Deborah Birx, former COVID-19 White House adviser, to join Texas Tech’s health center
Birx served in the Trump administration, helping states navigate COVID-19. Her work in public health largely focused on HIV and AIDS. Full Story
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![White House Coronavirus response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx and Vice President Mike Pence during a daily coronavirus response briefing at the White House in Washington, D.C. on March 27, 2020.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst -
Their water is undrinkable. So these West Texas residents have taken matters into their own hands.
The water in these four unincorporated communities near Lubbock has been undrinkable for years, residents say. They hope to win $3 million in state grants to improve their systems. Full Story
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![Signs advertise a future neighborhood near Wolfforth on Wednesday, April. 26, 2023, in Lubbock County.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
This new law will help health care workers save lives in ambulances that cover wide-open West Texas
The emerging technology, paid for by a grant established during the 2023 legislative session, will help emergency health care workers talk with doctors in emergency rooms to better care for critical patients. Full Story
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![An ambulance is parked at Dell Seton Medical Center at the University of Texas
at Austin in 2018.]()
Credit: Laura Skelding for The Texas Tribune -
High Plains farmers are experimenting with novel techniques to protect Texas’ future soil
A minority of farmers in the Texas High Plains region are looking to organic and regenerative techniques to keep their soil healthy year round, despite a dry climate. Full Story
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![A field of corn in the Panhandle near Dumas in June, 2013.]()
Credit: Jerod Foster for the Texas Tribune -
Rural Texas may lose out on billions in broadband infrastructure funding due to federal regulations
Grant applicants are required to have a line of credit from a major bank and put up 25% of the project cost ahead of time. That will likely disqualify many small internet service providers in rural areas. Full Story
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![An aerial view of a utility truck parked on a gravel road March 20, 2023, in Nogalus Prairie, Texas.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
Black and Hispanic Lubbock residents want federal intervention in zoning, environmental policies
A new federal complaint comes as the city updates its zoning laws for the first time since the 1970s. Full Story
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![Natalie Miller of the North and East Lubbock Coalition speaks during a press conference in Lubbock on Wednesday, July 26, 2023. The North and East Lubbock Coalition filed a Title VI Civil Rights Complaint against the city citing discriminatory zoning practices against minority neighborhoods.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
As Texas swelters, crops and cattle are increasingly at risk
One year after a devastating drought, Texas agriculture watchers are wary that the positive effects of a wet spring could be zapped up with extreme heat. Full Story
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![Cotton fields near the High Plains town of Ralls, about 30 miles east of Lubbock, on Wednesday, June 22, 2022. Like much of Texas, the High Plains and Panhandle are facing drought conditions and extraordinary heat.]()
Credit: Trace Thomas for The Texas Tribune -
Rural Texas — already starved for health care — faces a dearth of volunteer first responders
The number of volunteer firefighters has dropped sharply nationwide, a trend that appears to be gripping rural Texas communities. Full Story
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![Instructor Doug Anderson works with students in the back of an ambulance while the “patient” Sabrina Rodriguez lays on the gurney during an EMT certification class in the Olton Volunteer Ambulance Association Monday, July 10, 2023, in Olton, Texas. (Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune)]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
Texas farmers are worried one of the state’s most precious water resources is running dry. You should be, too.
The Ogallala Aquifer serves farming communities in multiple states. When it runs dry, the agriculture industry in Texas and the nation is in jeopardy. Full Story
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![Field Technician Supervisor Billy Barron uses e-line water level meter to check the level of a water well in a pecan orchard in Lubbock County. Barron was checking water levels near the at the High Plains Underground Water Conservation office Friday, Dec. 13, 2023.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
Texas will spend billions to connect the state with broadband. But is it clear which neighborhoods need help?
On the eve of a historic investment in connecting the Lone Star State, advocates worry maps that will help establish which communities get funding have bad information. Full Story
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![An industrial irrigation system on a farm in Floydada, TX, on Mar. 8, 2012.]()
Credit: Jason Janik for The Texas Tribune -
Amarillo Republican lawmakers discuss property tax impasse, impeachment opposition
At a Texas Tribune event, state Reps. John Smithee and Four Price — who have historically resisted school-choice initiatives — take a wait-and-see approach to a future special session on the issue. Full Story
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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.]()
Credit: Courtesy of Castro County Sheriff's Office -
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 -
West Texas school district under federal investigation for punishing Black student
There are more than 60 open federal civil rights investigations into Texas schools. Full Story
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![Roosevelt ISD at the start of classes on Monday morning, May 8, 2023.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
Texas towns need money, technical help and compromise to save their water systems
Water agencies have long resisted working together out of fear of losing their local powers. But an example from Florida could help save the Lone Star State’s water and infrastructure. Full Story
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![One of Wolfforth’s water towers on Wednesday, April. 26, 2023.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
Everything you need to know about Texas’ beleaguered water systems
Texas has more than 7,000 water systems. A fraction of them self-reported that they lost 30 billion gallons of water due to broken pipes and leaks in 2021. Full Story
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![Water spews out of a fire hydrant as a San Antonio Water System crew works to fix a water main break near Hunt Ln. and Adams Hill in San Antonio, TX on August 18, 2022.]()
Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune -
Why health care is still hard to access in rural towns near Texas’ bigger cities
Bigger cities like Lubbock can unintentionally suck health care resources and professionals from smaller towns, creating what one local expert calls the “doughnut effect.” Full Story
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![Main Street in downtown Ralls on Sept. 1, 2022.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
A storied Texas Panhandle newspaper halts publication after 130 years
The end of The Canadian Record’s print edition — even if temporary — is another indication of how perilous the news business is for local publishers and the communities they’re a part of. Full Story
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![Canadian Record editor Laurie Ezzell Brown talks about the current state of small Texas newspapers. Her newspaper has ceased its print publication leaving only the online version to serve the community’s needs.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
This Texas town has the highest rate of youth attempted suicides in the state. A grieving father hopes to reverse it.
According to a new analysis by a national health care company, Lubbock has the highest rate of attempted suicides by children between the ages of 6 and 17. A local leader suggests a dearth of resources isn’t helping. Full Story
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![Adam Hernandez in a home on Friday, Feb. 10, 2023, in Lubbock, Texas. (Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune)]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
Farmers face a higher risk of suicide. The Texas Agriculture Department wants $500,000 a year to change that.
The department’s helpline is less than a year old. But advocates hope state lawmakers fully fund it as farmers and ranchers continue to face hard economic times and isolation. Full Story
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![Grant Heinrich, Operations Manager for Pro Agri Spraying, stands outside of his Slaton business Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2022.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune