In regulating AI, Texas lawmakers face balancing act between its benefits and harms
A Senate committee discussed the potential pitfalls of artificial intelligence — and overregulating it. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/33dae37c94fa4acada05de4bb212c131/0624%20Capitol-Austin%20File%20OA%20TT%2003.jpg)
-
![The Capitol Dome overlooks the city on Tuesday, June 18, 2024, at the Texas Capitol Building in Austin.]()
Credit: Olivia Anderson/The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ open records law is 50 years old — and routinely flouted
At the annual conference of the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas, two Republican lawmakers described how government officials fail to meet transparency requirements. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a3dd9b38b5b680bf21b93fd2660c325e/FOIPT%20SW%20TT.jpg)
![Kathy and Robert Dyer, of Paris, Texas, at the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas conference on Sept. 28. 2023. After their teenage son Graham died following an arrest, they fought for years to repeal the so-called dead-suspect loophole that had allowed state and local officials to withhold records of their son's death.]()
Credit: Sewell Chan/The Texas Tribune -
Senate Republicans say House managers failed to meet high burden of proof
Democrats, however, said their GOP colleagues “caved” to outside pressure in voting to acquit and return Ken Paxton to his job as attorney general. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/396646529fbed9c1a50eb508fd9324f8/0916%20Paxton%20Trial%20Day%2010%20BD%20TT%2024.jpg)
![State senators file into the Texas Senate to cast their votes on the articles of impeachment on Sept. 16, 2023.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
More Texans would qualify for food stamps under a bill heading to Gov. Greg Abbott
The value of a household’s vehicles disqualified nearly 55,000 people seeking federal food assistance in 2022. House Bill 1287 increases the threshold of car values that lead to SNAP applicants being denied aid. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/82c29fb09fff896077fccf33af927bb2/SNAP%20CR%20TT.jpg)
![Volunteers from neighboring small towns divide, box-up, and load their trucks with food from the Amarillo-based High Plains Food Bank for monthly delivery to Quitaque on June 28, 2019.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
After abuse accusations at The Refuge, Texas will create new reporting and screening requirements for foster care workers
The legislation came after The Refuge, a Bastrop foster care facility, hired a caretaker without knowing she had a history of sexual misconduct with children at a state juvenile facility. Coworkers also concealed evidence of the abuse, which further put the foster girls at harm. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/70589dd666d9800690bd86cd1228b08e/Bastrop%20Refuge%20JV%20TT%2006.jpg)
![The Refuge in Bastrop on Apr. 12, 2022]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate OKs extending postpartum Medicaid — with an anti-abortion amendment
New moms will be able to keep their health insurance for a full year under a proposal the Senate passed Sunday. A last-minute anti-abortion amendment means the bill will go back to the House. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/0c4f1802601b919cafb6976e1b042af0/Community%20Clinic%20CR%20TT%2001.jpg)
![Patients wait to be seen at the People's Community Clinic in Austin on Nov. 8, 2010. Founded in 1970, the People's Community Clinic is a primary care center for the medically underserved and uninsured.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
Watch: Texas immigrants “shocked” by bill that would have prevented them from buying homes
Initially, Senate Bill 147 would have prevented legal Texas residents from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea from buying land. Pushback from immigrant groups persuaded senators to soften the proposal. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/b1075b147690000d7dba73011835bee3/SB%20147%20Rally%20TT.jpg)
![Protesters gathered in Houston on Feb. 10, 2023 against SB 147, which at the time would have prevented citizens from China and other countries from purchasing land in Texas.]()
Credit: Fabiana Chaparro/The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate passes bill limiting farmland sales to China, other countries
The amended bill is a dramatically watered-down version of an earlier proposal that sought to ban land and home purchases by citizens of China and three other countries. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/2bc58a9d281160b73d27ee0ba21f9653/0123%20SB147%20Presser%20MF%2006%20TT.jpg)
![Attendees in opposition to SB 147 hold signs during a press conference in opposition to Senate Bill 147 outside of City Hall on Jan. 23, 2023, in downtown Houston.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate approves $15 million bill to expand local mental health treatment options for children and families
The proposal would offer hospitals and nonprofits grant funding to expand child and family mental health services. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/9877dec57f9467cffe4d6f6cab2e9a55/Lege%20File%20March%202%20JV%20TT%2034.jpg)
![State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, speaks to her colleagues in honor of Texas Independence Day on the Senate floor on March 2, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas senators, facing criticism, soften proposed ban on Chinese purchases of land
The measure, endorsed by Gov. Greg Abbott, originally would have banned citizens of China, Iran, Russia or North Korea from buying land in Texas. Under a new version considered Thursday, the ban wouldn’t apply to dual citizens or lawful permanent residents. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/d16235912eaa26df2859e9d695208311/Del%20Rio%20For%20Sale%20sign%20LBS%20TT%2014.jpg)
![A ranch for sale about an hour west of Del Rio on Nov. 21, 2013.]()
Credit: Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribune -
Lawyers representing children in federal foster care lawsuit rebuked for hiring lobbyists
Texas lawmakers and a federal judge say attorneys in the case against the state’s Department of Family and Protective Services should not hire lobbyists using funds won in court. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a563f8e339e4a73376e98cfde6145043/Texas%20DFPS%20EG%20TT%2016.jpg)
![Heart Galleries, portraits of adoptable children, on display at the Child Protective Services office at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in Austin on Nov. 14, 2019.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Sports-betting advocates return to Capitol with narrower bill, new Republican author
The Texas Sports Betting Alliance threw its weight behind new legislation Monday to let voters decided whether to legalize online sports betting. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/7f7e4e3090581e39a88bafb90d2764d8/Senate%20Action%20SP%2038%20TT.jpg)
![From left: Rep. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, and Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, discuss a property tax bill on the Senate floor on July 14, 2021.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune -
Wanna bet? Texas Legislature to reconsider legalizing casinos and sports betting
Given the stiff headwinds to getting any expansion in gambling passed, sports betting and casino advocates may be competing against each other, rather than working in tandem. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/images/Texas-Ace-Card-Gambling_1.jpg)
![Casino gambling and sports betting are again before the state Legislature in 2023.]()
Credit: Illustration by Todd Wiseman/The Texas Tribune -
Bill to ban Chinese citizens and government from buying Texas land gains steam among Republicans
Sen. Lois Kolkhorst filed a bill that would ban citizens, governments and entities from China, Iran, North Korea and Russia from purchasing land in the state, part of what she and other Republicans have said will help stem foreign influence in Texas. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/f1dd30dcbbbdf26d217a84b0ff44b2cf/Senate%20Floor%20May%2030%20JV%20TT%2001.jpg)
![State Sen. Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, speaks from her desk on the Senate floor on May 30, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas lawmakers responded to the pandemic by limiting what the government can do in response to a pandemic
Lawmakers didn’t succeed in curtailing the governor's power during a disaster, but they did pass bills that prohibit so-called vaccine passports and ban the mandatory closure of churches and gun stores. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/dfa6745787969c3e782a1897b31e4941/Lege%202021%20Opening%20Day%20MG%20TT%2009.jpg)
![A state trooper stand guard outside of the door to the House chamber on opening day of the legislative session on Jan. 12, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas lawmakers split over how long to extend Medicaid health coverage for new mothers
Maternal health advocates said the bill — originally pitched as a one-year extension — could reduce the state’s maternal mortality rate and offer vital help to mothers with conditions like postpartum depression or health complications in the months after giving birth. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/1b35bc328cb5281738aadd82cd919319/Womens%20Health%20Clinic%20CR%20TT%2002.jpg)
![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.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
Texas voters could stabilize funding for state parks with Proposition 5
Decades ago, lawmakers passed a law that was meant to fully fund Texas Parks and Wildlife, but the money never seemed to make it to the parks. Now they're asking voters to create a constitutional mandate that parks get more money. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/6e95a6eda3ee344cac443b58c710852d/Bastrop%20State%20Park%20SS%20TT.jpg)
![Bastrop State park.]()
Credit: Spencer Selvidge for The Texas Tribune -
Abbott vetoes popular domestic violence bill because of an unrelated provision about radioactive waste fees
The bill would have required domestic violence survivors to be notified when offenders are released on bond. But the Republican governor nixed the legislation over a provision by Democratic state Rep. Poncho Nevárez that would have delayed a West Texas waste facility's increase in state fees. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/498764507b73c18987841a69219ab1cc/06%20Poncho%20Nevarez%20JF%20TT.jpg)
![State Rep. Poncho Nevárez, D-Eagle Pass, on the House floor on May 1, 2019.]()
Credit: Juan Figueroa/The Texas Tribune -
Lawmakers pass bills to better fund Texas parks, historic sites — if voters approve
Advocates have pushed for years to put a constitutional amendment before voters to ensure Texas parks and historic sites get the maximum funding authorized from a sales tax on sporting goods. They have finally succeeded. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/000b76101ae345041be233cf6be36384/Sunrise%20Alamo%20San%20Antonio%20RJ.jpg)
![Sunrise over the historic Alamo in San Antonio, Texas.]()
Credit: Robin Jerstad for The Texas Tribune -
Eminent domain reform died in the Texas Legislature this session
Despite hundreds of hours of negotiations between Texas landowners and industry groups, legislation to address concerns over the eminent domain process could not be finalized, with lawmakers pledging to make it a top priority for future sessions. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/20859d316e789c4b87c99105d5715a06/Kolkhorst%20Craddick%20Split.jpg)
![State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, and State Rep. Tom Craddick, R-Midland.]()
Credit: Illustration by Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune