UT Austin announces that it will require students to test for COVID infections in order to return from the winter break for the spring semester. Travis County Elections Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir reveals that she was targeted with criminal charges by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton over the 2020 election. Details continue to emerge in the double murder case against Erik Charles Maund and his alleged hired accomplices. Saturday's active shooter scare at Barton Creek Mall turns out to have been the result of a smash-and-grab robbery with no shots fired. Texas ranks #2 among U.S. states for being moved to - and also for being moved away from. Austin home prices are forcing residents to move out of town, and thus causing price increases in our outskirts. The Westlake Chaparrals football squad wins their third straight State title, while LBJ Austin and Liberty Hill don't quite get it done. Texas Longhorns football cuts receivers coach Andre Coleman. ABIA advises a two-hour advance arrival for domestic flights and three for international this week, while Southwest Airlines announces an expansion of direct flights to Cozumel, Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas and Cancun, Mexico. USA Today names the Trail of Lights the best public holiday light display in the state - while potential record heat in the low 80's is forecast for Christmas week.

UT Austin sees a major COVID new case spike, thought to be the beginning of the Omicron variant's arrival in Austin. A new research trial of a variant-modified Pfizer vaccine seeks unvaccinated participants - payment up to $800 - while Cheer Up Charlie's shuts down temporarily out of COVID precaution. UT's Dell Medical School launches a program for the research of typically-recreational psychedelic drugs in the treatment of mental disorders. Texas BBQ hero John Mueller has died in Frisco at 52. Retired U.S. Army Colonel James "Phil" Waldron, owner of One Shot Distillery near Dripping Springs, has been subpoenaed by the U.S. Congressional committee investigating the January 6th insurrection. Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears help announce the 2022 season for Austin FC - tickets go on sale today. Employees of a south Austin Indian restaurant are paid $170,000, forced by federal investigators after they were illegally denied overtime pay. Seven candidates are set to run for Greg Casar's soon-to-be-vacant Austin City Council seat representing District 4. Conde Nast Traveler determines that a short term rental in Volente is the Coolest AirBNB in Texas. And a wet cold front arrives tonight to break a freak December heat wave.

As local COVID counts continue a recent uptick, stats over the entire pandemic show that the Austin area, and Travis County in particular, show lower than national average infection and fatality rates. A jury lands on a $67 million judgement against two APD officers in a wrongful death suit stemming from a 2017 shooting on Sixth Street. A positive Google review, apparently from Erik Charles Maund, was left for a local security company owned by one of the three men Maund is alleged to have hired to kill two people in Nashville, just days before he and three accomplices were arrested on Friday. Downtown's Fairmont Hotel lights up for the Austin Spurs NBA-G team as part of a marketing partnership. High school football: LBJ Austin's trip to the state championship round this weekend is the first in school history and the first for any AISD school since 1973, and Akins OL Nikolas Hall becomes that program's first Power Five signee, on his way to play for the Kentucky wildcats. Watch that "Tesla Road" exit on the 130 toll road - that road doesn't exist yet. And we continue flirting with record heat today and Friday, before a wet cold front lands on our weekend.

Daily average of new COVID hospitalizations hits a steady five-day rise, while local CRT continues rising as well. City and County officials extend pandemic mandates through June - new studies show only a 30% protection rate for current vaccines against infection, but better protection against severe disease. Austin Water is distributing meter keys and bib covers to help locals prepare for future winter freezes. Williamson County officials agree to a $5 million settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Javier Ambler's family, while WilCo commissioners withhold federal relief funds from Round Rock and Leander ISD's over books in their libraries they find objectionable. A Texas Longhorns football player faces jail after being charged with distributing revenge porn. A study finds that Austin home sellers are enjoying huge profits, while Uptown ATX gets a green light to build over 7 million square feet of business, residential, shopping and hospitality space. A rundown of how to tell the various Moody-named live music venues apart. And more near-record heat for the rest of the workweek, with a wet cold front expected late Friday.

A COVID spike may be underway as our local new hospitalization rate enters Stage 3 range for the first time since late October and both local and statewide CRT figures jump sharply as well - plus the first local Omicron cases, in three unrelated individuals among the University of Texas community, are detected. A scion of the Charles Maund auto dealership fortune is indicted in a murder-for-hire case that resulted in the deaths of two people in Nashville. AISD announcements: plans to eliminate a class from the secondary school schedule are scrapped, and both a hiring freeze at the district's central office and raises for teachers and staffed are proposed. Candidate filing for next year's election hits a Monday deadline, setting the stage for 2022 races. A fourth security checkpoint opens at Austin Bergstrom International Airport as pre-pandemic travel volume returns. And a warm week will give way to a cooler and wetter weekend with cold front expected late on Friday.

