State Legislature
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Texas lawmakers targeted school and public libraries this legislative session. Here’s what happened
Right-wing Texas lawmakers targeted books in public schools and access to public libraries during the legislative session.
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New bill would trap women who want or need abortions in Texas
A bill passed in the Texas Senate allows women and their loved ones who help them get abortions — here or in another state — to be jailed and sued.
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Op-Ed: ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ — SB 16 hurts young, other marginalized voters
Senate Bill 16’s proposed voter ID requirements don’t strengthen election security, they just further exclude young, rural, and low-income Texans.
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Texas House signals expanding state’s medical marijuana program
House Bill 46 would increase the number of health conditions eligible and would offer smokeable products under the state’s medical marijuana program.
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Texas House votes to strictly define man and woman, excluding trans people from state records
If it becomes law, the bill would define sex based on reproductive organs and require state documents and policies to comply with that framework.
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Texas women face prosecution for abortions if new bill becomes law
The Texas Senate has passed a new anti-abortion bill which would open the door to women being criminally prosecuted for obtaining an abortion — even in a different state.
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At UT, a Day of Drag and Defiance
Students gathered for a joyful protest of the university system’s drag show ban.
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She’s not faking it: How this Texas bill would excuse period pain absences in school
A Texas bill would excuse school absences for menstrual disorders—advocates say it’s a crucial step toward reproductive health and dignity in schools.
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VIDEO: Greg Abbott’s bromance with Elon Musk just became law in Texas
Rallying against an “administrative state” in a state he’s led for 10 years, Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law a bill that seeks to recalibrate state government and slash regulations by, ironically, creating a new Texas agency.
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6 candidates compete to represent east Fort Worth, Stop Six neighborhoods in May 2025 election
For the first time since 2013, a new face at City Hall will represent the majority of Fort Worth’s easternmost neighborhoods, including the historic Stop Six area.
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Trump officials cut planning grant for Texas high-speed rail between Dallas and Houston
President Donald Trump’s administration on Monday terminated a federal grant to help fund a long-sought high-speed rail line between Dallas and Houston — saying that if the embattled project moves forward, it will have to do so without federal help at this stage.
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Trump wants to dismantle the Education Department. That could hurt students with disabilities in Texas.
In a state with a checkered history with federal special education law, advocates say Texas students will see an erosion of their disability rights protections. As the Trump administration pushes to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, advocates for students with disabilities worry that, without federal oversight, Texas will fail to provide adequate special education…
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Texas Republicans take aim at public transit in two major cities
The Texas Legislature is considering bills that transit officials warn could hamper public transportation in the Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth regions.
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Telehealth for pets? It’s the cat’s meow, a Texas lawmaker says.
Animal health care experts raised concern that telehealth would lead to misdiagnosis and erode what little care already exists in rural Texas.
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Texas State Veterans Home named for Tuskegee Airmen opens in Fort Worth
A project long championed by the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce to honor the area’s Tuskegee Airmen came to fruition March 22, as Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham hosted the grand opening of the Texas State Veterans Home in Fort Worth that bears their name.
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Congressman denounces ICE response about prosecutor operating racist X account
Last month, Congressman Marc Veasey, a North Texas Democrat, sent a letter to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Deputy Director Kenneth Genalo demanding a swift investigation into James “Jim” Joseph Rodden, an ICE assistant chief counsel who acts as a prosecutor for ICE in immigration court in Dallas.
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‘Striking close to home’: Zoning bills tackling Texas affordable housing crisis evoke emotion
As part of a potential slate of solutions to Texas’ housing affordability crisis, state senators recently examined a bill authorizing the use of small auxiliary residences behind a larger main house.
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Federal investigators were preparing two Texas housing discrimination cases — until Trump took over
The government spent years probing allegations that a Dallas HOA created rules to kick poor Black people out and that Texas discriminated against minority residents in Houston after Hurricane Harvey, only to suddenly reverse course under Trump.
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Texas A&M can’t ban “Draggieland” drag show, federal judge rules
A federal judge on Monday temporarily blocked Texas A&M University System from enforcing a ban on drag shows being held at its special event venues. Judge Lee H. Rosenthal said the student group that organizes Draggieland, the Queer Empowerment Council, was likely to succeed in showing the ban violates the First Amendment.
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Houston-area midwife arrested for allegedly providing illegal abortions
This represents the first criminal charges under Texas’ near-total abortion ban.
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Texas schools have leaned on uncertified teachers to fill vacancies. Lawmakers want to put a stop to it.
Underprepared teachers have been tied to student learning losses. But amid a teacher shortage crisis, school leaders fear the restrictions will lead to fewer instructors in their classrooms.
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What Ever Happened to Ethics Reform?
The House speaker battle wasn’t really about cleaning house.
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Public school funding in Texas doesn’t match community support, advocate says
Amid declining enrollments and budget shortfalls, public school supporters are concerned that a $1 billion school voucher program will funnel more money away from neighborhood schools.
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Texas may change how schools select library books. Critics say it could lead to more bans.
Senate Bill 13 would create school library advisory councils largely made up of parents. It would give school boards, rather than librarians, the final say over new books.
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Texas Legislature proposes $400 million cut to higher ed as Dan Patrick threatens university budgets over DEI
At a public event last week, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said higher ed would get less funding if they don’t “kick DEI out of their schools,” a few weeks after lawmakers proposed a massive cut to public universities.
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Despite pleas from women and doctors, Texas may implement even more abortion restrictions
Republicans in the state legislature have already introduced bills seeking to restrict the availability of the abortion medications mifepristone and misoprostol.
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Texas Senate panel votes to cut property taxes for homeowners
A Texas Senate committee on Tuesday quickly and unanimously advanced a proposal to provide billions of dollars in tax breaks to homeowners in a bid to blunt the state’s high property tax bills.
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Texas lawmakers may ban certain lessons at state colleges under expanded DEI crackdown
This year, the Republican-controlled Texas Legislature is expected to pick up where it left off two years ago to address a perceived liberal bias at the state’s public, four-year universities.
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$1 billion school voucher bill clears first hurdle in Texas Senate
A bill creating a $1 billion school voucher program for 100,000 Texas students is on a fast-track for approval in the state Senate.
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Texas Legislature 101: How bills become laws — and how you can participate in the process
Here’s a rundown of how legislation moves through the Capitol, the ways lawmakers operate and who the power players are. Editor’s note: This is an updated version of Texas Tribune’s 2023 guide to the Texas Legislature. Texas’ 2025 legislative session runs from Jan. 14 to June 2. Lawmakers will debate a bevy of issues and…
