Texas Central has made little visible progress financing the high-speed rail project and acquiring property for the route in recent years. The company maintains that the bullet train is still being developed but declined to provide details about the path forward.
Houston
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Uvalde school shooting
College-bound Uvalde students grapple with leaving a hometown in mourning
The students worry how the tragedy will define them in their new environments and struggle with guilt about the people they’re leaving behind.
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Environment
Nearly all unplanned chemical releases in Texas go unpunished
Thousands of “emissions events” from chemical plants each year exceed permitted limits, but only a small fraction result in penalties from the state’s environmental agency.
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Courts
Texas cities say streaming giants Disney, Hulu and Netflix owe them millions of dollars in unpaid fees
As people have cut cable subscriptions in favor of streaming services over the years, Texas cities say they have lost out on revenue from franchise fees they claim are owed by streaming giants like Disney, Hulu and Netflix.
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Transportation
Texas accused of skirting federal environmental law to push for Austin’s Interstate 35 expansion
A group of activists is suing the Texas Department of Transportation, saying the agency split the Interstate 35 project in Austin into segments to obscure its full impacts and “circumvent” federal requirements.
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Climate Change in Texas
U.S. Senate approves bill containing Texas’ “Ike Dike” coastal protection project
The U.S. Senate voted to authorize the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to begin planning for a massive coastal barrier project in Galveston Bay meant to protect against hurricanes’ storm surge. Funding is not yet secured.
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Homeless in Texas
Homeless Texans left with few places to cool off during record heat
Heat-related emergency calls have spiked amid historic heat. Cooling centers are available in major cities but often close in the late afternoon — during the hottest parts of the day.
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Environment
Black and Latino residents’ complaints about illegal trash dumping in Houston lead to federal investigation
The U.S. Justice Department says it has launched a civil rights investigation to determine whether the city’s response to residents’ complaints about illegal dumping was discriminatory.
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Texas Abortion Restrictions
Roe v. Wade, overturned: Scenes of despair and joy after a historic decision
Texans on both sides of the abortion debate marched, rallied and chanted after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
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Environment
Texans tell environmental agency: Stop being reluctant to regulate industry
A report from the state Sunset Advisory Commission found that Texas Commission on Environmental Quality commissioners have become “reluctant” regulators and often encourage industry to “self police.”