Millions of Texans could be shielded from evictions under new Trump administration order
A previous federal order, which only protected renters in federally backed housing, expired in July. Full Story
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![A protester holds up a "stop evictions" sign outside the Harris County Courthouse in Houston on Aug. 21, 2020.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Texans spent less going out to eat and drink, but more on home improvement as coronavirus cases peaked this summer
The state collected 5.6% less in sales tax revenue last month than in August 2019. The expiration of some federal relief aid could mean more decreases in coming months. Full Story
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![Comptroller Glenn Hegar discusses the Biennial Revenue Estimate for the 2020-21 biennium at the state Capitol on Jan. 7, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas mayors warn pandemic's effects on city budgets will linger for years
The temporary closure of businesses and high levels of unemployment due to the pandemic have caused sales tax revenues — which make up a significant portion of cities' budgets — to plummet. Full Story
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![Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner speaks with the media after arriving at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019.]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
“In survival mode”: How some evacuees are still dealing with the dual challenge of a hurricane and a recession
Many Southeast Texans were already struggling through a pandemic and its parallel recession. Then came Hurricane Laura and officials' evacuation orders. Full Story
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![Susan Collier and Donald Bass Jr. in what they described as their outdoor dining room.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
This loan company was founded to help Latino immigrants. It has sued thousands of low-income Latinos during the pandemic.
A monthslong investigation revealed that Oportun Inc. routinely uses lawsuits to intimidate a vulnerable population into keeping up with high-interest loan payments — even amid COVID-19. Full Story
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![Analleli Solis.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Oportun Inc. has filed nearly 10,000 lawsuits this year against lower-income Texans. This is how we found out.
Justice of the peace courts, where a majority of debt claims are filed in Texas, aren’t required to report case-level information. Here’s how ProPublica and Texas Tribune reporters got around it to reveal one company’s aggressive tactics. Full Story
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![Oportun, located at 3909 North Interstate 35 in Austin.]()
Credit: Allie Goulding/The Texas Tribune -
Nearly 600,000 Texans will lose access to a program that prevented electricity shut-offs during the pandemic on Oct. 1
Once the program ends, customers could be on the hook for partial back payments. Full Story
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![Electrical power lines near the Austin Energy/Sand Hill Energy Center in Del Valle on March 24, 2020.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Still recovering from Harvey, Texans in Beaumont and Port Arthur are now preparing for a new hurricane during the pandemic
Groups that have been fixing homes and providing assistance to victims of the 2017 hurricane are now getting ready to face a new disaster, with the added challenge of COVID-19. Full Story
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![Port Arthur residents board buses to evacuate the area before Hurricane Laura strikes the Gulf Coast near Texas and Louisiana.]()
Credit: USA TODAY NETWORK via Reuters Co -
In Texas, the lowest-income workers don’t qualify for additional unemployment aid
Nearly 350,000 Texans don't qualify for the extra payment because they either earned too little from the work they lost or didn't indicate on paperwork that they lost their jobs due to the pandemic. Full Story
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![Cars line up for a drive-thru food distribution hosted by the Central Texas Food Bank at the Travis County Expo Center on June 30, 2020 in Austin.]()
Credit: Allie Goulding/The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Those aren’t just COVID-19 numbers. They’re Texans.
There are 347,700 Texans losing federal supplements to unemployment insurance. And 716,000 students getting laptops and tablets for virtual school. And 11,395 COVID-19 deaths. Each statistic has a human face. Full Story
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![Elizabeth McNiel, the owner of Ironwood Saloon and an ASL teacher, and her husband Ryan in their empty bar in Sabinal, the only one in town. They shut it down because of COVID-19 mandates. Aug. 13, 2020.]()
Credit: Christopher Lee for The Texas Tribune -
As eviction cases resume in parts of Houston, low-income Texans fear losing a place to live
Since Gov. Greg Abbott declared a public health disaster in March, almost one-third of Harris County's evictions have been filed in the justice of the peace precinct covering the southwestern portion of the county. Full Story
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![Demonstrators rally against evictions outside the Harris County Courthouse in Houston on Aug. 21, 2020.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Nearly 350,000 unemployed Texans don't qualify for extra $300 weekly benefit
Texans receiving less than $100 in weekly unemployment benefits do not qualify for the extra $300 weekly payments the Trump administration is distributing to Texas and other states. Full Story
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![Threadgill’s restaurant is closing permanently due to the coronavirus pandemic.]()
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Texas students said pandemic-era tuition should be cut. But it’s going up at some schools due to distance learning fees.
Students grappling with financial upsets and a hurting economy say tuition should be lowered at their Texas universities. But some colleges are adding new fees related to an increase in distance learning. Full Story
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![Aimee Tambwe, a sophmore, outside of the student union on the campus of the University of North Texas in Denton.]()
Credit: Ben Torres for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Austin’s police cuts give Texas Republicans new campaign material
Texas Republicans who were looking for fertile political ground in the runup to the November elections got a gift from a most unlikely source: the Austin City Council. Full Story
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![The CIty of Austin seal inside Austin City Hall. Sept. 11, 2019.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Out-of-work Texans could start seeing extra $300 in unemployment payments next week
On Friday, federal officials gave Texas the green light to provide the additional payments. States can contribute another $100, but Texas does not plan to do so. Full Story
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![Volunteers load boxes of food into a car during a drive-thru food distribution hosted by the Central Texas Food Bank at the Travis County Expo Center on June 30, 2020 in Austin.]()
Credit: Allie Goulding/The Texas Tribune -
Texas' July unemployment rate drops slightly to 8%
With more than 10,000 Texans dead from COVID-19, economists have warned that until the state gets a handle on the pandemic, the economic recession will not improve. Full Story
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![A Rooms to Go in Frisco, open to customers.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
With no end to the shutdown in sight, Texas bar owners and employees are on the brink of losing everything
Some bar owners are planning to reopen in defiance of the moratorium, a desperate attempt to generate income — and draw Gov. Greg Abbott’s attention. Full Story
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![Elizabeth McNiel, the owner of Ironwood Saloon and an ASL teacher, and her husband Ryan front of their RV that is parked behind their empty bar, the only one in Sabinal. They shut it down because of COVID-19 mandates. Aug. 13, 2020.]()
Credit: Christopher Lee for The Texas Tribune -
UT-Austin students and employees urge officials to stop in-person classes, lower tuition and offer hazard pay
The Texas State Employees Union presented a petition that condemns the upcoming return to campus in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic as harmful. Classes start Wednesday. Full Story
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![The Texas flag flies on the south lawn of The Univerisity of Texas at Austin campus on Dec. 3, 2019.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Texas will apply for federal program to get extra $300 per week for unemployed Texans
At least 10 other states have already applied and been approved for the additional unemployment benefits. Full Story
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![Workers boarded up bars on Sixth Street in Austin after Gov. Greg Abbott closed bars in Texas for the second time in three months because of the COVID-19 pandemic on June 26, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
As the Texas restaurant industry struggles, so do farmers, truckers and others in the food supply chain
Economic experts say a slow recovery in the industry means problems will persist for the restaurant sector — and businesses in the supply chain on which it relies. Full Story
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![Owner Eric Silverstein takes food from the Bar Peached kitchen to one of his customers on Aug. 13, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune