Politics
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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.
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Average Texas mortgage debt increased to $239,783 in 2024
Nationally, median home prices over the past five years have increased by nearly 50%, 30-year mortgage rates have nearly doubled, and the number of homes available for purchase have fallen by a third.
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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.
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VIDEO: LGBTQ+ Texans condemn anti-trans bills as ‘insidious attack’
Ahead of an expected vote in the Texas House, LGBTQ+ advocates denounced two bills targeting transgender Texans — part of an onslaught of more than 200 anti-LGBTQ+ bills filed this session.
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Texas women face prosecution for abortions if new bill becomes law
The Texas Senate has passed a new anti-abortion bill which would open the door to women being criminally prosecuted for obtaining an abortion — even in a different state.
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Voter turnout in Dallas’ May elections stinks. Here’s what lawmakers want to do about it
Several state senators and representatives, including three from Dallas, have filed bills that move local elections to November — a time when more people head to the ballot box to vote in state and federal races.
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Fort Worth leaders outline plan to create citywide network of parks, green spaces
With a new master plan soon to be adopted, city staff have laid out the blueprint for enhancing the city’s parks system, with a focus on fostering accessibility and connections to green space throughout Fort Worth.
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Texas graded its public schools. Critics call the results a ‘politically motivated attack’
When the TEA released the scores on April 24, some school districts and a coalition of state lawmakers called the methodology “deceptive, harmful, and a blatant attempt to discredit neighborhood public schools to justify school privatization schemes.”
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VIDEO: ‘Dark day for Texas’ as Greg Abbott signs $1 billion school voucher law
Gov. Greg Abbott signed his school voucher bill into law on May 3, celebrating with hundreds of supporters on the lawn of the Texas Governor’s Mansion.
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At UT, a Day of Drag and Defiance
Students gathered for a joyful protest of the university system’s drag show ban.
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VIDEO: May Day rally in Austin denounces Trump, celebrates workers
With a raucous march from the Texas Capitol to Austin City Hall, hundreds of people rallied against the Trump administration on May Day.
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VIDEO: Texas graded its public schools. How did yours fare?
Texas public school ratings — which grade how well districts and campuses educate their students and prepare them for the future — were made public for the first time in two years. Results across the state have dropped after the Texas Education Agency implemented stricter scoring standards, and one North Texas school district is at…
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Appeals court blocks weed decriminalization measures in 2 Texas cities
A Texas appeals court sided with Attorney General Ken Paxton, who wants to block weed decriminalization measures in Austin and San Marcos.
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Trump’s first 100 days brought chaos, cuts to Texas but inspired resistance
From slashing funding for public health initiatives to closing a US Education Department office in Dallas, the first 100 days of President Donald Trump’s second term have left Texans in a state of wreckage.
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Texas lawmakers consider over a dozen bills loosening gun restrictions
Texas lawmakers are considering gun-related legislation, including two bills that would make Texas the first state in the nation to allow teenagers to carry handguns on school campuses.
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The number of 18-year-olds is about to drop sharply, packing a wallop for colleges—and the economy
This so-called demographic cliff has been predicted ever since Americans started having fewer babies at the advent of the Great Recession around the end of 2007—a falling birth rate that has not recovered since, except for a slight blip after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
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VIDEO: Greg Abbott’s bromance with Elon Musk just became law in Texas
Rallying against an “administrative state” in a state he’s led for 10 years, Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law a bill that seeks to recalibrate state government and slash regulations by, ironically, creating a new Texas agency.
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VIDEO: Texas Republican wants to test your wastewater for birth control pills
@couriertexas A new bill from an East Texas Republican is part of a recent movement from GOP lawmakers claiming that hormones found in birth control or abortion pills are poisoning the state’s water supply. Senate Bill 1976 — from Sen. Bryan Hughes, who authored a piece of the state’s near-total abortion ban — does not…
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The financial cost of autism management: Navigating expenses and resources
While all 50 U.S. states have laws requiring private insurers to cover some level of autism-related care, coverage details vary, and out-of-pocket costs can still be significant, Rula explains.
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6 candidates compete to represent east Fort Worth, Stop Six neighborhoods in May 2025 election
For the first time since 2013, a new face at City Hall will represent the majority of Fort Worth’s easternmost neighborhoods, including the historic Stop Six area.
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Allie Phillips came to Texas to talk about why she ran for office — and the abortion that changed her life
“I quickly learned that these (Republican) lawmakers don’t know anything about reproductive care. He was confused. He told me, ‘I thought only first pregnancies could go bad.’”
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Texas House passes $1 billion school vouchers bill in historic vote
The Texas House passed a $1 billion school voucher bill early Thursday, a measure that provides $10,300 to students to attend private schools.
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Fort Worth prioritizes literacy effort as 2 in 3 students cannot read proficiently
Mayor Mattie Parker issued a resolution April 15 declaring literacy as one of the city’s priorities. The document emphasized Fort Worth’s promise to help the 12 school districts serving the city achieve universal grade-level reading among students.
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Trump officials cut planning grant for Texas high-speed rail between Dallas and Houston
President Donald Trump’s administration on Monday terminated a federal grant to help fund a long-sought high-speed rail line between Dallas and Houston — saying that if the embattled project moves forward, it will have to do so without federal help at this stage.
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Meet the tent company making a fortune off Trump’s deportation plans
Deployed Resources, a privately held tent company, is set to operate a new ICE tent camp to hold people awaiting deportation in El Paso, Texas.
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How Trump’s attempt to gut Planned Parenthood will hurt people across Texas
Millions of people are losing access to family planning services. That’s because in some states, including Texas, President Donald Trump is freezing funds to Title X.
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Ken Paxton jumps into US Senate race, sparking bitter GOP primary
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton entered the US Senate race, turning the GOP primary into an acrimonious battle with incumbent US Sen. John Cornyn.
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Trump wants to dismantle the Education Department. That could hurt students with disabilities in Texas.
In a state with a checkered history with federal special education law, advocates say Texas students will see an erosion of their disability rights protections. As the Trump administration pushes to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, advocates for students with disabilities worry that, without federal oversight, Texas will fail to provide adequate special education…
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Is your Dallas neighborhood a heat island?
Dallas officials hope a 2024 climate study can help create strategies to combat heat islands — a phenomenon that has left some neighborhoods in the city up to 12 degrees warmer than other areas during the summer months.
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Texas Republicans take aim at public transit in two major cities
The Texas Legislature is considering bills that transit officials warn could hamper public transportation in the Austin and Dallas-Fort Worth regions.
