The ball has dropped launching 2019, now gavels set to drop in the Texas state capitol. Are you ready for the 86th session? Every two years it happens: members of the Texas house and senate gather under that building they call the pink dome in Austin launching a season of debates over laws and spending that affect most of all of us. In 2019, what should we expect, or brace for? That’s our focus this hour as we take a long hard look at the lege, set to get underway in earnest just one week from today. It’s a special New Years Day edition of the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 31, 2018
No matter where you are, it’s beginning to look like New Years. But before we say ta ta to 2018, we look back at the year that was on a special edition of the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 26, 2018
Some observers say the Lone Star State is experiencing a moment: we’re turning it into an hour as we go deep in the art of Texas on a special edition of the Texas Standard. From a major face lift at Houston’s museum of fine arts to a renaissance of Texas music spreading far and wide beyond the stereotypical frontiers, a famous film director returning to his roots, a photographer giving us a new perspective of our home state from a mile in the sky, to kids in the valley turning their lives into verse…we’re getting creative on this special edition of the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 25, 2018
No matter where you are, peace on earth, goodwill to all: it’s a special edition of the national news show of you know where. We hope you’re having a very merry December 25th, and we thank you for taking some time out of your day with us. we’ve made our list, we’ve checked it twice, and what your about to hear are some of the stories you told us were especially nice in 2018. From what makes a longhorn a real longhorn to Hollywood with a distinctly Texan accent and friendships that make the season bright. All of that and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 24, 2018
Demographic shifts and low reimbursements from Medicaid and Medicare add up to trouble for Texas’s rural hospitals. When a rural hospital shuts down it can have ripple effects, the health professionals leave and so do the pharmacists, creating healthcare deserts. And it’s not just physical health. Texas is also facing an enormous shortage of psychiatrists, especially outside of the big cities. But it’s not all bad news in health for Texas: the state is also home to some great innovators. We’ll introduce you to a few. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 19, 2018
Texas requires contractors to sign a pledge against boycotting Israel. Is that a violation of the First Amendment? A legal challenge to a new state law today on the Texas Standard.
This time yesterday we told you about landmark legislation on criminal justice–with passage in the Senate last night, we’ll hear why some behind bars in Texas choose to stay there.
Also, history meets what planners call the future of El Paso as preservationists fight to save a neighborhood from the wrecking ball. We’ll hear what’s at stake.
Plus the editor in chief of Kirkus Reviews with some last minute gift tips, and more.
Texas Standard: December 18, 2018
After Obamacare, then what? The governor’s suggesting he’ll push for a Texas healthcare plan. But what would Abbottcare look like and is it for real? The story today.
Texas’ senior senator, the number two man in the Senate, delivers an impassioned plea for a criminal justice bill. And it looks like it could be one of those rare opportunities for something resembling real bipartisanship. What John Cornyn said and why he’s now in the spotlight.
Also, a creature long rumored to roam the swamps of the south–turns out it’s for real. We’ll talk with the Texas researcher who helped discover a new species. And much more today on the Texas Standard.
Texas Standard: December 17, 2018
After the death of an undocumented Guatemalan girl, politicians return to tour what was once called a temporary tent camp at Tornillo. The story today on the Standard.
A Trump administration proposal to deport certain Vietnamese immigrants sends shock waves through parts of Texas: home to some of the largest Vietnamese communities in the US.
Also, the year that was in energy. Plus, a tumultuous year in review from the previous century- and why a Texas museum is turning a spotlight on it.
All those stories, plus the changing face of Texas politics and more coming up today on the Texas Standard.
Texas Standard: December 14, 2018
Weeks of meetings on climate change come to a close, but what’s changing? Other than the climate? We’ll explore today on the Texas Standard.
Reduce, reuse, recycle, they say…but now what? What’s there to show for a conference on climate and what role can individuals play today?
Also, ’tis the season for graduation? A 19 year old gets her PhD in North Texas and we get schooled on her story.
Space the final frontier? What about that frontier separating Texas and Mexico? How Elon Musk may stand in the way of a border wall.
Plus the week in Texas politics and a whole lot more.
Texas Standard: December 13, 2018
A food fight on Capitol Hill may be coming to an end, what’s in the massive farm bill and what isn’t? That story and more today on the Texas Standard.
As much of the US is focused on disarray in DC, why dramatic European disunion right now should be on our radar here in Texas.
Also, how the recent wild ride on Wall Street is hitting the home front.
How pop-up PACs are skirting campaign laws.
And is there an echo in the room? If not, there may be a few under the tree. How the hottest gifts of the season, those smart speakers, really stack up against each othe
Texas Standard: December 12, 2018
Could be some hard lessons for lawmakers who say they want to fix Texas schools in the upcoming session. We’re doing the math and more today on the Texas Standard.
