Texas House votes to legalize the farming of industrial hemp
Hemp is a cousin of the marijuana plant, but it contains low levels of the psychoactive element in marijuana known as THC. The House's bill will now go to the Senate. Full Story
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![State Rep. Tracy King, D-Batesville, on the House floor on April 23, 2019.]()
Credit: Juan Figueroa/The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Why cable companies and Texas cities are duking it out at the Capitol
Texas cities have been debating state lawmakers over property taxes, sick leave, scooter regulation and now, over whether the cities can charge cable TV companies for using public property to connect their networks. Full Story
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![Austin City Council members and staff listen to testimony on paid sick leave on Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018. After hearing from more than 200 people, council members passed the ordinance, the first of its kind in Texas, by a vote of 9-2.]()
Credit: Waylon Cunningham for The Texas Tribune -
From "baseless" to "damning portrait": Texans in Congress react to the Mueller Report along party lines
The handful of Republican Texas officials who offered statements said the report definitively proved there was no obstruction. Some Democrats suggested Congress should launch its own inquiry. Full Story
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![President Donald Trump talks to reporters about an impending U.S. Government shutdown as he participates in a bill signing ceremony for the “First Step Act” and the “Juvenile Justice Reform Act” in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. on December 21, 2018.]()
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Conservative group Empower Texans sues lawmaker to gain state House media credentials
The group, which was granted credentials in the Senate but denied them in the House, argues that the lower chamber's administration chairman engaged in "unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination." Full Story
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![Destin Sensky and Brandon Waltens, two employees of Texas Scorecard, a product of the influential political group Empower Texans, sit at the end of the Texas Senate press table on Jan. 16, 2019. Miguel Gutierrez Jr. / The Texas Tribune.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr. / The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate says cities can’t ban employers from asking about criminal history
Austin previously passed a “ban the box” ordinance preventing private employers from asking potential job candidates’ criminal history before extending a conditional job offer. If state Sen. Brandon Creighton’s bill passes, local governments couldn’t implement such laws. Full Story
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![Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, speaks at a press conference on SB 6, 7, and 8. Mar. 6, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
With 10 months until Iowa, Castro sees "lower expectations" for him as an advantage
During a two-day swing through Iowa, the former San Antonio mayor downplayed concerns about his poor fundraising numbers while emphasizing all the time he had for his presidential bid to take off. Full Story
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![Former U.S. Housing and Urban Development Sec. Julian Castro tours the auto-painting shop of Central Campus, a technical high school in downtown Des Moines on April 15, 2019.]()
Credit: Abby Livingston/The Texas Tribune -
Pierce Bush, grandson of George H.W. Bush, is considering running for Congress in his grandfather's old district
The nephew of former President George W. Bush and son of Neil Bush did not rule out a run for Congress in a statement to the Tribune. Full Story
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![Pierce Bush.]()
Credit: Via Big Brothers Big Sisters Lone Star -
Is Texas leading on disaster preparedness? Yes and no, experts say
During the first legislative session since Hurricane Harvey, state lawmakers are poised to make an investment in storm recovery and flood mitigation that some have described as unprecedented. But it's more complicated than that. Full Story
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![Debris covered a street corner in Rockport in December, more than three months after Hurricane Harvey made landfall in the tiny town that sustained extensive damage.]()
Credit: Brandon Formby / The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate gives local governments more breathing room for property tax revenue growth
After a key Republican holdout agreed to bring a priority bill to the floor, the upper chamber increased an election trigger on revenue increases from 2.5% to 3.5%. But now both chambers must reconcile how they want to tackle rising school district taxes. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick speaks from the dais in the Senate chamber on April 9, 2019.]()
Credit: Juan Figueroa/The Texas Tribune -
Long delays at border bridges bring anxiety for businesses as Holy Week begins
This week is one of the busiest shopping seasons on the border, but after hundreds of federal agents were diverted from international bridges to help with a surge of migrants, retailers and other businesses are fretting about how hours-long wait times will impact them. Full Story
