Texas House passes bill aimed at keeping kids from seeing sexually explicit performances
The bill no longer targets drag performers, but LGBTQ advocates say the legislation’s vague language could still be used to criminalize such shows. Full Story
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![A drag queen performs at the Nasher Sculpture Center during the Pride Block Party in Dallas, TX on June 17, 2022.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Texas attorney general investigating second children’s hospital for transition-related care
The Legislature recently passed a bill that would bar minors from receiving this medical care, but it has not yet been signed or gone into effect. Full Story
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![Marti Bier with Texas Freedom Network passes out signs that read "Trans healthcare is not up for debate" before a press conference on the stairs across from the House floor to protest SB 14, which seeks to ban puberty blockers and hormone therapies for transgender youth, at the state Capitol in Austin on May 12, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Key supporter of Texas school chaplain bill has pushed for evangelism in schools
Rocky Malloy, a self-described former drug-smuggling pirate saved by divine intervention, has led a group that promotes chaplains as a tool to proselytize to schoolchildren. Full Story
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![Passing period at United South High School in Laredo.]()
Credit: Rachel Zein for The Texas Tribune -
Texas cotton farmers leading the charge for more government insurance to cover climate, inflation challenges
The federal Farm Bill is must-pass legislation that Congress debates every five years. It includes billions of dollars in farm subsidies and pays for food assistance programs. Full Story
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![Cotton fields near the High Plains town of Ralls, on June 22, 2022.]()
Credit: Trace Thomas for The Texas Tribune -
GOP border bill expanded to stiffen penalty for human smuggling, create border-crossing crime
State Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, tacks two of his stalled bills onto legislation that would create a border police unit and increase state spending in border communities. Full Story
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![A group migrants waits at a gate near the U.S. and Mexico border in Del Rio on July 22, 2021. The group turned themselves over to the National Guard and Customs and Border Protection officials.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas has begun busing migrants to Denver, Gov. Greg Abbott announces
Colorado’s capital becomes the fifth Democratic-run destination for immigrants transported from the Texas-Mexico border region. Full Story
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![Migrants arriving from Texas by bus disembark at the Port Authority bus terminal in New York City, on May 10, 2023.]()
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$5 billion for broadband advances in Texas Legislature after Senate OKs bill
An estimated 7 million Texans don’t have access to high-speed broadband internet access. Full Story
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![Nancy Shanafelt shows the speed of her internet March 20, 2023, in Groveton, Texas.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
Texas senator tries new path in bid to revise Texas free-speech law
In a last-minute hearing Wednesday, Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, opened another avenue to get the bill passed, raising alarm among free-speech advocates. Full Story
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![State Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, attends a press conference regarding Democrats breaking quorum and voting legislature at the Texas Capitol on July 21, 2021.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune -
Texas House approves property tax bill with changes the Senate might not like
House lawmakers added a significant boost to the Senate’s proposed homestead exemption and tacked on a contentious idea to lower the state’s appraisal cap. Full Story
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![A construction crew works on a new home on March 14, 2022 in Midland.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman for The Texas Tribune -
With clock ticking on legislative session, Texas Democrats delay debate on university tenure bill
The Senate wants to eliminate tenure altogether while the House seeks to enshrine it in state law. The two chambers have until May 26 to come to an agreement. Full Story
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![Students walk across the campus at Sam Houston State University on Aug. 20, 2020, in Huntsville.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
The regular 2023 legislative session is over. Here’s how the most consequential bills fared.
A look at which bills passed and which failed during the 2023 legislative session. Full Story
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![Four squares with four icons: the top left icon is of the Texas capitol with a yellow question mark over it, the top right icon is of a bill with with a yellow question mark over it, the bottom left icon is of the Texas capitol with a red checkmark over it and the bottom right icon is of a bill with a green checkmark over it.]()
Credit: Illustration by Ben Hasson -
School voucher bill hangs by a thread as key deadline approaches
The House public education committee chair said Wednesday he currently has no plans to bring the bill for a vote. Gov. Greg Abbott has vowed to call a special session if the House doesn’t “expand the scope of school choice.” Full Story
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![State Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Killeen, speaks on the House floor in Austin on April 06, 2023.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Appeals court appears likely to restrict access to key abortion pill
A panel of judges aggressively questioned lawyers for the Justice Department and for the manufacturer of mifepristone about FDA regulations that made the drug more accessible over time. Full Story
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![Women’s March leads a protest against federal Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling imposing a national ban on mifepristone, at the Supreme Court of the United States on Saturday, April 15, 2023.]()
Credit: Shuran Huang for The Texas Tribune -
After a setback, a GOP effort to get Texas out of a multistate coalition to clean voter rolls could move forward
The legislation — backed by some of the state’s prominent believers in voter fraud — was unexpectedly killed by its House sponsor Tuesday. On Wednesday, he asked for it to be reconsidered. Full Story
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![Voters wait in line to cast their ballots on Election Day at the Northwest Branch Library in Fort Worth on November 8, 2022.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House passes bill restricting the college sports teams transgender athletes can join
Senate Bill 15 would allow people to sue colleges or universities they believe violate a prohibition on trans athletes’ sports participation. Full Story
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![Swimmers compete in the Region VIII-5A Swim Meet at Corpus Christi ISD Natatorium on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, in Texas.]()
Credit: Angela Piazza/Caller-Times/USA TODAY NETWORK via REUTERS -
Texas House approves bill to improve background checks on child-welfare workers
The action came after The Refuge, a Bastrop foster care facility, hired a caretaker without knowing her history of misconduct. Full Story
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![The Refuge in Bastrop on Apr. 12, 2022]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Greg Abbott asked other governors for help patrolling the Texas-Mexico border. Ron DeSantis answered the call.
Although border encounters have fallen since Title 42 ended Thursday, Texas’ top Republican asks for “all available law enforcement personnel and resources.” Full Story
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![A migrant family from Peru ask Texas National Guard Troops to be let inside a makeshift migrant camp to be processed about two hours after Title-42 ended at 9:59 p.m. local time, Friday, May 12, 2023, in El Paso, Texas. The family was denied entry.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
Democrat Michelle Vallejo seeks rematch against U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz in 2024
Despite a 9-point defeat in 2022, Vallejo hopes to attract national support to her race for the South Texas district. Full Story
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![Michelle Vallejo, Democratic nominee for Congressional District 15, speaks at the HERStory meet and greet in McAllen, on Aug. 19th, 2022.]()
Credit: Jason Garza for The Texas Tribune -
House waters down some of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s priorities, adding to late-session uncertainty
Although the lower chamber backed the Senate’s action on gender-affirming care, it has been less accepting of school choice and attempts to rein in higher education. Full Story
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![Lt. Governor Dan Patrick presides over the Senate at the Capitol in Austin on April 06, 2023.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Churches’ role in Abilene election prompts calls for investigations
West Texas voters rejected three conservative Christian candidates who sought to infuse religious values into local politics. The campaign support the candidates received from local churches has prompted calls for state and federal probes. Full Story
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![Campign signs outside of the 11th & Willis St. Church of Christ in Abiele, Texas, on May 6.]()
Credit: Johnathan Johnson for ProPublica