A state panel is suggesting an overhaul in how our public schools are paid for–long an issue of contention in Texas. We’ll hear the latest ideas. Tell us what you think online @texasstandard.
Also, how 3D printers are putting teeth in prison dental care.
And a claim that after a decade of progress, the rate of uninsured children on the rise: is that true? The Politifact team is on the case.
Texas Standard: December 11, 2018
A holiday homecoming for U.S. forces at the border? This, as an 11th hour battle begins in earnest over the so-called border wall. With congress trying to wrap things up for the holidays, what’s standing in the way is what might be President Trump’s last best opportunity to get funding for that wall he promised, before democrats take over the house. We’ll have the latest. Also, in the city that bears the name Big Spring, how the nation’s first “toilet to tap” experiment is fairing five years on. And who was Jim Hogg really? All that and then some today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 10, 2018
The White House Chief of Staff is leaving. The president’s being cagey about the reasons, but there were clear signs this was coming. Earlier this year, NPR’s Texas based correspondent John Burnett landed an exclusive interview with John Kelly, and there were signs of a rupture with his boss even then. Coming up John Burnett joins us to talk about a break long in the making. Also, the Victoria Advocate sues to stop former congressman Blake Farenthold from collecting his paycheck as a lobbyist, we’ll hear why. And the Texas Ag commissioner wants to let farmers grow hemp. Those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 7, 2018
Over a 10 year period, 90 deaths, 32 hundred incidents of abuse and neglect statewide: Alarming findings about the safety of Texas day care centers in a year long investigation by the Austin American Statesman: one that has led to a legal battle with state officials. We’ll hear from the investigative team behind the report. Also, healing harmonicas? What a Texas researcher discovered to help people with COPD. And the week that was in Texas politics and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 6, 2018
Snow to the north, flooding to the south, storms close in on the Lone Star State, with dangerous implications. We’ll hear the latest on weather warnings statewide. Also a man in a jail cell in Odessa may be one of the most prolific serial killers in history. Why did it take so long for authorities to catch him? Plus, why Texas appears to have become ground zero for a cryptocurrency crackdown. And challenging assumptions: one of the most comprehensive profiles of Latinos: ever. Those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 4, 2018
A Texas Representative is leaving the state house’s ultra-conservative group. We’ll take a look at what the move could say about the upcoming Texas legislative session. Plus, the Texas Attorney General is accusing San Antonio’s police chief of violating the so-called sanctuary cities law. What happens now? And a Texas-based non-profit has been making big money housing immigrant children. A new investigation explores. Plus we’ll introduce you to U.S. Representative-elect Veronica Escobar. Why she says El Paso is the new Ellis Island. And we’ll take a look at a list of 31 of the most powerful people in Texas. You might be surprised. All of that and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 3, 2018
He wasn’t born in Texas but it became a big part of his identity. We’ll remember 41st President George Herbert Walker Bush today on the Texas Standard. Also, airport security officials have recently found a record number of firearms in carry-on luggage. We’ll take a look at the trend. And oil prices are up a little after a huge drop. What a high-five between two world leaders tells us about what could be next for the industry. Plus an investigation reveals what the State of Texas was trying to keep secret: where it gets execution drugs. All those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 30, 2018
The next version of NAFTA now signed by all three countries, but it’s far from a done deal. On Capitol Hill, the push back’s bipartisan, we’ll hear why and whether it could cause the pact to unravel. Also picture this: you’re pulled over at the side of the road and the trooper asks to see your smartphone: how close are we to digital IDs in Texas? Closer than you might think. Plus the week that was in Lone Star politics and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 29, 2018
An historic new era set to begin in Mexico on Saturday. What does Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador mean for Texas? We’ll explore. Also, it’s been more than a year after Hurricane Harvey. Whatever happened to those long promised fixes to the floodplain maps? We’ll take a look. And in the first Texas city to shift to 100 percent renewable energy, plans to redesign the neighborhoods of the future. Also, the big news this holiday season may not be buying the latest smartphone, but what we’re buying with those smartphones. Our go-to digital guru Omar Gallaga has got your number. All that and then some today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: November 28, 2018
Here we go again? As the clock ticks down to the end of the year, a top ranking Texas lawmaker poses 300 pages of tax changes – we’ll hear why.
South of the border down Argentina way, President Trump headed to meet with world leaders for a so called G-20 summit. Why that could prove a tipping point for Texans worried about our economy.
Also, how much are you playing for gas? As prices fall, why some in oil country might welcome a bit of a slowdown.
And commentator W.F. Strong offers some tips for Texas time travelers.