Abbott Signs Bill Mandating Use of E-Verify
Gov. Greg Abbott signed a bill Wednesday that requires state agencies and institutions of higher education to use the federal electronic employment verification system known as E-Verify. Full Story
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Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman -
Questions Grow About Pace of Waco Biker Cases
More than three weeks after Waco police arrested 177 bikers following a deadly shootout, none have been charged in the killings, nearly half remain in jail and legal experts — including some former prosecutors — wonder what McLennan County is doing. Full Story
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![A general view of the Twin Peaks restaurant where nine members of motorcycle gangs were shot and killed in Waco, taken May 19, 2015.]()
Credit: REUTERS/MikeStone/Files -
Ted Cruz Goes Hunting in the Valley of Democrats
Long used to enrapturing friendly crowds in the reddest parts of beet-red Texas, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz came to the Rio Grande Valley on Tuesday with a less familiar task: finding a receptive audience in one of the state's few remaining Democratic bastions. Full Story
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![U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, holds a news conference Tuesday in Edinburg after a briefing with law enforcement officials. The 2016 presidential candidate was visiting the Rio Grande Valley for a fundraiser.]()
Credit: Patrick Svitek -
Abbott Signs Sweeping Border Security Bill
Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday signed House Bill 11, capping off the final piece of a massive effort by lawmakers to bolster the ranks of state police, increase technology and establish intelligence operations units on the Texas-Mexico border. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott marked the signing of a sweeping border security bill on June 9, 2015, at a Texas Department of Public Safety facility in Harris County.]()
Credit: Julian Aguilar -
Mexico Loosening Rules for Armed U.S. Agents
Texas lawmakers are celebrating news that Mexico will soon allow U.S. agents to carry guns while inspecting cargo on Mexican soil. The change should help speed trade between the two countries. Full Story
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![New Federal Inspection Station encompassing Mexican and US Customs at Laredo International Airport, Tuesday, March 11, 2014.]()
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Prosecutors Could Have More Time in Paxton Securities Case
As an inquiry broadens into whether Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton violated securities law, a special prosecutor involved in the investigation indicated Thursday that he might have more time to pursue the issue than previously expected. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaking at the Texas Public Policy Foundation's opening of its new building on April 21, 2015.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Clinton to Call for More Early Voting, Target Texas' Voter ID Law
In a Houston speech Thursday, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to call for expanded early voting across the country, and criticize states like Texas that have passed restrictive election laws. Full Story
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![Hillary Clinton speaking in Austin on June 20, 2014.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Indictment Cuts Both Ways for Perry Bid
Former Gov. Rick Perry will formally step into the presidential race still under indictment for two felonies. The case, which once made Perry a cause célèbre in some circles, has become more of a headache as he seeks money and votes in a crowded GOP field. Full Story
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![Texas Gov. Rick Perry speaks to supporters after he is booked into the Blackwell-Thurman Justice Center in Austin following his indictment on two felony counts related to defunding District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg's Public Integrity Unit.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
On Death Row for 31 Years, Inmate Executed
A death row inmate who has proclaimed his innocence for three decades was executed Wednesday night in Huntsville. Lester Bower, 67, became the oldest death row inmate executed in Texas after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene. Full Story
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![Lester Bower, on death row in Texas for 31 years, is scheduled to be executed Wednesday night for the murder of four, including two law enforcement officers.]()
Credit: Texas Department of Criminal Justice -
Fracked Again, Denton Says Fight Isn't Over
Seven months after a rag-tag group of local activists scored a surprising victory over the state’s powerful oil and gas industry when Denton voted to ban hydraulic fracturing, a natural gas company Monday resumed operations under a state law passed to overturn Denton's ban. Full Story
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![Vantage Energy on June 1, 2015 resumed hydraulic operations on a pad site on the western outskirts of Denton. It was the first company to frack within city limits after the Texas Legislature overturned the Denton’s ban on the process.]()
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Despite Early Momentum, Immigration Bills Fall Flat
Though campaign promises to enact immigration-enforcement measures and repeal in-state tuition for undocumented students didn't see the light of day, Republicans who championed the measures said they'll be back next session to try again. Full Story
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![Texas Association of Business CEO Bill Hammond, speaks in favor of HB 1403 which was passed in 2001 and grants all Texans in-state college tuition regardless of immigration status on April 13th, 2015]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Grand Jury Reform Legislation Headed to Abbott's Desk
Legislation that reforms the state's grand jury system now awaits Gov. Greg Abbott's signature after the House on Sunday approved a compromise between the two chambers. Full Story
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Campus Carry Gets Final Approval in Texas Senate
The Texas Senate took a final vote Saturday to approve legislation requiring the state’s public universities to allow handguns in dorms, classrooms and campus buildings. The House is scheduled to vote on the issue on Sunday. Full Story
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![State Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, during a debate over his campus carry bill, SB 11, on March 18, 2015.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
New Prosecution System for Politicians Advances
Texas politicians are on the verge of creating a new system for prosecuting a unique type of white-collar crime — the type that involves them. Full Story
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![Sen. Kirk Watson D-Austin and Sen. Joan Huffman R-Houston, discuss language to amendment for SB #11 relating to campus carry on March 18th, 2015]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Revised Campus Carry Bill Would Give Universities More Say
House and Senate negotiators are sending a version of "campus carry" back to their chambers that gives universities more say over where and how concealed handguns are permitted on campus. Full Story
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Truancy Reform Heads Down to the Wire
With one Texas county facing a federal investigation into how it punishes chronic school-skippers — and Texas one of only two states that prosecute truants in adult courts — lawmakers are weighing two House measures that would decriminalize truancy. Full Story
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House Sends Border Security Bill to Governor
After a months-long staring contest between the House and the Senate, the lower chamber gave a final blessing Thursday to House Bill 11, a sweeping border security bill. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dennis Bonnen, R-Angleton, escorts Senate Finance Chair Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound through the House Chamber on May 25, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
Old Convictions, New Science: Texas Tackles Debunked Forensics
A state law granting a new trial in cases where the forensic science was flawed has hit an impediment: What if a field of such science has not been discredited, but an individual scientist makes a mistake? Full Story
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![Activist Jamie Bush attends the Texas Forensic Science Commission board meeting on September 17, 2010 in Dallas, Texas.]()
Credit: Tom Pennington -
Video: Hancock, Kolkhorst and Rodríguez on Open Carry
At our 5/28 conversation, state Sens. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills; Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham; and José Rodríguez, D-El Paso, talked about the fate of the open carry bill — and the prospect of a filibuster. Full Story
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House and Senate Will Hash Out Open Carry Differences
After outspoken opposition from the state's law enforcement officials, the Texas House on Wednesday took a step toward removing a controversial provision from legislation allowing licensed Texans to openly carry handguns. Full Story
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![House members listen to Parliamentarian Chris Griesel rule on amendments to HB910 open carry bill on May 27, 2015.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich