Don't skip your second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, health experts warn
As of April 25, about 5% — or 570,399 — of Texans who had received the first dose were 43 days or more past due for their second dose. Full Story
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![Maria Diaz receives her vaccine against COVID-19 at a 24-hour vaccination event at Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex on March 6, 2021, in Austin. Family Hospital Systems hosted the drive-thru vaccine event with an 80s theme and equipped to vaccinate 7,000 people.]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
Joe Biden as popular as top Republican officeholders in Texas, UT/TT Poll finds
Texas voters have a strong preference for politicians from their own parties, but overall, the president is as popular here as the governor or either of the state's U.S. senators. Full Story
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![President-elect Joe Biden during a briefing where he delivered remarks on the United States' response to the COVID-19 outbreak, at his transition headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, on Dec. 29, 2020.]()
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Texas voters are as concerned about border security as about the pandemic, UT/TT Poll finds
Reflecting both the crisis on the border and continued improvement in key pandemic measurements and increasing numbers of vaccinations, Texas voters' top concerns have shifted to the state's border with Mexico. Full Story
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![Unaccompanied migrant boys during the one hour they get for exercise at the CBP migrant processing center in El Paso on March 29, 2021.]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
Overhaul of ERCOT board could replace experts with political appointees
State lawmakers are now trying to change the way ERCOT is governed by requiring members to live in Texas and giving more board seats to political appointees — changes that experts say may do little to improve the power grid. Full Story
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![An aerial view of Austin after a severe snowstorm dumped heavy snow and plummeted temperatures. Feb. 17, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ pandemic budget shortfall disappears, as latest forecast shows a surplus
The latest revenue estimate doesn’t take into account all of the federal relief that has been sent to Texas over the past year by Congress through pandemic relief packages. State lawmakers have wrestled with how and who has the authority to spend that money. Full Story
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![Lawmakers sit through hours of debate over police reform in the Texas House on April 29, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House advances plan to subsidize power plant weatherization
With the clock on the Legislative session ticking down, the Texas House moved to help fund power plant upgrades for extreme weather. Full Story
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![Details of electrical transformers at the Austin Energy/Sand Hill Energy Center
in Del Valle on March 24, 2020.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Legislature advances bills to shield oil and gas from climate initiatives
“Oil and gas is the lifeblood of the Texas economy,” state Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford, said on the House floor Monday. Full Story
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![Oil pumpjacks in Andrews County, northeast of Kermit.]()
Credit: Jerod Foster for The Texas Tribune -
UT/TT poll: Majority of Texans oppose permitless carry, would ban police chokeholds and taxpayer-funded lobbying
On some of the major issues facing the Texas Legislature — police behavior, expanding Medicaid or allowing unlicensed carry of handguns — voters and lawmakers aren't always in sync. Full Story
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![The Senate Floor on Jan. 13, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Lubbock votes to become the state’s largest “sanctuary city for the unborn”
The outcome could prompt a lawsuit over what opponents say is an unconstitutional ban on abortion. The vote comes less than a year after Planned Parenthood opened a clinic in the West Texas city. Full Story
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![Sara Mistrot campaigns for Proposition A with her kids at the corner of Indiana and 82nd Street on May 1, 2021, in Lubbock.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
February’s storm and outages united voters wanting state action, UT/TT Poll finds
Having lived through a statewide winter freeze and electricity outages in February, a substantial majority of Texas voters said electric facilities should be weatherized, and most said government funds should pay for it. Full Story
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![A car moves through a neighborhood in West Austin that is without power on Feb 18, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texans remain concerned about pandemic, but they’re returning to normal, UT/TT Poll finds
Texas voters haven’t thrown caution to the wind. However, they’re staying away from large groups, “avoiding other people as much as possible,” and are wearing masks when in close contact with people outside their households. Full Story
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![People sit as they're monitored for symptoms after receiving their COVID-19 vaccine at the Delco Activity Center on March 13, 2021, in Austin.]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
Texas voters sharply divided on the fairness of elections and what to do about it, UT/TT Poll finds
The findings are echoed in the halls of the Texas Legislature, where lawmakers are wrestling with proposed restrictions to the state’s voting laws amid unsubstantiated questions about voter fraud and the integrity of the process. Full Story
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![Early voting at the Acres Homes Multi-Service Center in Houston on Oct. 26, 2014.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Texas House lifts its mask requirement for chamber and committees
The resolution was passed in a 99-46 vote. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still suggest that people wear masks in public places, especially indoors. Full Story
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![Visitors are required to wear masks in the house chambers, but lawmakers will only wear masks at their discretion. Jan 4, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Bill allowing permitless carrying of handguns advances to Texas Senate floor, where its fate remains uncertain
The bill would nix the requirement for most Texas residents to obtain a license to carry handguns. Texans would also no longer be required to receive training before carrying a handgun in public. Full Story
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![A M&P Shield handgun, small enough to be ideal for conceal carry, in Austin on April 23, 2021.]()
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The criminal penalty for possessing small amounts of marijuana would be reduced under a bill passed by the Texas House
The measure likely faces an uphill climb in the Senate, where two years ago Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick opposed similar legislation. Full Story
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Texas House passes package of police reform bills, including measure requiring more substantive disciplinary action for police misconduct
The chamber approved three police reform measures that are part of a sweeping set of legislation following the in-custody murder of George Floyd last year. Full Story
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![State troopers stand guard at the state Capitol grounds to prevent protesters from entering during a protest over the death of George Floyd.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas lawmakers consider bill that would prevent schools and workplaces from discriminatory bans on dreadlocks, other hairstyles
After holding a press conference on Tuesday, proponents of the CROWN Act to ban hair discrimination finally received a committee hearing on the bill Thursday morning. Several students, parents and workers testified before members about their experiences being targeted for wearing natural hair. Full Story
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![A committee hearing room featuring plexiglass dividers on Jan. 4, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Redistricting is boring, and that’s why it’s hazardous to voters
Most voters don’t pay a lot of attention to the redrawing of political maps every 10 years. That’s just the way legislators like it. Full Story
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![The sun sets behind the U.S. Capitol dome in Washington, D.C., on midterm election day, Nov. 6, 2018.]()
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With time running out on the Texas legislative session, health experts urge lawmakers to prepare for the next pandemic
Lawmakers this session have filed a flurry of proposals related to the pandemic. Some, experts say, constitute meaningful reform. Others could leave the state worse off. Full Story
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![Austin residents begin to head out following the Thunderbirds flyover in Austin on May 13, 2020.]()
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Texas' medical cannabis program could expand under bill OK'd by House
The program would be expanded for a number of conditions including chronic pain and PTSD — as well as allow for more potent levels of THC. Full Story
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![Compassionate Cultivation, a home-grown medical cannabis company serving patients throughout Texas]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune