The House refused Senate changes allowing exports to continue while the state studies its underground water supply. Lawmakers left the Capitol without reaching a compromise.
Politics
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Environment
Bill overhauling disaster emergency response misses final approval in Texas Senate
Both legislative chambers adjourned without agreeing on changes to Senate Bill 2, which aimed to create new training and licensing requirements for local officials.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Most Texas THC products remain legal after GOP leaders fail to break legislative impasse
Legislators couldn’t reach a last-minute deal to tighten regulations on consumable hemp products.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Texas Legislature ends second special session marked by new political maps, slew of conservative wins
Between cracking down on abortion pills and restricting transgender restroom use, lawmakers also tackled flood safety and the STAAR test. Left untouched: Texas’ hemp industry.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Texas Legislature approves stiff penalties, fundraising limits for lawmakers who leave state to block bills
House members who freeze future legislation by fleeing Texas will face steeper fines, loss of seniority and committee posts, and limits on political fundraising.
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Hill Country floods
Texas kids’ camps must remove cabins from floodplains, operate warning systems under new laws
The parents of children who died at Camp Mystic advocated for the new legislation, which now heads to Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature.
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Texas Legislature 2025
Bill shielding some police complaints from public again dies in Texas House
The measure failed after the two chambers disagreed on whether to include a carveout that would have let parents access records from the 2022 Uvalde school shooting.
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Economy
Corpus Christi’s water supply is uncertain after City Council ends water treatment plans
Years of blundering and project delays have pushed the South Texas city to the brink of crisis as drought bears down and industrial water use grows.
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Texas’ housing crisis
Texas suburbs resist new state law allowing more apartments
Suburban officials in the Dallas-Fort Worth region have enacted rules aimed at curtailing a sweeping new state law to allow more apartments.
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2025 Legislative Recap
Texas bans the sale of THC vape pens
The law does not specifically ban the possession of THC vape pens, but those who sell them face up to a year in jail and a $4,000 penalty.