Foster child death linked to state-contracted home prompts criminal investigation
The Greenville-based treatment center has closed after the death of an 11-year-old boy the day before Thanksgiving. Full Story
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![The Thompson’s Residential Treatment Center in Greenville, Texas on Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025.]()
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Every month, hundreds of Texas children are waitlisted for a mental health program billed as an alternative to foster care
Despite a long waitlist, the number of children served in the YES Waiver program has declined because of provider shortages. Full Story
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![YES Waiver Participant Quin Heston and his mother, Nidia Chairez Heston, stand outside their home in Austin on Jan. 27, 2025.]()
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Health care access and economic insecurity top a list of challenges for Texas children
A San Antonio panel discussed the results of a new survey on the well-being of Texas children Thursday and proposed solutions to the state’s ongoing challenges. Full Story
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![A student walks down the hallway at Cactus Elementary School in Cactus on Jan. 28, 2020.]()
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Inmates in this Texas program are leaving prison with jobs — and lower chances of reincarceration
Faced with more immediate funding needs, state officials haven’t asked for more money for rehabilitation programs, such as STRIVE, next budget cycle. Full Story
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![STRIVE graduate Melyna Rodriguez wipes a tear during the graduation ceremony inside the chapel at the Patrick O'Daniel Unit in Gatesville, Texas on January 28, 2025.]()
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Lawmakers debate role of free speech at Texas’ colleges
Legislators are expected to take up a $360 million proposal that would change the landscape of financial aid in the state. Full Story
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![Students walk through Texas State University campus Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2018, in San Marcos, Texas.]()
Credit: Laura Skelding for The Texas Tribune -
After teasing border security rollback, Texas plunges in deeper
Texas’ border spending exploded after Joe Biden’s election, then state leaders signaled a new willingness to reduce it when Trump won. That didn’t last long. Full Story
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![Texas National Guard members load a raft to a pickup at the bank of the Rio Grand at Shelby Park in Eagle Pass, on Jan. 16, 2024. Texas has closed off Shelby Park, cutting access to federal agents to part of the Texas-Mexico border and escalating tensions between the Biden administration and Gov. Greg Abbott.]()
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Abbott’s political muscle puts his agenda on fast track in Legislature
The governor’s list of priority items includes issues important to social conservatives and to business advocates. Full Story
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![Gov. Greg Abbott speaks about school choice in Texas during a visit to Kingdom Life Academy, a private school in Tyler, on Nov. 6, 2024.]()
Credit: Michael Cavazos for The Texas Tribune -
Texas regulators grapple with a growing problem: old oil wells leaking polluted water
Two years after lawmakers created a $10 million program to address leaking wells in rural counties, none of the money has been distributed. Full Story
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![Hawk Dunlap stands at the site of Lake Boehmer, a brine lake that has leaked out of an old well in Pecos County.]()
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Two more state employees fired after accessing Texans’ private information
So far, nine HHSC employees have been fired for accessing without a “business” purpose the private information of Texans seeking public assistance that includes Medicaid and food stamps. Full Story
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![The Brown Heatly Health and Human Services building in Austin on Nov. 29, 2017.]()
Credit: Laura Skelding for The Texas Tribune -
Abbott: Texas National Guard to make immigration arrests
Gov. Greg Abbott said that the agreement was effective immediately. Full Story
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![Members of the Texas National Guard stand guard on the banks of the Rio Bravo river, the border between the United States and Mexico, with the purpose of reinforcing border security and inhibiting the crossing of migrants into the United States, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, May 12, 2023.]()
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After Hurricane Beryl, Texas lawmakers push for generators at senior living facilities
After failed attempts in 2021 and 2023, southeast Texas lawmakers have filed bills to require generators in nursing homes and assisted living centers. Full Story
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![Nettie Carlisle, a cook at Ella Springs Senior Living Community in Houston, holds open the empty freezer at the assisted living center on July 12, 2024. All the food had to be thrown out after the widespread power outage caused by Hurricane Beryl.]()
Credit: Olivia Anderson/The Texas Tribune -
Some Texas lawmakers want to ban countywide voting on Election Day. Local officials are pushing back.
Election administrators say letting people cast a ballot at any polling site is more convenient for voters and cheaper for local governments. Full Story
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![State Sen. Bob Hall, R-Edgewood, in the Texas Senate chamber on September 6, 2023.]()
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Measles cases reported in Texas as vaccine rate against the disease has fallen
Two of the four cases are in Lubbock, which hasn’t seen a case in more than 20 years. Meanwhile, measles vaccination rates in Texas have fallen over the last four years. Full Story
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![A vaccine vial of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) is pictured at the International Community Health Services clinic in Seattle, Washington, on March 20, 2019.]()
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CenterPoint Energy settles rate case, will lower power costs for customers
Houston’s main electrical company backed off plans to raise rates after facing sharp criticism for its response to massive power outages after Hurricane Beryl. Full Story
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![Electric trucks line up to provide support with major power outages after Hurricane Beryl in Houston, on Wednesday, July 10, 2024.]()
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Many new moms in Texas don’t know they qualify for a year of Medicaid, doctors say
“Now that we have this coverage, what do we do to make sure women can get it?,” one health advocate said. 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 on July 15, 2020.]()
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Greg Abbott orders state agencies to cooperate with Trump’s deportation efforts
The move comes just days after federal agents launched immigration operations in various Texas cities. Full Story
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![Governor Greg Abbott spaks about school choice in Texas during a visit to the private school Kingdom Life Academy, on Wednesday November 6, 2024, in Tyler.]()
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Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick outlines sweeping conservative agenda with list of top 25 legislative priorities
Restrict THC, help with deportations, infuse religion in schools and provide property tax relief – these are among the Patrick priorities. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick presides over on the Senate floor during the first day of the second special session at the state Capitol in Austin on June 28, 2023.]()
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“Wrap around the family”: Doulas, community health workers push Texas to cover more services for pregnant women
Legislators allowed doulas and community health workers to bill Medicaid last session. They’re hoping it’s just the beginning. Full Story
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![Vanna Waldron, left, evaluates Erika Piñon at the Holy Family Birthing Center in Weslaco, Texas. Waldron is a Certified Nurse Midwife from Seattle, Washington, who is volunteering at the birthing center for a year.]()
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Donald Trump’s push to freeze federal funds sparks confusion in Texas
Texas cities, counties, higher education institutions and nonprofits clambered Tuesday to gauge the potential fallout from the suspension, later blocked temporarily by a federal judge. Full Story
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![U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks on AI infrastructure at the Roosevelt room at White House in Washington, U.S., January 21, 2025.]()
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Abbott orders state police to help federal agents with immigration enforcement
According to the governor, 5,400 immigrants in Texas have a warrant for their arrest. Full Story
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![Department of Public Safety Special Operations agents escort a group of migrants through private property as part of Operation Lone Star after catching them in Kinney County near Brackettville, Texas on Nov. 9, 2021. The owner of the property did not sign the affidavit to allow DPS to arrest undocumented migrants in their property, so they will be processed by Border Patrol.
Verónica G. Cárdenas for ProPublica/The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Gabriel V. Cárdenas for ProPublica/The Texas Tribune