Local new COVID hospitalization average jumps to a level not seen since before Halloween - but remains in upper Stage 2 range - as Austin Public Health renews a press for vaccines and boosters in advance of holiday gatherings. Missing kids in Austin: an Austin High sophomore has been missing since last Monday, and a 14-year-old Del Valle girl has been missing since last Thursday, both runaway situations, while a 10-year-old Seguin girl has been found outside the country after being missing for several months. Another threat against a high school campus results in the arrest of a Hutto High student. The owner of a Dripping Springs-area distillery is identified as a participant in the planning of the January 6 insurrection. Westlake, Liberty Hill and LBJ Austin's football squads advance to the Texas high school football State Championships next weekend at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Austin City Ballet's production of The Nutcracker returns this weekend after missing last year. And new studies show that Austin is both a great place to look for a new love, and also a great place to look for a new job.

As cedar fever season begins, it's time to distinguish between those symptoms and those of COVID-19. After a court ruling, UT officials reverse course, and will not enforce federal mandates for employee vaccinations. Another court ruling finds that new limits on abortion are contrary to the state Constitution, but does not block the enforcement of the new law. The City is purchasing a hotel to serve as an expansion of shelter for domestic violence victims. Austin-area schools see seven shooting threats in seven days, as AISD focuses on improving Mendez Middle School's performance under threat of a state takeover. A study of 311 calls shows Austin to be one of the "most relaxed" cities in the U.S., however we also rank high on a list of cities experiencing widespread theft of packages from porches. Travis County officials continue developing contingency plans for severe winter weather - as Austin flirts with high temperature records this Friday.

Local COVID CTR jumps dramatically, ahead of statewide measurement, while early Omicron studies suggest diminished infection prevention by current vaccines, but sustained effect against severe disease. KUT's Joy Diaz announces a run for Governor. Polling shows a wide lead for Greg Casar over Eddie Rodriguez in their race for U.S. House District 25. City officials plan to direct federal funding into transit improvements around Circuit Of The Americas. A proposed light rail bridge over Lady Bird Lake comes under debate over potential bus access. Capitol Metro weighs kicking cars off of the Drag. IH-35 is named one of the ten deadliest roadways in the U.S. SXSW '22 drops a second list of incoming musical artists. Huston-Tillotson University president Dr. Colette Pierce Burnette, the college's first female leader, announces her retirement. Eater Austin issues awards for the city's best eateries in interesting custom categories. And AFD and APD join forces from stopping an underpants arsonist!

Texas' statewide COVID CTR or community transmission rate jumps to 74.1 as concerns mount about the Omicron variant - those same concerns drive a recent spike in vaccine demand locally. Austin Water shores up its infrastructure in preparation for winter weather. Lake Travis, Rouse and Bowie High Schools all see school shooting scares. Westlake Chaparrals QB Cade Klubnik is named Gatorade's Texas High School Player of the Year. Texas Longhorns football sees a growing number of donor-supported funds dedicated to paying players for endorsements and appearances. ACL Fest announces dates for 2022 and prepares to offer presale tickets starting Thursday. Poor access to the recent Rolling Stones concert at COTA for disabled fans leads to a push for a new city task force. H-E-B is featured in Forbes as the largest private company in Texas and fifth nationally. Eater Austin posts a list of Austin's 20 best pizzerias, and Austin 360 lists Austin's best Christmas-themed bars. And a brief cold front makes way for more weirdly warm December weather, with another cold snap coming Saturday.

Our community transmission rate or CTR sees a considerable jump into Substantial range and ahead of the statewide metric as new cases continue a 10-day acceleration. Texas' first Omicron COVID case is detected in Harris County - concerns over the new variant depress jet fuel demand and result in a recent gasoline price drop. Austin is on trend to set a new annual record for car vs pedestrian accidents. The U.S. Department Of Justice sues Texas, saying our new electoral maps are racially discriminatory - this could delay March's primary election. Austin's startup successes are lauded in the 2021 Inno Fire Awards. Olivia Rodrigo and John Mulaney announce Austin dates in 2022. Eater Austin publishes a new list of Austin's "essential" BBQ joints, while P. Terrys and co-owned Taco Ranch plan to donate all of Saturday's profits to the Austin American-Statesman's Season of Caring fundraiser. Today is the 80th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and the National Museum of the Pacific War in Fredericksburg has made its remembrance program virtual and free. And a cold morning today will give way to likely record heat by Friday.