Texas Senate passes bill to give more teachers access to guns in classrooms
The bill needs a final stamp of approval from the Senate before it can head to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk for his signature. Full Story
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![On The Mark Enhanced Tactical Training CEO Ray Dunn inside the Harrold ISD K-12 school where he teaches a gun training class for educators. The North Texas ISD was the first in the nation to arm teachers in 2007.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Texas school safety measures expanded with House amendments to sweeping legislation
Tentative approval of the bill comes days after the one-year anniversary of a shooting at Santa Fe High School that left 10 dead and another 13 wounded. Full Story
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![Mock weapons used to train educators in Harrold, Texas. The North Texas school district was the first to allow educators to carry guns on school grounds in 2007.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House passes bill allowing handgun owners to carry weapons in church
Consideration of the bill comes more than a year after a gunman killed 26 in a Sutherland Springs church. Full Story
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![The interior of St. Mary Cathedral in downtown Austin on Jan. 30, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Critics say bill moving through Texas Legislature designed to aid GOP reelection bids
Supporters of the bill say it would expand ballot access. But some critics argue that the real goal is to make it tougher for Libertarians to get on the ballot and easier for Green Party candidates to do so. Full Story
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![Early voting at the Acres Home Multiservice Center in Houston on Oct. 26, 2014.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House passes religious liberty bill amid LGBTQ Caucus' objections
What started as a sweeping religious refusals bill has been significantly watered down as it moves through the Texas Legislature. But LGBTQ advocates still fiercely oppose it, saying it perpetuates hateful rhetoric. Full Story
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![State Rep. Julie Johnson, D-Carrollton, speaks against Senate Bill 1978 on the House floor on May 20, 2019. Behind her, left to right: state Reps. Jessica González, D-Dallas, Mary González, D-Clint, Erin Zwiener, D-Driftwood, and former Rep. Celia Israel, D-Austin.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
The 2019 legislative session is over. Here are the big bills that passed — and the ones that failed.
Lawmakers filed thousands of bills during the 2019 legislative session. Here's how the big bills fared. Full Story
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Texas Senate votes to allow people to carry guns without a license during disaster evacuations
After final Senate approval, the bill will head back to the House, where members will decide whether to accept the changes made in the Senate. Full Story
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Texas medical marijuana expansion gains steam in Senate, even after previous stonewalling
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has expressed wariness to expanding the Compassionate Use Program, but the bill's Senate sponsor said Patrick helped craft the version that cleared a key hurdle Friday. Full Story
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![State Sen. Donna Campbell, R-New Braufels, speaks with State Sen. Kirk Watson, D-Austin, shortly after he received the gavel as Senate President Pro Tempore on Jan. 9, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: When Texas lawmakers talk about “election security,” trust but verify
Texas lawmakers are wrangling over changes to election law that — depending on your allegiance — would make elections more secure or suppress voting among groups that favor Democrats, the political minority in Texas. The fight's not about you — it's about them. Full Story
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![The House Elections Committee listens to testimony on Senate Bill 9 from Mark Cundall with Rev Up Texas. Cundall spoke in opposition to the bill, specifically the language regarding people with disabilities. May 15, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
How Santa Fe rebuilt itself in the year after a school shooting
As lawmakers in Austin work to pass a sweeping school safety bill, many Santa Fe survivors and their loved ones say they’re focused less on what’s happening at the Capitol and more on what can be done to rebuild and uplift their community. Full Story
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![Crosses bearing the name of of the victims killed in a shooting at Santa Fe High School are seen in Santa Fe, Texas, U.S., May 21, 2018.]()
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Texas Senate passes religious liberty bill that LGBTQ advocates fear licenses discrimination
The measure moved quickly through the Senate after the LGBTQ Caucus killed a near-identical proposal on a procedural motion last week in the Texas House. Full Story
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![State Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, on the Senate floor on May 15, 2019.]()
Credit: Juan Figueroa/The Texas Tribune -
Texas farmers could begin growing hemp under legislation gaining steam in both chambers
House Bill 1325 would legalize hemp and hemp-derived extracts like CBD oil as long as they contain no more than 0.3% of tetrahydrocannabinol, the psychoactive element in marijuana known as THC. Full Story
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![State Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, on the Senate floor on May 15, 2019.]()
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Watch Senate Bill 9 hearing on voting rights and access in Texas House committee
The House Elections Committee on Wednesday night resumed its discussions on a controversial bill pitched as an election security measure but that critics say is a pathway to state-sanctioned voter suppression. Full Story
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![A voter walks into the Howson Branch Library in Austin on the last day of early voting in Travis County.]()
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Texas tax collectors predict another $500 million for the state budget
The announcement Tuesday from Comptroller Glenn Hegar came amid lawmakers' closed-door haggling over the two-year budget, which includes funds for public schools and property tax relief. 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 -
"I can do a better job": O'Rourke acknowledges need for campaign pivot
Two months in to his presidential bid — and no longer flying high — the former El Paso congressman is making clear he needs to do more to take his message national. Full Story
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![Democratic presidential candidate Beto OâRourke on The View on May 14, 2019.]()
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Gina Ortiz Jones running again to unseat Texas U.S. Rep. Will Hurd
Jones, a former Air Force intelligence officer, lost to Hurd last year by a razor-thin margin. Full Story
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![Gina Ortiz Lopez, a candidate running for US Congress district 23 during an event at LiftFund in San Antonio on February 20, 2018]()
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"People were giving us lip service": Texas cities' legislative efforts have struggled this year
When weighing in on issues like property taxes, the main interest group representing cities has encountered skepticism. Full Story
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![The Houston skyline on Dec. 17, 2018.]()
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Texas lawmakers see a more engaged Gov. Greg Abbott. Will it pay off?
Once knocked as detached, the governor has become more involved in a legislative session hinging on two big-ticket items he's prioritized: school finance and property tax reform. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott chats with state Rep. Dan Huberty, R-Houston, on the House Floor on April 30, 2019.]()
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Advocates say a Texas House bill could prevent arrests like Sandra Bland's, but multiple attempts to pass it failed
A measure to limit arrests for misdemeanors that only result in fines initially got House approval. Then it failed on a subsequent vote amid what some say was confusion over what the bill would do. Lawmakers tried to revive it Friday evening — after several lawmakers had left the chamber — but that attempt also failed. Full Story
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![Sandra Bland.]()
Credit: Illustration by Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: When the Texas Legislature’s safest vote is no vote at all
Legislation swapping higher sales taxes for lower property taxes flopped this week, and for lawmakers, it flopped in the best way possible: They never had to cast a vote. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, speaks on the Texas House floor on House Joint Resolution 3 – which would have asked voters to increase the state sales tax to buy down school district property taxes – on May 7, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune
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