Texas lawmakers start a 30-day special session July 21. They will tackle consumable THC, flood dangers, new congressional districts, abortion pills and other conservative priorities.
Lawmakers will have 30 days to tackle a packed agenda outlined by Gov. Greg Abbott, from flood relief to redistricting to THC products.
Despite receiving substantial state funding to air-condition prisons in the last few years, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice has stayed mum on when it will install cooling across the system.
While sirens can help in areas with shaky cell service, experts say officials also need to consider alert fatigue and provide education on what to do in an emergency.
A GOP state lawmaker who represents Kerr County says he likely would vote differently now on House Bill 13, which would have established a grant program for counties to build new emergency communication infrastructure.
While the state says undocumented patients cost hospitals $329 million over three months, critics say the data lacks payment information and more context.
Texas’ attorney general alleged the City of Dallas and the fair were violating state law and the second amendment with the ban, which was adopted after a 2023 shooting.
As federal pandemic aid ends and sales tax revenues cool, analysts say it could constrain the Texas Legislature in coming years. But they don’t see an immediate budget crisis on the horizon.
A North Texas man charged with capital murder after slipping mifepristone into his girlfriend’s food signals another attempt to rein in abortion pills.
The contest coincides with the state’s November uniform election, when voters across Texas will already be at the polls to decide local offices and ballot measures.
The decision, stemming from a 2022 lawsuit, narrows the public’s legal options to challenge Texas officials under the state’s open records law.
The case involves a 2023 state law requiring adult websites to verify users’ ages, but the ruling is expected to have broader implications for free speech law.
Although Patrick and hemp industry leaders have quarreled over the risks and benefits of THC, cannabis researchers say it can be addictive but doesn’t usually cause widespread psychosis or brain damage.
In dueling lawsuits, current and former employees of the attorney general’s office sling allegations that threaten to intrude on Paxton’s U.S. Senate bid.
Abbott ordered two Texas agencies to begin working together and with residents and business leaders to stop the spread of the invasive fly before it even starts.
Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday signed Senate Bill 3070, which will also criminalize the online sale of lottery tickets through couriers.
Texas and other states have criticized a decision by the national psychologist licensing board to add another expensive test in order for psychologists to become certified.
The North Texas district opened up last week when Republican Kelly Hancock resigned from the upper chamber to take over as the state’s acting comptroller.
Hemp industry leaders say they agree with regulations similar to how the state regulates alcohol.
The clash marks a rare break between two of the most powerful Republicans in Texas after a legislative session that ushered in a series of conservative victories.
Abbott cited uncertainty over federal funding of the program as his reason for rejecting the state’s participation.
More than 3 million people call rural Texas home, and many lack access to a primary care doctor.
Lawmakers added $100 million to a child care scholarship program but failed to expand access to free preschool for children with disabilities.
Abbott will call lawmakers back to Austin to tackle Senate Bill 3, a proposed ban on THC products that he vetoed, as well as five others from his veto list.
A federal judge determined the state illegally institutionalized severely disabled people for decades, often in poorly run facilities.
Hancock, a North Richland Hills Republican, announced his candidacy shortly after being sworn in as chief clerk at the comptroller’s office.
With border crossings at record lows, state authorities are being sent to arrest people accused of committing crimes in Texas after entering the country illegally.
Lawmakers passed a handful of bills aimed at easing access to guns as a new pediatric study links state legislation to increased firearm deaths.
Texas officials suggested the federal government could pick up construction. However, during President Trump’s first term, his administration built about one-third of what the state was able to put up in the same amount of time.
Texas hemp users stockpile products and consider moving out of state as ban looms, saying the medical marijuana program is currently an untenable alternative.
The Trump administration is proposing limits to the recreational facilities — including beaches — that are eligible for federal assistance.
Since El Paso joined Operation Lone Star in 2022, migrant remains discovered in the desert west of the city have increased every year, even as they have declined in every other border sector.
Demonstrations in McAllen, Midland, Odessa, Austin and elsewhere in Texas have been largely peaceful, as some protests are expected to go well into the night.
The agency said there was no additional active threat, as Austin demonstrators took aim at the Trump administration.
Among other changes is a new law that says homeowner associations can no longer fine Texans for not watering their grass during a drought.
Their filing says the lawsuit that struck down in-state tuition for undocumented students was “contrived” to keep their voices out.
