A state law backed by Gov. Greg Abbott and business lobbying groups to stop cities and counties from passing progressive policies is scheduled to take effect Friday. A Travis County judge declared it unconstitutional.
Houston
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Public Education
First day of school comes with mixed student emotions after Texas took over Houston ISD
Thousands of Houston-area students returned to radically different campuses Monday as a new era begins in Texas’ largest school district.
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Politics
Houston will host 2028 Republican National Convention
The announcement came uncommonly early — five years before the convention to select the GOP nominee for the 2028 election cycle.
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Ken Paxton Impeachment
Tony Buzbee, lawyer for Ken Paxton, running for Houston City Council seat
Buzbee is currently defending Texas’ impeached attorney general. He ran for mayor in 2019, challenging incumbent Sylvester Turner while self-funding his campaign with over $10 million.
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Criminal Justice
“A place of torment”: 22 families, former inmates sue Harris County over jail conditions
A federal lawsuit accuses the sheriff’s office of violating the constitutional rights of inmates, dozens of whom have died or been injured at the jail in recent years.
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Criminal Justice
“Someone’s going to end up dead”: New evidence emerges in Travis Scott Astroworld tragedy
A new Houston police report details how the rapper perceived what was happening and what he told investigators. It also contains police interviews with concert promoters, security personnel and other key witnesses.
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Politics
Political dominoes could fall in Houston as 2 longtime Democrats campaign for mayor
State Sen. John Whitmire, first elected in 1982, and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, in office since 1995, could be vacating seats that haven’t been open for decades. The election calendar, however, may bring a tough decision for one or both.
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Health care
Confusion and stress abound for 500,000 Texans bumped from Medicaid
Continuous Medicaid coverage ended in April. Many of the roughly half-million people stripped from the rolls don’t even know they’ve lost coverage yet.
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2023 Session Recap
Texas Republican leaders want to improve elections in the state’s largest county. Their solution could backfire.
Unless a judge intervenes, Harris County is expected to dissolve its elections administration office later this year. The duties of running elections will once again be split between the county’s tax assessor and clerk.
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Texas Legislature 2023
Houston sues state in attempt to block new law that erodes cities’ power
House Bill 2127 — dubbed the “Death Star” law by opponents — prevents local governments from creating rules that go further than what’s allowed under broad areas of state law. Houston’s suit says the new law violates the state’s constitution.
