In Texas Senate, Republicans fighting to hold on to supermajority
While the Texas Senate will remain Republican-dominated, the party could lose its ability to move legislation out of the chamber without the support of any Democrats. Full Story
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![State Sens. Konni Burton, R-Colleyville, Don Huffines, R-Dallas, and Joan Huffman, R-Houston.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich: Burton/Marjorie Kamys Cotera: Huffines/Laura Skelding: Huffman -
Poverty in Texas drops to lowest levels in more than a decade
With poverty down and incomes up, 2017 proved to be a solid year of economic improvement for Texas even though Texans of color continue to be left behind. Full Story
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![A neighborhood in Mission, Texas, a city in the Rio Grande Valley near the U.S./Mexico border.]()
Credit: Verónica G. Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune -
Federal judge upholds Texas' partisan statewide judicial elections system
A federal judge has ruled for Texas in a long-running challenge to the state's system of electing judges to its two highest courts. Full Story
Credit: Bob Daemmrich -
State Rep. Four Price files to run for Texas House speaker
Price enters a speaker’s race that already includes Republicans Tan Parker of Flower Mound, Phil King of Weatherford, John Zerwas of Richmond, Travis Clardy of Nacogdoches and Drew Darby of San Angelo, as well as Democrat Eric Johnson of Dallas. Full Story
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![Texas Tribune Conversation event with Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso, and Rep. Four Price, R-Amarillo, on January 26, 2017]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera -
Texas asks a federal judge to block Obamacare nationwide
Critics say doing so would risk the coverage of tens of millions. Full Story
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![A protester dressed as Death holds a sign during a rally before a hearing in a lawsuit against the Affordable Health Care Act in Fort Worth on Sept. 5, 2018. Democratic nominee for Texas attorney general Justin Nelson (not pictured) was one of the speakers.]()
Credit: Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribune -
Judge strikes down Texas law requiring burial or cremation of fetal remains
The ruling comes after a five-day trial in July at which patients, health providers, state agency officials, bioethicists, cemetery directors and religious leaders got on the witness stand. Full Story
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![Protesters of Texas' fetal remains burial rule gather outside the Governor's Mansion on Jan. 6, 2017.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
What Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh would mean for Texas
Texas aims to land several high-profile lawsuits before the high court — and hopes that, with Kavanaugh there, it will win them. Full Story
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![Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh speaks in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. on July 9, 2018.]()
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Texas panel rejects proposal to close 87 driver's license offices. For now.
The Sunset Advisory Commission voted not to adopt the Department of Public Safety's recommendations to close dozens of offices across the state, but recommended a third-party study to determine which agency should issue licenses. Full Story
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![State Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, during a Texas Sunset Advisory Commission meeting on August 29, 2018.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Amid Manafort scandal, Texas lawmakers seek to require foreign lobbying disclosure
State Reps. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, and Sarah Davis, R-West University Place, want the Texas Ethics Commission to keep track of which lobbyists have disclosed ties to foreign governments. Full Story
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![State Reps. Sarah Davis, R-West University Place, and Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Blocked from giving away 3D-printed gun blueprints, Texas man says he's now selling them
Austin "crypto-anarchist" Cody Wilson says buyers can name their price for 3D-printed gun blueprints. Full Story
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![Cody Wilson, gun maker and founder of Defense Distributed, a Texas-based company developing and publishing open source gun designs for 3D printing and manufacture. Wilson shows The Liberator, a 3D printed plastic gun made several years ago.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Report: Toddler died after contracting infection at ICE family detention facility
The toddler from Guatemala died six weeks after leaving an ICE family detention center in Dilley. She had not yet turned two years old. Full Story
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![The South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley is one of two family immigrant detention centers in Texas.]()
Credit: Laura Skelding for The Texas Tribune -
Watch live as statewide candidates weigh in on disability issues
Tune in as Democratic candidates for statewide office speak with Texas Tribune reporter Patrick Svitek at the Texas Disability Issues Forum. Full Story
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Down-ballot Texas Democrats are in Beto O’Rourke’s shadow. Will his campaign still help their chances?
Whether they’re closer to the top of the ballot or the bottom, many Texas Democrats running for office are finding it hard to compete for voters’ attention against “Betomania.” Full Story
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After Harvey, questions remain about whether registry helped people with disabilities
Texas has a system in place to identify people with disabilities who will need extra help during a natural disaster. But it's unclear how many people actually received help through the State of Texas Emergency Assistance Registry, or STEAR, during Hurricane Harvey. Full Story
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![An evacuee from Meyerland — a neighborhood in southwest Houston hit hard by Harvey — arrives at the George R. Brown Convention Center on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2017.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribune -
State Rep. Travis Clardy declares candidacy for Texas House speaker
Clardy is the fourth Republican to throw his hat in the ring in the race to succeed retiring House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio. Full Story
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![State Rep. Travis Clardy, R-Nacogdoches, speaks at a joint hearing of the Defense and Veterans' Affairs Committee with the Higher Education Committee on September 13, 2016.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune -
Judge says reunited migrant families can now face a choice: Stay locked up together, or separate again
The Justice Department asked for the order to ensure that migrant parents who would otherwise have been detained can’t “bootstrap a right to release” just because they’re reunited with their children. Full Story
![The South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley is one of two family immigrant detention centers in Texas.]()
Credit: Laura Skelding for The Texas Tribune -
Employees protest poor working conditions in state office buildings
After reports of mold invading a state health agency building, a group of state employees gathered in Austin on Friday to protest working conditions. Full Story
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![State employees protest unsanitary work conditions early Friday morning outside the Texas Health and Human Services Commission Office's Brown-Heatly building, in Austin on August 17, 2018.]()
Credit: Rachel Zein for The Texas Tribune -
San Antonio passes paid sick leave ordinance, joining Austin in fight against top Texas Republicans
A similar measure passed by Austin earlier this year is tied up in court. And dozens of Republican state lawmakers have lined up against the ordinance. Full Story
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![San Antonio is the second-largest city in Texas.]()
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Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick urges Teacher Retirement System not to raise health care premiums
Patrick said funding for health care benefits under TRS-Care should be the responsibility of the Legislature and "not fall on the shoulders of our retired teachers." Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in Austin on Jan 9, 2017.]()
Credit: Todd Wiseman / The Texas Tribune -
Thousands of children still live in Texas shelters after end of "zero tolerance"
Even after the Trump administration said it would reunify families separated under the now-paused “zero tolerance” immigration policy, new data shows the number of children held in privately run shelters in Texas is still high. Full Story
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![Southwest Key headquarters in Austin on June 19, 2018.]()
Credit: Rachel Zein for The Texas Tribune
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