Central Texas top stories for December 09, 2024. Tomorrow is the last day of early voting for the December 14th runoff election. AISD is asking the public for feedback on its plan to eliminate its 92-million-dollar budget deficit over the next three years. The City of Austin is considering a new rule that would require certain businesses to display information about mental health and firearm safety. Austin City Council will vote on a plan to generate electricity in Austin into the future. The Longhorns came up short in the SEC game on Saturday, but they’re fifth seed in this year’s expanded College Football Playoff. An asteroid has been named after a UT professor.
electricity
How Texas lowering requirements to become a teacher in the 2000s impacted the profession
As the first week of a fourth special session draws to a close, the Senate passes a voucher-like plan for education.
A teacher shortage and what a new study tells us about the implications of past plans to bring in and retain teachers in Texas classrooms.
The independent market monitor for the Texas power grid steps down after blowing the whistle on what she claims were artificially inflated energy prices.
Texas, once a red-hot housing market, has lost a lot of sizzle, yet many still struggle to get a house of their own. We’ll take a closer look at what’s happening.
Plus, the week in politics with the Texas Tribune and poetry with the Typewriter Rodeo.
Texas Standard: August 29, 2022
A booster rollout: ready for launch? As a long awaited Omicron vaccine gets ready for release, are Texans ready for another round of shots? We’ll explore. Other stories we’re covering: families of victims of the Uvalde shooting gather at the capitol to tell their stories and demand action. And military rules on weight leading to eating disorders and some say the services are do too little to address that issue. Also, the business of college football changing as never before with some players getting paid de facto salaries at bigger schools and altering the calculus for recruitment. Those stories and much more coming up today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 7, 2022
Record setting heat on tap for much of Texas. Will there be enough electricity to meet demand? And what about the rest of the summer? Coming up, the latest on heat warnings across Texas, and what it portends for the rest of the summer amid anxieties about whether the electrical grid can stand the strain. Also a federal judge moves to hold Texas’ foster care services in contempt as court monitors continue to find deficiencies in a system once declared unconstitutionally unsafe for children. Paul Flahive of Texas Public Radio with the latest. And what’s in a name? Some Mexico distillers say cultural appropriation. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Them Ol’ ERCOT Blues
Texans have (so far) not experienced widespread blackouts this winter. Still, many prepared for the worst heading into Winter Storm Landon. That was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.
Texas Standard: February 1, 2022
This year’s first test of the state’s power grid; what to do to prepare for wintry weather on the way. Also, the Texas politician who apparently has his eyes on a 2024 presidential bid…if Donald Trump isn’t running, that is. Plus, what to look for in the upcoming primaries. These stories and more, today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: September 27, 2021
A full forensic audit of the November vote in Harris, Dallas, Tarrant and Collin counties… but why? And why these four counties? The election audit was announced hours after a letter to the Governor from former President Trump. We’ll have the latest. Also, allegations of graft against Houston’s mayor results in the sacking of the person overseeing affordable housing. And call them signs of leadership: the former aide to Ann Richards finds a novel way to remind Texans of the former Governor’s legacy. The backstory on the Ann Banners. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: August 10, 2021
As the Delta variant continues to infect Texans and strain hospitals, more schools are defying the Governor’s orders and mandating masks. The Austin Independent School District joins Dallas and likely Houston in mandating masks. We’ll talk to AISD’s Superintendent about how the district came to this decision and what challenges may lie ahead. We’ll also check-in with our doctor on call about what decisions parents are weighing as they consider whether to send students to in-person learning. Plus the Texas Legislature is back in session again. And this time it looks like they may soon have enough lawmakers in attendance to do business. What that means as Democrats still try to fight a bill over how Texans can vote. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
The Blackout
The story of how the worst blackout in Texas history unfolded — and left millions of people cold, hungry and with no faith in their state’s power grid.
A warning: Some of what you’ll hear in this episode may be disturbing, especially if you lived through this disaster.
Find a full transcript of this episode here.
The Electricity Game
How did we get the power grid we have today? Andrew Weber has the story — and it involves football, subterfuge and a whole lot of lobbyists.
You can find a full transcript of this episode here.
The Energy Island
It was only when the lights went out in Texas that many of us realized — electrically — we are all alone. Claire McInerny brings us that story. Plus, Jimmy Maas tells us how the electricity market in Texas used to work up until about 20 years ago.
Find a full transcript of this episode here.
Texas Standard: June 29, 2021
How much wall can a governor buy with $600,000 in donations? Our conversation ahead of the Abbott Trump border visit. Also, we’ll talk about topics involving the children of the state, the workers who care for our kids when they’re little, and the test scores kids get when they’re big. We now know how much those scores dropped after 2 years of school interruptions. And did you know your electricity could be disconnected starting today if your bill is unpaid? It’s rough but moratoriums are over. Plus how big tech may get restrained by Congress. All of that and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: March 9, 2021
The Speaker of the Texas House intends to fix everything that went wrong during last month’s winter storm. Dade Phelan has a list of priority bills and will tell us how the state could pay for these reforms. And in the aftermath of the storm, experts are carefully counting those who perished, it’s not as straight forward as it may seem. And we are keenly aware of the need to improve our mental health, we’ll tell you how some Texans are doing it. And one thing that will raise your spirits high is the sound of some Texas birds in song. All of that and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: February 16, 2021
Emergency efforts at restoring power continue across Texas as millions try to make do without electricity during an historic winter storm. The whole state of Texas affected by power outages, but not equally. Questions mount over the state’s electricity grid management, as much of Texas hunkers down for a second round of frozen precipitation and low digit temperatures. We’ll have the latest. Also, understanding the latest controversy over the national anthem at sports events. And voices of hope, faith and endurance in danger of being lost to history, an effort to rescue priceless Black gospel recordings. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 29, 2020
The U.S. Supreme Court upholds an important decision in a case concerning access to abortions, closely watched in the Lone Star State. We’ll have the latest. Also, amid a pandemic, the start of early voting statewide in primary runoff elections. What’s been called a dry run for November. And a second look at a string of police shootings in Houston that predate the killing of George Floyd, and what they could mean for the future of police transparency. Plus Texas researchers develop a sensor to distinguish between symptoms of the flu and COVID-19. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: October 17, 2019
A Texas republican takes his stand against president Trump in what may be the biggest bipartisan rebuke of the president yet from Capitol Hill, we’ll have the latest. Also, the longest summer on record in Texas? Certainly the hottest September. A new investigation by the Austin American Statesman suggests Texas heat more and more is becoming a matter of life or death. And holding off on a glass of water with dinner? You’re consuming more water there than you may realize. Plus tech expert Omar Gallaga gets us up to speed on the latest hardware releases. Tis the season already? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: March 12, 2019
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is removing all diplomatic staff from Venezuela, where he calls the situation “deteriorating.” He tells us why. Also, Houston making headlines for not being chosen to host the 2020 Democratic National Convention. The city pay issue that may be at the center of that choice. Plus, some college-level Black Studies programs are celebrating 50 years, how they’ve changed. And several countries are grounding planes like the one in a deadly weekend crash. But not the U.S. We’ll look at why. All of those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: September 19, 2018
A political upset in Texas: a Democrat friendly district picks a Republican to fill a vacated seat less than two months out from the midterms. On top of last night’s Republican win by Pete Flores over Pete Gallego for a vacated state Senate seat, new numbers suggest that tight contest between Ted Cruz and Beto O’Rourke might not be so tight after all. We’ll take a closer look. Also, as frustration grows over rising student debt in higher ed: Texas’ top ranked private university announces free tuition room and board, for those who qualify. And the sixth Rolling Stone, Texas’ own in the spotlight. All that and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: July 24, 2018
How Rockdale went from mining very tangible coal to the intangible bitcoin, we’ll have the story. Also, Trump’s regulatory roll back plan: critics say it would be his biggest roll back yet, but it still has to go through. And from Victoria: the house of worship that was burnt down and what came out of the ashes. Plus they call it the kissing bug, but beware of it’s smooch. And some high schools getting ready for kids playing video games as a sports? All of that and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: June 13, 2017
Spectacle versus substance, episode 2: the attorney general speaks. But after Comey, what are Texans expecting to hear? We’ll explore. Also the governor signs off on a budget, but not all of it. 120 million in cuts by veto pen…we’ll find out what’s left and what isn’t. Plus when a law enforcement officer gets suited up for work, a new report says in some big Texas cities, a major piece of police equipment is getting left behind. We’ll explain. Those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard: