The latest state government news from The Texas Tribune.
Under the state’s vaccine distribution plan, vulnerable people, including health care workers, older people and people with underlying medical conditions, would likely be the first to get the vaccine in the early months that it’s available. Full Story
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Voting laws in Texas are the most restrictive in the country. And voter turnout here is among the lowest, too. Maybe those facts are related. Full Story
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Abbott said Friday that the Texas Department of State Health Services and the Texas Division of Emergency Management sent surge resources to the Panhandle and South Plains areas. Full Story
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Experts blame social gatherings like birthday parties and football games for the recent upticks. They say there is widespread fatigue for following stringent guidelines to wear masks, practice social distancing and avoid crowded indoor spaces. Full Story
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You've heard that refrain — the one about running the government like a business — from dozens of candidates over the years. In the case of voting, businesses might be a good place for government officials to pick up some pointers. Full Story
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In addition to greater capacity limits for nonessential businesses, visits to nursing homes and elderly care facilities will be put on hold. Full Story
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Abbott, a former Texas Supreme Court justice himself, picked Huddle to serve on the all-Republican high court. Full Story
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In a bitterly contested election overlaid with the fears and risks of an uncontrolled pandemic, Harris County has become a case study in raw politics and partisan efforts to manipulate voter turnout. Full Story
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The Texas Workforce Commission is trying to recoup $214 million in unemployment benefits it says people were overpaid this year. A North Texas woman says appealing the agency's findings is an uphill battle through an opaque appeals process. Full Story
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During early voting in Texas, at least 9.7 million people — 57.4% of registered voters — cast their ballots in the 2020 general election. Turnout on Election Day brought this year’s overall turnout to 66%, surpassing 2016's turnout of 59.4%. Full Story
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First-day turnout was up just under a percentage point in Texas' 10 biggest counties, but it's unclear whether that trend will continue through Election Day. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott, with the Texas Education Agency and Texas Division of Emergency Management, announced the COVID-19 Rapid Testing Pilot Program on Wednesday. Full Story
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A professional organization of social workers called the change "incredibly disheartening," while Gov. Greg Abbott's office said it was necessary to conform with existing state law. Full Story
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Women in Texas can continue to access the most common procedure used to end a pregnancy in the second trimester, after a federal appeals court Tuesday struck down a state law that would have curtailed its use. Full Story
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Civil rights groups and voting advocates had argued the restriction would disproportionately impact low-income voters, voters with disabilities, older voters and voters of color in Democratic counties. Full Story
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Amid the apprehension that Texans expressed about the spread of infections, there are partisan differences about how serious a problem the coronavirus is, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll. Full Story
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Aides in the attorney general’s office have said their boss used the power of the agency to serve the financial interests of Nate Paul, an Austin investor and donor. Paul’s attorney said his client has been the victim of agency “dysfunction.” Full Story
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The long-running securities fraud case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton — now more than five years old — has been delayed for years as he resists paying special prosecutors $300 an hour. But he personally signed off on that rate for an inexperienced attorney probing a political donor’s complaint. Full Story
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Springer, a state representative, faces Luther, the Dallas salon owner who was jailed earlier this year after refusing to shutter her business due to pandemic restrictions, for the seat of state Sen. Pat Fallon, R-Prosper. Full Story
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The young lawyer has five years of experience and apparent ties to an attorney for Nate Paul, a political donor to Paxton at the center of the latest allegations against the attorney general. Full Story
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