Category Archives: State News
Texas Voters Approve State Income Tax Ban, Most Other Constitutional Amendments
While voters were supporting most changes to the Texas Constitution, they were opposing a measure that would allow elected municipal judges to work in more than one jurisdiction.
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Texas’ Constitutional Amendment Election is Tuesday. Here’s what voters will decide.
Texas voters are about to weigh in on 10 proposed amendments to the state constitution, which deal with everything from retiring law enforcement animals to the state’s tax code. Here are the 10 amendments on the ballot and what they mean.
Read moreMassive Rains Pound SE Texas, Flooding Causes Gov. Abbot to Declare State of Disaster [VIDEO]
Governor Greg Abbott declared a state of disaster in several counties, including Brazoria, Chambers, Galveston, Hardin, Harris, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Newton, Orange and San Jacinto after the remnants of Tropical Depression Imelda unleashed torrential rain Thursday in parts of Southeast Texas. The floods prompted hundreds of water rescues and road closures as the powerful storm system drew comparisons to Hurricane Harvey two years ago.
Read moreNew Law Makes It Easier For College Students To Avoid Taking Classes That Won’t Transfer
The bill mandates required reporting from colleges and universities about courses that don’t transfer, and aims to help students save time and money.
Read morePower Grid Chaos Jolts Texas On Friday, Energy Costs Triple Amid Heat Wave
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) has been asking customers to conserve energy this week as spot power prices in Texas triple to a record on Friday. The state’s power grid operator that serves most of Texas declared an energy conservation emergency for the second time this week.
Read moreMayor Says Multiple Dead In El Paso Mall Mass Shooting, One Person In Custody [VIDEO]
Multiple people were killed Saturday in a shooting at a shopping center in El Paso, Texas, according to local officials. El Paso Mayor Dee Margo and police Sgt. Enrique Carrillo said there were multiple fatalities. Authorities do not believe there is an ongoing threat, Carrillo told reporters.
Read moreTexas DPS Officers Told Not To Arrest in Low-Level Marijuana Cases After New Hemp Law
A memo obtained by The Texas Tribune instructs DPS officers to cite and release suspects in misdemeanor marijuana cases “as appropriate.” Officials said the goal is to continue enforcement even though some prosecutors aren’t taking new pot cases.
Read moreWoman Who Licked Ice Cream And Put It Back On Store Shelf Now Faces 20 Years
Police have identified and apprehended the sick-licker, but will not name her because she turns out to be a minor. Before they realized she was a teenager, police warned they had planned to arrest her on a charge of second-degree felony tampering, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in jail. But… “Because she is a juvenile offender, her identity is protected under section 58.104 of the Texas Family Code,” Lufkin Police Department spokesperson Jessie Pebsworth said.”The case will be turned over to the Texas Juvenile Justice Department.”
Read moreTexas Governor Signs Sweeping New Law Protecting Free Speech On College Campuses
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday signed a sweeping new law that aims to protect free speech on college campuses across the Lone Star state.
Read moreTexas Law Will Outlaw Minors From Buying Popular Cough Medicine
Starting in September, Texans under 18 years old will no longer be able to buy popular over-the-counter cough medicines like NyQuil and Robitussin under a bill Gov. Greg Abbott signed earlier this month.
Read moreTexas Plumbing Board and Laws Abolished After Legislative Strife
The Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners — responsible for licensing plumbers and enforcing plumbing law — was caught up in a legislative fiasco with lawmakers twice failing to pass the legislation that would have kept it going. It was also not saved via legislation known as a “sunset safety net bill” that lawmakers pass each legislative session to keep a long list of state agencies from shutting down. The plumbers board is now heading toward what’s known as a “wind down” period, which gives it until Sept. 1, 2020, to wrap up its operations. The plumbing code, which regulates everything from plumbers’ insurance to the standards they must follow, expires in September, (but individual municipalities can and will likely still regulate plumbers under local regulations).
Read moreTexas Picklers Get A Victory From the Legislature
A proposal on its way to Gov. Greg Abbott would make it easier for pickled beets, carrots and other produce to be easily sold at farmers’ markets alongside pickled cucumbers.
Read moreWould Legalizing Marijuana Boost The Texas Economy? [VIDEO]
Whenever the subject of Marijuana Legalization comes up, many suggest that legalizing and taxing would boost the Texas economy; often times pointing to Colorado as an example. So, KHOU 11 News in Houston took a look at the numbers and made this report:
Read moreTexas Attorney General Ken Paxton Is Investigating San Antonio For Banning Chick-fil-A From Its Airport
“The Constitution’s protection of religious liberty is somehow even better than Chick-fil-A’s chicken,” Paxton wrote in a Thursday letter to San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg and the rest of the council.
Read moreDozens Of Tankers Stranded In Houston Ship Channel After Chemical Leak Contamination
The Houston Ship Channel could remain shut to regular through traffic for several more days, the Coast Guard has confirmed, trapping dozens of inbound and outbound oil and LPG tankers. Emergency crews led by the Coast Guard noticed elevated Benzene levels in the area, and even what was described as a “benzene plume” hovering above the water. This as Deer Park area residents complained of illnesses ranging from nausea to headaches to irritation and burning in the skin, eyes, nose and throat from the disaster which began on March 17.
Read moreShelter-In-Place, Close Air Vents Order Given As “Uncontrolled” Chemical Fire Rages In Houston Area [VIDEO]
A petrochemical terminal is on fire at an oil storage facility in Deer Park, Texas just outside of Houston and has been raging throughout the day Sunday. City officials have warned residents to shelter in place and further advised them to close air ventilation systems in their homes and close all windows.
Read moreLegislation Banning Red Light Cameras Garners 102 Cosponsors
State Rep. Jonathan Stickland has built a bipartisan coalition of 68 Republican and 34 Democrat coauthors on legislation to preemptively ban the use of red-light cameras statewide.
Read moreA Texas Mystery: Small Town Has 1,000 Registered Aircraft But No Airport [VIDEO]
WFAA, an ABC-affiliated television station, has revealed a secret in a small East Texas town called Onalaska, which has more than 1,000 registered aircraft – and no airport. The investigation found planes were registered to two standard post office boxes in Onalaska. According to the most recent government data, the town had a population of 2,755, indicating that there were enough registered aircraft for nearly 37% of its residents.
Read moreWhat We Know About The Migrant Caravan Waiting At The Texas-Mexico Border
The roughly 1,600 migrants, who are mostly Honduran, are being housed in a former warehouse in Piedras Negras — and being guarded by Mexican law enforcement — while they wait to be let into the U.S. But processing is going slow.
Read moreTexas Bill Would Expand Right to Try, Further Reject Some FDA Restrictions on Experimental Treatments
A bill introduced in the Texas House would expand the state’s “Right to Try” law, setting the foundation to nullify in practice additional Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rules that deny access to experimental treatments by patients with severe chronic diseases.
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