Texas Standard

Texas Democrats are facing legal threats and potential action from the FBI for fleeing the state during the special session. Concerns about artificial intelligence are coming to a head with the most recent round of college graduates. How it’s disrupting the job market. A proposed expansion for the Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge in the Panhandle had been in the works for years, but now the U.S.

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The high-stakes battle over redistricting continues. Why Democratic Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins took the risk and left the state. Gov. Greg Abbott has threatened to remove Democratic lawmakers from their seats for leaving during a special session, but can he legally do that? The history of partisan gerrymandering in the Lone Star State. Why Texas has become a professional services hub attracting…

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More than 50 Democratic lawmakers have left the state so the Texas House would not have a quorum, trying to derail a redistricting plan that could add five more congressional seats for Republicans in the midterms. Harvest season is arriving in South Texas, but many cotton farmers are still reeling from drought, inflation, and weakened demand. Some are cautiously optimistic as new federal…

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Why weren’t Hill Country communities alerted as a deadly wall of water roared down the Guadalupe on the weekend of July 4th? In their first public testimony on the floods, top emergency officials in Kerr County said they were away or asleep. Voting the old-fashioned way? A return to hand-marked ballots in Collin County is part of a change sweeping Texas and other parts of the country.

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What we’re now learning about what happened – and what didn’t – before the Hill Country floods. Investigative reporter Lauren McGaughy has the details. Plus: Flood survivors are asking lawmakers meeting in special session right now to tap the state’s $24 billion rainy day fund to help them meet their immediate needs. Even without a pandemic, Texas food banks are facing shortages and…

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Are Democratic lawmakers on the verge of a walkout to stop Republicans from redistricting during the special session? We’ll have the latest. We’re also tracking possible federal funding cuts to legal aid organizations that could leave thousands of Texans who can’t afford a lawyer without the help they need. Going beyond armed security guards, some Texas schools are turning to drones to…

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The Trump administration releases billions of dollars in education grants it previously withheld. What it means as students head back to school. How the U.S. military is responding to a new kind of warfare that uses small, inexpensive drones. The story of a Cuban man who raised a family in Texas and spent years working for a school district near Abilene – and now is locked up in an ICE…

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A peek into the week ahead for the Texas Legislature’s special session: We’ll hear the latest on a much-talked-about possible walkout by Democrats. A plan to relieve congestion in Austin was approved by voters years ago – but so far, there’s not much to show for it. Is Project Connect off the rails? The rollback of USDA diversity programs is impacting East Texas, which is home to more…

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As Texas lawmakers move to consider regulations on THC products, what’s legal, and what’s not? KUT News reporter Nathan Bernier joins us to break it down. As many see the future of energy as cleaner renewables, why many in the city of Port Arthur are pinning their hopes for a comeback – on oil. At the Austin YMCA, adults are conquering their fear of water and gaining life-saving skills…

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Texas lawmakers hear 12 hours of testimony as they take up what happened before during and after the devastating Hill Country floods. Repeated plans to improve flood warning systems were repeatedly scuttled in the years leading up to the July 4th weekend. Neena Satija of the Houston Chronicle with what she’s learning about why. As the Americans with Disabilities Act marks 35 years…

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