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![A man waits outside his car as the CBP conducts a "operational readiness exercises" at the Paso del Norte Port of Entry on Friday, November 9, 2018, in El Paso, Texas. Photo by Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Ivan Pierre Aguirre for The Texas Tribune -
Dan Patrick threatens to use "nuclear option" to skirt Senate tradition and bring property tax bill to the floor
"I respect our Senate rules, but I do not intend to let a procedural motion stop the Senate from passing this important bill," the lieutenant governor said. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and Senate Parliamentarian Karina Davis on on the Senate floor on Jan. 9, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate approves two bills to override paid sick leave, local control over employment practices
LGBTQ advocates and business groups have warned that the measures could imperil municipal rules that outlaw discrimination. Full Story
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![State Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, lays out his bills during the Senate Education Committee meeting on Mar. 5, 2019.]()
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Mike Pence to hold fundraisers in Dallas, Midland next week
The vice president is scheduled to return to Texas on Wednesday. Full Story
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![Vice President Mike Pence spoke to a crowd of supporters during a campaign event for U.S. Rep. Pete Sessions' re-election bid, at the Park Cities Hilton in Dallas Oct. 8, 2018.]()
Credit: Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribune -
TribCast: Are Texas Republicans ready to back a sales tax hike?
On this week’s TribCast, Aman talks to Ross, Shannon and Emma about why the top three Republicans in Texas just got behind raising the state sales tax, why national Democrats are suddenly pouring so much money into Texas and which Texas Senator you should be keeping a close eye on as the session enters its final weeks. Full Story
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![From left: State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Gov. Greg Abbott, House Speaker Dennis Bonnen and state Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, speak at a press conference addressing property tax reform on Jan 31, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texas legislation aimed at protecting monuments of all kinds sparks heated debate over Confederate markers
As Confederate monument supporters said history shouldn't be erased, Democratic state Rep. Jarvis Johnson of Houston asked if markers depicting slaves hanging from trees should be erected. Full Story
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![Supporters of CSHB 583 speak at a hearing by the House Committee on Culture, Recreation and Tourism. The bill would make it a criminal offense to remove monuments and memorials to Texas heroes or historical events. April 9, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Trump says he has no plans to revive policy of separating migrant families
"We're not looking to do that, now," the president said. He also blamed Barack Obama for the chain-link pens where migrants were held last year. Full Story
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![Undocumented immigrant children at a U.S. Border Patrol processing center in McAllen, Texas.]()
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U.S. House Democratic campaign arm to open Austin office, boosting focus on Texas in 2020
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is opening an office in Austin as the committee aims to flip six U.S. House seats in Texas next year. Full Story
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![Wall at the Travis County Democratic Party headquarters in Austin, Texas]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Why two former Beto O'Rourke staffers now say they're with Bernie Sanders
Their journey reveals a major fault line for O’Rourke as he transitions from a statewide campaign in which occasional votes with the Republicans can be an asset to a new national playing field where some see those moves as political apostasy. Full Story
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![Autumn Lanning and Bryant Young were student staffers on Beto O'Rourke U.S. Senate campaign. They now support presidential candidate and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Young created a video that's critical of Beto O'Rourke titled "Beto is a BAD Candidate for President." March 28, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr. / The Texas Tribune -
After high school shooting, Texas campuses could soon have more armed marshals
The Senate on Monday passed a bill that would remove a cap on the number of school personnel that can carry firearms at schools. It is the chamber's latest tweak to the marshal program since last year's mass shooting at Santa Fe High School. Full Story
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![Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, on July 26, 2017.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Letting researchers study plants and animals on your Texas land can get you a property tax break
A little-known and ill-defined provision in state statute offers big tax breaks to landowners who host university research on their property. Two lawmakers are trying — again — to close the "loophole." Full Story
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![A heavily wooded area (left) of a property off of CR 4515 near Athens that the owners got designated as an ecolab research area.]()
Credit: Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribune