State news in Texas
Statewide Texas News
Gov. Abbott Requests Waiver to Ban Unhealthy SNAP Purchases in Texas
Texas now awaits a response from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which administers the SNAP program.
The Years-Long Shattering of a Mother’s Rights by a Harris County Judge
A tyrannical judge who handcuffed attorneys to chairs had a disturbing track record of stripping parental rights.
Texas Moves Closer To Abolishing Public Schools’ Immunity in Sex Abuse Cases
The House-passed GOP-priority measure allows victims to hold school districts liable for employees’ crimes of sexual misconduct or failure to report suspected abuse.
Texas Lawmakers Pass Constitutional Amendment Enshrining Parental Rights
The proposal would enshrine in the Texas Constitution a legal precedent affirming that parents have a right to the care, custody, and control of their children.
State Archive
State Rep. Steve Toth Blames Senate for Killing Protections Against Child Gender Mutilation
Editors Note: A previous version of this article misattributed comments on political donations to Rep. Toth. They were made by another party to the conversation. Republican State Rep. Steve Toth of The Woodlands alleges the Texas Senate killed conservative priority...
Lawmakers Pencil In $15 Billion for Property Tax Relief
State lawmakers have set aside $15 billion of the proposed $130 billion budget for possible property tax relief. The state's largest and oldest fiscal watchdog organization calls that "a great start" but says it "falls short of providing the largest property tax cut...
Texas Universities Ban TikTok
Following a directive from Texas Governor Greg Abbott, public universities across Texas have banned students from accessing the Chinese-owned social media app TikTok on school internet networks. TikTok, which currently has more than 85 million users in the United...
Texas House and Senate Begin 2024-2025 Budget Process
The process of writing and passing the state budget for 2024-2025 has officially kicked off, with both the Texas House and Senate filing their base budgets to act as the starting point as the legislative session continues. Passing a balanced budget is one of the only...
Gov. Abbott Supports Legislation Protecting Texas Land From Foreign Ownership
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has indicated his support for a ban on ownership of Texas land by certain foreign entities, as the Texas Legislature prepares to consider legislation on the matter. Senate Bill 147 by State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst (R–Brenham) would prohibit the...
Texas Governor Prioritizes the Future of Texas Children at Inauguration
AUSTIN—Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick emphasized their priorities for the 88th Legislative Session as they were sworn into office Tuesday to serve Texans for another four years. During his inaugural speech, Abbott discussed property taxes, education,...
Lawmakers Urge Review of Texas Association of School Boards’ ‘Transgender’ Restroom Policies
Four Republican state legislators released a letter this week urging Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to review the Texas Association of School Boards’ new legal guidelines for “transgender” students. TASB is a statewide taxpayer-funded lobbying group for school...
Lawmakers Splurge on Office Budgets
As one of their first actions in the new legislative session, the Texas House and Senate both approved resolutions that substantially increased each member’s office budget. While House members approved a 28.9 percent increase from the last regular session in 2021, the...
Flush With Gambling Lobby Cash, Phelan Primed to OK Texas Casinos
Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan says he’s ready to let “high-quality” casinos operate in the state, after he and other elected officials received high-dollar campaign contributions from major gambling interests. “I want to see destination-style casinos that are high...