What you need to know about Texas’ school safety policies
Texas lawmakers have mandated armed guards at every public school, panic buttons in classrooms and more staff training. Full Story
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![Nimitz Middle School students line up to enter their next class Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Republican North Texas congressional candidates debate Ken Paxton’s impeachment, Ukraine relief funding
State Rep. Craig Goldman and construction company owner John O’Shea are in a runoff for the GOP nomination to replace U.S. Rep. Kay Granger Full Story
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![State Rep. Craig Goldman, R-Fort Worth, and business owner John O’Shea, also of Fort Worth, are two of the five Republicans and two Democrats who have stepped forward to replace Rep. Kay Granger.]()
Credit: Texas House of Representatives | Courtesy of John O’Shea -
Texas House Republicans split over whether to send Ukraine aid
U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Austin, and members of the House Freedom Caucus have stalled Ukraine aid for months demanding that Congress pass a bill securing the southern border before considering the foreign aid package. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Austin, speaks to the reporters before a Republican forum for candidates running to be speaker of the house, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Monday, Oct. 23, 2023.]()
Credit: Graeme Sloan/Sipa USA via REUTERS
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Texas Republicans urge Senate Democrats to give Mayorkas a full impeachment trial
Two Texans are among 11 House impeachment managers initiating a trial of the Homeland Security secretary in the Senate. Full Story
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![U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, right, listens as President Joe Biden receives a briefing from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, USCIS and ICE during a visit to Brownsville on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Democrats open to saving U.S. Speaker Mike Johnson from motion to vacate
House Democrats voted in lockstep against former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. This time some Texans say they’re open to saving the Louisiana speaker. Full Story
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![U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, offers remarks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on April 10, 2024.]()
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After Texas’ largest wildfire is contained, a rancher moves on with a single calf
In testimony to state lawmakers, Dale Jenkins and his Panhandle peers shared the “hidden cost” of the wildfires. Full Story
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![Dale Jenkins poses for a photo inside a cattle pen where he left his livestock prior to the Smokehouse Creek fires on Wednesday, April 3, 2024 in Canadian. “You'd be out there fighting this fire and you're all by yourself,” Jenkins said. “There's not a soul round. But you've got light from the fire line. And you're working at it and concentrating so hard and finally you get to the end you finally put up the last flames and then it's just totally dark and totally quiet is a really it's an interesting feeling.”]()
Credit: Maria Crane/The Texas Tribune -
A new Texas law allows schools to hire chaplains as counselors. So far, only one school has opted into the program.
Many independent school districts, including the largest ones, do not allow chaplains to serve as counselors, which is now allowed under a new Texas law. Full Story
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![Nimitz Middle School students gather in the hallway outside of a classroom as they wait for a teacher between periods Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
To close or stay open? Ahead of the eclipse, Texas schools weighed logistical hurdles versus learning opportunities
Some districts will close for the day expecting traffic jams and busy city services. Others will stay open for parents who can’t find child care. Full Story
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![Perry Mason, left, points out the solar eclipse to her son Mason Shaddock, 9, during its annularity Oct. 14, 2023, in San Marcos,]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Texas wind energy firms need more technicians. Can they drum up student interest without state support?
The wind industry promises attractive salaries. But a lack of training programs and waning political support make it difficult to find new recruits. Full Story
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![Texas State Technical College Wind Energy Technology instructor James Chung, center, helps Steven Vasquez, left, and Shayne Howard, right, troubleshoot during a lab on logic gates Tuesday, March 5, 2024 in Sweetwater.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
UT-Austin announces round of firings in latest step to comply with Texas’ DEI ban
The firings come after state leaders criticized universities for not doing enough to enforce the ban. Students say UT-Austin has already overcorrected. Full Story
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![Students pass in front of the Jackson School of Geosciences and Gates-Dell Complex at the University of Texas at Austin on Feb. 22, 2024.]()
Credit: Maria Crane/The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Rep. Colin Allred voted for TikTok ban despite continuing to use the app
Allred is the delegation’s most prolific user of the app. He said he voted for the legislation because of national security concerns. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Dallas, attends the first U.S. Senate debate in Austin on Jan. 28, 2024. The Texas AFL-CIO COPE Convention hosts this 75-minute debate ahead of the March 5 primary elections.]()
Credit: Maria Crane/The Texas Tribune -
State Board of Education again delays discussion on whether to approve new Native studies course
The next opportunity for the board to review the course will not happen until its meeting in June. Full Story
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![The State Board of Education meeting on January 29, 2019.]()
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How Texas’ cash bail system and under-resourced jails can wreak havoc on women who are poor
In Texas, money can make a difference in how much time people who are legally presumed innocent sit behind bars awaiting the outcome of criminal cases. Full Story
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![Angela Collier in her home on Monday, March 18, 2024, in Midway, TX.]()
Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune -
Texas artists discuss art and democracy at Tribune event
During the panel conversation, the panelists talked about what inspires them to do the work they do and how they see their role in driving dialogue, activism and change. Full Story
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Texas counties lead the U.S. in population growth, Census says
Kaufman County, east of Dallas, grew faster than any other in the country from 2022 to 2023. Harris County added the most new residents. Full Story
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![A roofing crew begins to shingle a home under construction in the new Pavilion Park housing development in North Midland Monday, March 14, 2022.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Medical Board to consider issuing guidance on abortion laws’ medical exceptions
On March 22, the board will discuss clarifying what counts as a medical exception to the state’s abortion restrictions. Full Story
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![An ultrasound machine sits next to an empty patient's bed at Whole Women’s Health of Austin on Sept. 1, 2021.]()
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U.S. Rep. Randy Weber kicked out of House Freedom Caucus
Weber, who has disagreed with the hard-right caucus’ tactics during the House Speaker election last year, said Caucus Chair Bob Good expelled him after missing some of the group’s weekly meetings. Full Story
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![U.S. Representative Randy Weber, R- Friendswood, speaks at a House Freedom Caucus press conference about the Equality Act on Feb. 25, 2021 in Washington.]()
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Performers, speakers pull out of SXSW over U.S. Army sponsorship
More than 80 musicians and panelists say they will no longer appear at the nine-day festival, citing the U.S. Army’s support for Israel amid war with Hamas. Full Story
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![From left: Fernando Antunes and Bruno Stefani, both of Sao Paolo, Brazil, video record themselves on the escalator at SXSW at the Austin Convention Center on March 8, 2024.]()
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Watch: What the Texas wildfires mean to the Panhandle region
Hemphill County Judge Lisa Johnson said the region has been overwhelmed with the response of support, but work remains. Full Story
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Texas Democrats cringed when Biden referred to migrant who killed student as “an illegal”
President Joe Biden used the term during the address in response to heckling by U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia. Full Story
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![President Joe Biden delivers his third State of the Union address in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 7, 2024.]()
Credit: SHAWN THEW/Pool via REUTERS