Billions more for tax relief and border security under budget approved by Texas Senate
Next step will be action in the state House, where budget writers have different plans for distributing property tax help. Full Story
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Kayla Guo covers state politics and government. Before joining the Tribune, she covered Congress for The New York Times as a reporting fellow based in Washington, D.C. Kayla has also covered transportation policy for Politico and local news for The Raleigh News & Observer, and she was a part-time digital producer for The Boston Globe. She graduated from Brown University, where she studied public policy and served as editor-in-chief and president of the independent student newspaper. She was born and raised on Long Island, New York. She is based in Austin.
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![Senator Joan Huffman, R-Houston, speaks with Senator Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston, during a Texas Senate meeting on March 25, 2025.]()
Credit: Lorianne Willett/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate passes hemp ban, a Dan Patrick priority
Patrick says the measure will shut down the dangerous THC products business. The House’s proposal would tighten oversight of the industry without a full ban. Full Story
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![A flowering cannabis plant at Texas Original cannabis farm on Sept. 26, 2024.]()
Credit: Lorianne Willett/The Texas Tribune -
Christian Menefee, top civil attorney for Harris County government, announces bid for Sylvester Turner’s congressional seat
The district has been a Democratic stronghold, held for decades by Sheila Jackson Lee and most recently by former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, who died March 5. Full Story
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![Harris Co. Attorney Christian Menefee speaks at the first general session at the Texas Democratic Convention in El Paso on June 7, 2024.]()
Credit: Justin Hamel for The Texas Tribune -
Orator, conscience, advocate: State lawmakers honor Sylvester Turner with bipartisan accolades in Capitol ceremony
Turner, who spent nearly three decades in the Texas House and died last week, was remembered as a passionate Democrat committed to working across the aisle. Full Story
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![Two men embrace after Congressman Turner’s memorial service on the floor of the Texas House of Representatives on March 13, 2025.]()
Credit: Lorianne Willett/The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Rep. Keith Self cuts short committee hearing after colleague objects to him misgendering trans member
On social media, Self later wrote “it is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female.” Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Keith Self, R-McKinney, leaves a meeting of the House Republican Conference in the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 5, 2025.]()
Credit: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call/Sipa USA via REUTERS -
With Texas facing soaring electricity demand, the politics of energy quietly shift at the Capitol
The Legislature has tried to clamp down on renewable energy resources in the past, but many lawmakers are recognizing the need to support all types of generation to meet record demand growth. Full Story
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![Vistra Corp.’s Midlothian Power Plant opened its doors to media on October 15, 2021 to show the plant’s weatherization process. The Midlothian plant managed to avoid freezing during the Winter Storm Uri in February, and Vistra’s plants provided 25-30% of electricity on the grid during the storm despite its approximately 18% share of generation capacity in ERCOT.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
ERCOT approves $54 million plan to move CenterPoint’s mobile generators to San Antonio
All Texans connected to the state grid will now pay for the generators rather than just CenterPoint customers. Full Story
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![The ERCOT Board of Directors convene for a meeting at the organization's headquarters in Austin on Dec. 3, 2024.]()
Credit: Noah Devereaux for the Texas Tribune -
Watch crypto leaders on the future of bitcoin mining and energy innovation in Texas
Crypto mining facilities make up the bulk of new power demand on the grid, which is projected to nearly double by 2030. Full Story
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Robert Roberson files first new appeal since his execution was delayed
The appeal includes new testimony from experts who say Roberson’s daughter died of natural causes, and cites the court’s exoneration of a man in another shaken baby syndrome case out of Dallas County. Full Story
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![Robert Roberson photographed through plexiglass at TDCJ Polunsky Unit in Livingston on Dec. 19, 2023. Texas death row prisoners are housed in Livingston but executed at the state prison in Huntsville, about 43 miles away.]()
Credit: Ilana Panich-Linsman for The Innocence Project -
As Texas’ energy demand soars, a pilot program looks to bolster grid with “virtual power plants” fueled by people’s homes
Some Texans who install residential batteries, solar panels and smart thermostats can now send power back to the grid and get a credit on their bill. Full Story
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![A monitoring room at the Bandera Electric Cooperative tech campus in Boerne, Texas on January 30, 2025.]()
Credit: Lorianne Willett/The Texas Tribune