New Senate bill offers last-minute reprieve for troubled Texas Lottery
A key Senate critic threw a lifeline to the Texas Lottery when he proposed moving its oversight to a new agency instead of eliminating it entirely. Full Story
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![Lottery tickets sit near the entrance of Hyde Park Market in Austin on May 5, 2025.]()
Credit: Lorianne Willett/The Texas Tribune -
Proposals to require judges to deny bail more often advance through House panel, signaling a broader agreement
Amending the Texas Constitution to crack down on the state’s bail practices has been an elusive priority of Gov. Greg Abbott’s for three consecutive sessions. Full Story
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![An Austin Bail Bonds II sign near Interstate 35 on Feb. 5, 2021.]()
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Texas House signals expanding state’s medical marijuana program
House Bill 46 would increase the number of health conditions eligible and would offer smokeable products under the state’s medical marijuana program. Full Story
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![Workers sort strawberry-passionfruit CBD gummies at the Texas Original facility on Sept. 26, 2024. Texas Original is Texas’ first licensed medical cannabis distributor.]()
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Texas bill to overhaul STAAR test clears the House but faces a skeptical Senate
House Bill 4 would make the test shorter and base scores on how students’ performance compares to national averages. Full Story
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![Nimitz Middle School 7th grade teacher Pricilla Martinez leads her class in an activity Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa. STAAR testing begins across Texas on Tuesday.]()
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6 takeaways about Alex Fairly’s journey into Texas GOP politics
Texas’ newest Republican megadonor Alex Fairly got a look under the hood of Texas’ far-right political machine, and didn’t like what he saw. Here are six takeaways from his exclusive interview with The Texas Tribune. Full Story
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![Alex Fairly attends a board of directors meeting for the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation on Monday, April 21, 2025, in Amarillo.]()
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Texas lawmakers propose abortion pill bill that can’t be challenged in state courts
The bill contains many provisions legal experts say are likely unconstitutional, including one that says it can’t be challenged in state court. Full Story
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![State Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, speaks on the Senate floor on March 25, 2025.]()
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Texas House votes to strictly define man and woman, excluding trans people from state records
If it becomes law, the bill would define sex based on reproductive organs and require state documents and policies to comply with that framework. Full Story
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![Over 300 activists and supporters marched from the Bexar County Courthouse to Crockett Park in “March for Us,” San Antonio's third annual celebration of Transgender Day of Visibility, on Saturday, March 29, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas.]()
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Texas allows certain children to get married. Lawmakers may close that loophole.
Lawmakers in 2017 took a major step to end most child marriages. However, emancipated teenagers 16 and older can get married. Full Story
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![The Capitol dome is seen from the north side of the complex in Austin on March 18, 2025.]()
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After a sometimes graphic debate, Texas House advances bill limiting kids’ access to sexually explicit books in libraries
The bill would bar those under 18 from checking out books with sexually explicit material without parental permission. Full Story
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![Ector County Library's fiction section includes novels, anime, science fiction, westerns, and more. Jacob Ford for The Texas Tribune]()
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Ken Paxton says Google will pay Texas $1.4 billion to settle privacy suit
The state attorney general sued Google in 2022, alleging it unlawfully tracked and collected users’ private data. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at a press conference in front of the Supreme Court building in Washington on Jan. 15, 2025.]()
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Texas Democrats cancel planned vote to condemn Rep. Henry Cuellar
Concerns about measures to enforce a ban against a lawmaker’s access to voter files led the party to drop the vote, a party leader said. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, speaks about the U.S.-Mexico border at the World Trade Bridge at a news conference in Laredo on Feb. 17, 2023.]()
Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune -
John Cornyn says tax and spending bill must reimburse Texas $11 billion for border security
Texas Republicans are pushing the federal government to pay the state’s costs of Operation Lone Star, Gov. Greg’s Abbott’s border security initiative. Full Story
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![A member of the Texas Army National Guard patrols the Rio Grande from atop a line of shipping containers in Eagle Pass, Texas, on Friday, Aug. 9, 2024.]()
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Texas lawmakers want to lower homeowners' insurance costs, but have few options
Texans pay some of the highest insurance premiums in the country, putting lawmakers under pressure to tackle rising costs. Full Story
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![Homes in a college neighborhood off Park Place in College Station, Texas, on April 23, 2024.]()
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Texas House advances bill that would prohibit land sales to people and entities from certain countries
The legislation had only pertained to countries the government deemed national security threats. A last-minute change would let the governor add more countries to the ban. Full Story
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![Texas Rep. Mitch Little, R-Lewisville, sponsor of SB17, stands at the podium in the Chamber on May 8, 2025.]()
Credit: Leila Saidane for The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ measles outbreak is nation’s largest since 2000
The outbreak that originated in Texas has spread into multiple states. And, the summer will be the real test of how much bigger this outbreak can grow. Full Story
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![Sherry Andrews, right, holds 13-month-old Jaqi Herrera’s hand after administering the first MMR vaccine dose to Herrera at the City of Lubbock Health Department in Lubbock on Feb. 27, 2025.]()
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State Rep. Dennis Paul announces bid for Texas Senate with backing from Dan Patrick
Paul is the first candidate out of the gate to succeed incumbent Mayes Middleton in an open seat running from Galveston to the outskirts of Houston. Full Story
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![State Rep. Dennis Paul, R-Houston, on the House floor on Aug. 23, 2021.]()
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Texas megadonor Alex Fairly joined forces with the GOP’s ultraconservative wing. He didn’t like what he saw.
Fairly, an Amarillo businessman, backed many candidates aligned with conservative West Texas billionaire Tim Dunn’s political operation in 2024. Now he’s disavowing what he says are dishonest and aggressive campaign tactics while pondering his path forward. Full Story
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![Alex Fairly speaks to Amarillo residents during a Conservative Patriots 4 Texas meeting on Thursday, April 10, 2025, in Amarillo.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman for The Texas Tribune -
Texas election judges could carry guns if bill OK’d by House becomes law
Supporters said the bill would protect poll workers who continue to face violent threats. Full Story
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![Voters wait in line to cast their ballots on Election Day at the Esperanza Acosta Memorial Library in El Paso on Nov. 5, 2024.]()
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Texas’ youngest learners are behind in math and reading. A pair of bills aims to get them back on track.
Students who are behind in third grade rarely catch up. Texas lawmakers want to intervene earlier. Full Story
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![At the Waco Central Library, Ellis Pittman, five, looks for a book to take home on April 5, 2024. Pittman had just started reading.]()
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Frio County public officials among six indicted after elections investigation, Paxton says
The county judge, two city council members and others are accused of vote harvesting. Full Story
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![An intersection in downtown Pearsall on Sept. 16, 2020.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune