when he was 11, purportedly for his own good. Five years later, he returned home in a casket.
“They didn’t try to fix the brokenness,” his mother says. “They just broke him more.”
Posted in
Criminal Justice
“A way to throw kids away”: Texas’ troubled juvenile justice department is sending more children to adult prisons
Moving the most violent and troubled youths to adult prison makes it easier to help others in juvenile facilities, some prosecutors and lawmakers say. Youth justice advocates say Texas is giving up on the children who most need help.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2023
When it comes to upping mental health services, Texas has a Medicaid problem
Texas wants to expand mental health services, but many mental health providers do not accept Medicaid because of its lower payment rate.
Posted in
Politics
Illegal voting in Texas likely to be a felony again after state House vote
The Texas Senate has passed similar legislation. But a key policy separates the two chambers.
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Don’t flatline Texas health care. Will Texas protect its patients?
Dismantling hospital services does nothing for patients or the price of health care. In fact, it hurts everyone.
Posted in
Immigration
New Biden plan will let people in Latin American countries apply to legally enter U.S., Canada or Spain
As it prepares for the end of Title 42, which lets U.S. officials rapidly expel migrants, the Biden administration said it will open centers in Guatemala and Colombia where people can apply to legally enter the three participating nations.
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Texas House Bill 1805 rallies support from physicians and Texas patients
This bill would allow doctors to prescribe medical marijuana for chronic pain in lieu of opioids and limit THC by milligram dose instead of percent by weight.
