Dallas County axes plan to prioritize vaccinating communities of color after state threatens to slash allocation
State officials told Dallas leadership the plan was "not acceptable," and threatened to cut the county's vaccine supply. Full Story
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![Long lines of people waited to receive their COVID-19 vaccine at Fair Park, where Dallas County opened its first ìmegaî vacc…]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
With a Democrat back in the White House, Texas Republicans prepare to go on offense
For the past four years, Texas Republicans have had an ally in the White House. Now they’re readying for the familiar role of conservative counterweight. Full Story
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![Then-Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Biden at a campaign event in San Antonio on Dec. 13, 2019.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: While his powers are questioned, Texas governor reaches for more
While some lawmakers are working to limit the governor's powers, curtailing what he can order during a pandemic, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has another project: Taking over law enforcement in cities that reduce police budgets. Full Story
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![Austin police officers stand guard outside of their headquarters during a protest over the death of George Floyd. Floyd died…]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas has a problem with its COVID-19 vaccination data, and the stakes are high. Now the state is scrambling to solve it.
As the state began the massive undertaking of distributing the coronavirus vaccine, early data problems left state officials with immunization records that were outdated, incomplete and sometimes misleading. Full Story
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![Staff members work in Tarrytown pharmacy in Austin on Jan. 14, 2021.]()
Credit: Montinique Monroe for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Republicans embraced Donald Trump for four years. Now they face a reckoning.
The president is leaving office Wednesday, but signs suggest his influence on the Texas GOP remains strong. Full Story
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![Then-presidential candidate Donald Trump at a campaign event in The Woodlands in June 17, 2016.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Texas has administered most of its 1.7 million vaccine doses as it prepares to receive 333,000 more
Some 78% of the 1,725,575 doses already shipped to providers have been used, including second doses, Gov. Greg Abbott said, and Texas is set to receive 333,650 first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks at a press conference in Austin on Dec. 17, 2020, regarding COVID-19 and the Pfizer vaccines that h…]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
Point of Order: The Queen’s Gambit
In this episode of our podcast about the Texas Legislature, recorded on Jan. 15, 2021, Evan Smith interviews 25-term state Rep. Senfronia Thompson about COVID-19, race, public ed and that whippersnapper Dade Phelan. Full Story
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Low-income Texans struggle to find new doctors as state officials boot Planned Parenthood off Medicaid
The state's health commission gave Planned Parenthood's Medicaid patients until Feb. 3 to find new doctors. Experts say there are limited places low-income patients can go, in part because Texas already has a shortage of doctors who accept Medicaid due to the state’s low payment rates. Full Story
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![An anonymous HPV patient living in a Houston hotel to escape domestic abuse navigates the uncertainties of Planned Parenthoo…]()
Credit: Briana Vargas for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Is the Texas Capitol a government building or a petri dish?
Legislating is a social enterprise. It draws crowds of Texans who want to testify, to be heard, to sightsee and to watch government in action. And it’s tailor made for spreading a contagious disease. Full Story
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Texas Capitol staffer says pandemic protocols are a must this session: “It’s the ability to think of others”
Odus Evbagharu says that like many of the thousands of people employed at the Capitol, he’s nervous he might catch COVID-19. Listen in the weekend edition of The Brief podcast. Full Story
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![The Weekend Brief.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Trump administration extends health care safety net for uninsured Texans
A federal program known as the 1115 waiver helps pay for the costs of providing health care to people who are uninsured. Advocates for Medicaid expansion say it fills gaps in care that are caused by Texas’ refusal to expand coverage. Full Story
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![Dr. Spencer R. Berthelsen, M.D., Chairman, Board of Directors at Kelsey-Seybold, who still sees patients two days a week, vi…]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Texas lawmakers aren’t all eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine. Austin’s top health official is trying to get them vaccinated anyway.
Dr. Mark Escott, the interim medical director for Austin Public Health, told The Texas Tribune that he asked Ascension Seton hospital system “if they would be willing to vaccinate lawmakers and key staff if they had availability.” Full Story
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![The Texas House of Representatives on Jan. 13, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Capitol to close Saturday, before planned armed protests of Joe Biden’s inauguration
The FBI reportedly warned law enforcement agencies in all 50 states of possibly armed protests after the U.S. Capitol was besieged by pro-Trump rioters. Full Story
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Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick awards committee chair to Texas senator who previously faced sexual harassment allegation
State Sen. Charles Schwertner gave up serving as chair of the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services in 2019. This year, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick named him chair of the Committee on Administration. Full Story
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![A committee hearing room featuring plexiglass dividers on Jan 4, 2021.]()
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After a year of racial reckoning, Black lawmakers believe they can finally eliminate Confederate Heroes Day in Texas
On Tuesday, some Texans will take a paid day off for a state holiday honoring Robert E. Lee, Jefferson Davis and other leaders of the Confederate army. Full Story
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![The 1903 Confederate monument at the south entrance to the state Capitol grounds in 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: The odds for legal pot and casinos in Texas just got worse
One argument for legalizing casino gambling and marijuana sales in Texas is that they would produce tax revenue for the state during the recession started by the pandemic. But a new, optimistic economic forecast for the state takes some wind out of those sails. Full Story
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![Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City is open for the first time since closing due to the COVID-19 pandemic. July 2, 2020.]()
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Texas House requires masks for 2021 legislative session, declines to expand virtual testimony
The rules, which passed unanimously Thursday, will help govern the House during the Legislature’s 2021 session. Full Story
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![Legislators greet each other on the floor of the House prior to the opening of the 2021 legislative session.]()
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Texas laws protecting whistleblowers don't apply to Attorney General Ken Paxton, his agency argues in bid to quash lawsuit
In a lawsuit, four former Paxton aides claim they were wrongfully terminated for reporting alleged criminal behavior on his part. Paxton’s agency wants a judge to quash subpoenas and depositions, saying that as an elected official Paxton is exempt from state whistleblower protection laws. Full Story
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![State Sen. Angela Paxton, R - McKinney, and her husband, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, look toward the Senate Gallery a…]()
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Texas Senate changes rules so Republicans can still bring bills to floor without Democratic support
The resolution passed on a party-line vote, according to one senator. Full Story
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![The gallery is mostly empty due to social distancing as the Senate meets at the Capitol on Jan. 12, 2021.]()
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Ken Paxton is only state attorney general in the U.S. who didn’t sign letters condemning Capitol insurrection
Paxton has individually condemned the violence on television and social media while falsely claiming the pro-Trump mob that invaded the U.S. Capitol was infiltrated by liberal antifa activists. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton spoke at the Texas Federation of Republican Women Convention in Dallas on Oct. 19, 2017.]()
Credit: Laura Buckman/The Texas Tribune
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