Lawmakers have approved funding clinical trials for ibogaine as a treatment for addiction and brain trauma. It comes as Texas contemplates banning THC.
The facility will bring mental health resources closer to the largely rural region that’s home to nearly 436,000 people.
It’s an unusual situation for the lieutenant governor, long viewed by GOP activists as a stalwart conservative responsible for driving the Legislature rightward.
Two years after Stephanie Muth became Department of Family and Protective Services commissioner, staff turnover is down and the number of children without a placement has dropped.
Houston’s National Weather Service office has lost its head meteorologist amid a federal requirement to cut 10% of NOAA’s staff.
Experts say Wednesday’s action to eliminate the long-standing policy could be a “collusive lawsuit,” where the state and feds worked the courts to get a desired outcome.
The program would give low income families an extra $120 per child for summer lunches, but federal debate about food benefits could endanger the program.
At the same time, some Democrats acknowledged the Lubbock Republican let them leave their mark on some of the GOP bills they disagreed with.
Texas passed sweeping changes to cannabis policy, including expanding the medical marijuana program and banning hemp products, while also boosting psychedelics research.
A bill headed for Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk may not go into effect until 2027. Election administrators say the changes could create staffing challenges.
The 33 potential voting violations are a tiny fraction of the roughly 11 million who cast ballots in the November 2024 election.
Jones, a Democrat elected to the Texas House in 2022 and previously served on the Houston City Council, joins a slate of candidates running to fill the solidly blue seat.
Far from the Capitol, students at Texas Tech spend time examining the quality of beef for meat judging competitions.
Texas is slated to spend $51 billion on property tax cuts over the next two years. Some worry that’s unsustainable.
Abbott faces pressure from both sides of the aisle. The prohibition was a priority for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, but some hemp farmers and veterans want it killed.
House and Senate members agreed that judges needed a pay raise. But they spent the final hours of the legislative session debating whether Texas lawmakers should also benefit from the boost.
The Legislature wrapped up without the same drama that defined the end of the last two sessions, with state GOP leaders checking off nearly everything on their to-do lists.
Texas is poised to lead the country in an initiative to inform denizens of what’s in their food. Food industry experts say it’s going too far.
Texas lawmakers bypassed bills that would have restricted “forever chemicals” in sewage sludge, studied health impacts and banned some uses of PFAS-laced firefighting foams.
Local organizations strongly opposed the measure, hosting phone banking events to urge lawmakers to vote against the bill.
A bill to increase judicial salaries from $140,000 to $175,000 a year stalled amid a disagreement over lawmakers’ own retirement benefits.
Tensions flared and the debate turned personal as Republicans said their bill empowered parents and denied predictions that the ban will endanger children.
A boost in public school spending, school vouchers, and money for water systems are other highlights of the state budget, which was bolstered by a $24 billion surplus.
The Legislature has approved a conference committee report that lists sales to certain people from China, North Korea, Russia and Iran as threats to national security.
Supporters said the proposal, which sought to amend the state constitution, would improve safety. Critics said it would violate due process and unfairly target minority groups.
The harassment allegedly took place while the two were on leave from the agency working on Paxton’s impeachment defense.
At least four companies say they are prepared to treat the water well enough to be released into rivers in West Texas. Environmental groups say the state is moving too fast.
Lawmakers filed dozens of bills that would increase transparency around spending in elections and strengthen penalties for campaign and lobbying violations. None are poised to pass.
Many trans Texans have changed the sex listed on their birth certificate, driver’s licenses and other documents. They say their identities will be invalidated under bill headed to governor's desk.
Senate Bill 2858 would have expanded a sweeping state law intended to erode the authority of the state’s major urban areas.
The proposal is largely in response to massive pro-Palestinian demonstrations last year. Critics say it would walk back free speech protections that conservatives advocated for in previous legislative sessions.
House Bill 46, which awaits Gov. Greg Abbott’s approval, would include more patients with chronic pain and allow for prescribed vaporized and aerosol products, such as vapes.
Senate Bill 1362 would prevent officials from taking someone’s firearms if they haven’t been charged with a crime or aren’t subject to a protective order under the Texas Family Code.
Senate Bill 15, a top priority of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, is part of a broad push by lawmakers to put a dent in the state’s high home prices.
The deal allocates $1 billion a year to water projects for 20 years, which some groups estimate is a fraction of what Texas needs to save its water supply.
The bill would have withheld some tax dollars from cities that did not comply with state law.
