Here’s how the fire that killed nearly 18,000 Texas cows got started
Investigators say the fire was an accident and started with an engine fire in a manure vacuum truck. Full Story
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![A worker was critically injured and more than 18,000 cattle were killed in a massive explosion at Southfork Dairy Farm in Dimmit on Monday, April 10, 2023. Dimmit is about 60 miles south west of Amarillo.]()
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TribCast: Is a special session of the Texas Legislature inevitable?
In this week’s episode, we discuss the long odds facing the school choice bill and the possibility of Gov. Greg Abbott calling lawmakers back for a special session. Full Story
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![People walk into the House gallery at the Capitol in Austin on April 06, 2023.]()
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Texas attorney general investigating second children’s hospital for transition-related care
The Legislature recently passed a bill that would bar minors from receiving this medical care, but it has not yet been signed or gone into effect. Full Story
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![Marti Bier with Texas Freedom Network passes out signs that read "Trans healthcare is not up for debate" before a press conference on the stairs across from the House floor to protest SB 14, which seeks to ban puberty blockers and hormone therapies for transgender youth, at the state Capitol in Austin on May 12, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Texas leaders want a new way to attract businesses here. But they can’t agree on how to do it.
The two chambers have 10 days to cut a deal before the end of the legislative session, and they are miles apart on some of the very foundations of a corporate tax-abatement bill considered to be a priority for Republican state leaders. Full Story
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![A pumpjack operates nearby a house under construction in a new housing development on March 14, 2022 north of Midland.]()
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Texas House approves property tax bill with changes the Senate might not like
House lawmakers added a significant boost to the Senate’s proposed homestead exemption and tacked on a contentious idea to lower the state’s appraisal cap. Full Story
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![A construction crew works on a new home on March 14, 2022 in Midland.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman for The Texas Tribune -
Texas cotton farmers leading the charge for more government insurance to cover climate, inflation challenges
The federal Farm Bill is must-pass legislation that Congress debates every five years. It includes billions of dollars in farm subsidies and pays for food assistance programs. Full Story
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![Cotton fields near the High Plains town of Ralls, on June 22, 2022.]()
Credit: Trace Thomas for The Texas Tribune -
Texas lawmakers consider spending $1 billion for flood prevention and Galveston’s “Ike Dike”
The coastal barrier project may get $550 million from the state this year, and another half a billion could be on the table for flood-control projects. But that’s a fraction of the estimated need for flood mitigation. Full Story
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![Houses are seen submerged in flood waters caused by Tropical Storm Harvey in Northwest Houston, Texas, U.S. August 30, 2017.]()
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GOP border bill expanded to stiffen penalty for human smuggling, create border-crossing crime
State Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, tacks two of his stalled bills onto legislation that would create a border police unit and increase state spending in border communities. Full Story
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![A group migrants waits at a gate near the U.S. and Mexico border in Del Rio on July 22, 2021. The group turned themselves over to the National Guard and Customs and Border Protection officials.]()
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Texas bill barring anonymous reporting of child abuse heads to Gov. Greg Abbott
House Bill 63 is an attempt to reduce the amount of vindictive or false child abuse reports made to the state, but child advocates say it will deter valid reports, too. Full Story
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![A caseworker's badge hangs off her neck as she prepares to assist on a case for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) in June 2018.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
Texas cities again lead population growth, and Austin is now country’s 10th largest
Texas took four of the 10 top spots among the nation’s fastest-growing cities, with the Austin metro area overall seeing some of the most significant growth. Full Story
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![An aerial view of downtown Austin during the coronavirus outbreak on March 23, 2020.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas has begun busing migrants to Denver, Gov. Greg Abbott announces
Colorado’s capital becomes the fifth Democratic-run destination for immigrants transported from the Texas-Mexico border region. Full Story
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![Migrants arriving from Texas by bus disembark at the Port Authority bus terminal in New York City, on May 10, 2023.]()
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Texans would get one year of Medicaid coverage after giving birth under bill advanced by Senate committee
A bipartisan coalition of lawmakers and advocates have thrown their support behind extending Medicaid coverage for a full year after childbirth. The full Senate will now have the opportunity to consider the bill, which has already passed the House. Full Story
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![Patients wait to be seen at the People's Community Clinic in Austin, which provides state-subsidized women's health services to low-income women, July 15, 2014.]()
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$5 billion for broadband advances in Texas Legislature after Senate OKs bill
An estimated 7 million Texans don’t have access to high-speed broadband internet access. Full Story
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![Nancy Shanafelt shows the speed of her internet March 20, 2023, in Groveton, Texas.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
Texas senator tries new path in bid to revise Texas free-speech law
In a last-minute hearing Wednesday, Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, opened another avenue to get the bill passed, raising alarm among free-speech advocates. Full Story
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![State Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, attends a press conference regarding Democrats breaking quorum and voting legislature at the Texas Capitol on July 21, 2021.]()
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With clock ticking on legislative session, Texas Democrats delay debate on university tenure bill
The Senate wants to eliminate tenure altogether while the House seeks to enshrine it in state law. The two chambers have until May 26 to come to an agreement. Full Story
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![Students walk across the campus at Sam Houston State University on Aug. 20, 2020, in Huntsville.]()
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Texas expected to ban puberty blockers, hormone treatments for trans kids
Gov. Greg Abbott said he will sign Senate Bill 14 into law, which will make Texas one of over a dozen states that restrict transition-related care for transgender minors. Legal groups have already pledged to challenge it in court. Full Story
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![People gathered on the stairs across from the House floor to protest against SB 14, which seeks to ban puberty blockers and hormone therapies for transgender youth, before it is heard for debate in the House at the state Capitol in Austin on May 12, 2023.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Texas House passes bill restricting the college sports teams transgender athletes can join
Senate Bill 15 would allow people to sue colleges or universities they believe violate a prohibition on trans athletes’ sports participation. Full Story
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![Swimmers compete in the Region VIII-5A Swim Meet at Corpus Christi ISD Natatorium on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023, in Texas.]()
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Bill to give companies low-interest loans to build more gas-fired power plants is approved by House committee
The bill marks the Legislature’s turn toward supporting natural gas-fueled electricity after the deadly winter storm in 2021. Full Story
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![A power substation in East Austin during an ice storm on Feb. 3, 2022.]()
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School voucher bill hangs by a thread as key deadline approaches
The House public education committee chair said Wednesday he currently has no plans to bring the bill for a vote. Gov. Greg Abbott has vowed to call a special session if the House doesn’t “expand the scope of school choice.” Full Story
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![State Rep. Brad Buckley, R-Killeen, speaks on the House floor in Austin on April 06, 2023.]()
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Appeals court appears likely to restrict access to key abortion pill
A panel of judges aggressively questioned lawyers for the Justice Department and for the manufacturer of mifepristone about FDA regulations that made the drug more accessible over time. Full Story
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![Women’s March leads a protest against federal Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk’s ruling imposing a national ban on mifepristone, at the Supreme Court of the United States on Saturday, April 15, 2023.]()
Credit: Shuran Huang for The Texas Tribune