Latest Texas state government News
Louisiana becomes first state to allow surgical castration as punishment for child molesters
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana has become the first state where judges can order offenders guilty of certain sex crimes against children to undergo surgical castration under a bill signed into law by Republican Gov. Jeff Landry on Tuesday. While the punishment of surgical...
The Supreme Court rejects a settlement in a water dispute between New Mexico and Texas
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a settlement between Western states over the management of one of North America’s longest rivers. In a 5-4 decision, the justices ruled that the water-sharing deal between Texas and New Mexico can't go through because the...
Texas electricity demand could nearly double in six years, grid operator predicts
The state’s main electric grid operator has sharply increased its prediction for how much power demand will increase in coming years. If it’s accurate, the state would need to be able to provide nearly double the amount of power within six years. Two factors led to the higher...
Editorial Roundup: Texas
Austin American-Statesman. June 10, 2024. Editorial: Texas’ high court loses a chance to clarify abortion law and help save lives The Texas Supreme Court had a chance to offer compassion and much-needed clarity on the state’s punitive abortion laws ...
Editorial Roundup: Texas
Austin American-Statesman. June 24, 2024. Editorial: Trump’s pledge to deport millions of immigrants would devastate Texas businesses Texans depend on immigrant workers, including those who are here illegally. Donald Trump’s promise of mass deportations might...
Unchecked growth around Big Bend sparks debate over water — a prelude for Texas
TERLINGUA, Texas (AP) — A plume of dust trailed the pickup truck that drove through a maze of caliche roads. The driver and passenger were familiar with the route. Rick and Georganne Bradbury, husband and wife, have navigated it twice a month for four years to deliver hundreds of gallons of water...
Louisiana may soon require public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana could soon become the first state to require that the Ten Commandments be displayed in every public school classroom — in another expansion of religion into day-to-day life by a Republican-dominated legislature. The legislation received final...
Texas’ first-ever statewide flood plan estimates 5 million live or work in flood-prone areas
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — More than 5 million Texans, or one in six people in the state, live or work in an area susceptible to flooding, according to a draft of the state’s first-ever flood plan. The plan by the Texas Water Development Board is an effort to reduce the risk for those...
Editorial Roundup: Texas
Austin American-Statesman. May 21, 2024. Editorial: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott pardoned Daniel Perry and shifted the rule of law There was no rogue DA or ‘woke’ politics. The legal system played out as it should in Travis County. Then Greg Abbott overturned the...
Texas health department appoints anti-abortion OB-GYN to maternal mortality committee
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas' health department has appointed an outspoken anti-abortion OB-GYN to a committee that reviews pregnancy-related deaths as doctors have been warning that the state’s restrictive abortion ban puts women’s lives at risk. Dr. Ingrid Skop was among the...
