energy

What to know after black bear sightings in East Texas

As the dust settles on this year’s legislative action at the Capitol, where do the two main parties stand?
If you buy beef, you may have noticed that it’s gotten more expensive lately. Michael Marks has the story, and whether there are any signs of relief.
For several years, black bears have gradually spread throughout the Trans-Pecos region. But recently, bear sightings in East Texas have earned headlines, too
What does “BU” mean to you? The latest on a trademark battle between Boston and Baylor.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

KUT Morning Newscast for September 2, 2025: A new law intended to speed up residential solar panel installation is now in effect

Central Texas top stories for September 2, 2025. Travis County Commissioners are making final adjustments to a $2.2 billion budget, here’s what the county wants to pay for. The Central Health Board of Managers is hearing community feedback on the fiscal year 2026 budget and tax rate. A new law intended to speed up residential solar panel installation is now in effect. The FDA approved updated COVID-19 vaccines, but a lot of people in the U.S. might have a tough time accessing them.

Could Texarkana be a political bellwether?

The state says the West Texas measles outbreak is over. What that means for parents and children.
Are natural gas wells, pipelines and storage facilities prepared for another dangerous winter storm? Mose Buchele of KUT News examines the inspection process.
We know AI data centers need a lot of power, but they also use a lot of water in drought-stricken TX.
Austin author Louis Sachar, perhaps best known for “Holes,” is back with his first adult novel, “The Magician of Tiger Castle.”
And: Could Texarkana be the new Peoria? A new study looks at green energy investments and voting patterns in red America.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

A Texas firm tackles space junk

After national headlines and a pledge from California to offset Texas’ redistricting plans, the walkout by Texas House Democrats is over. Blaise Gainey of The Texas Newsroom has the latest on the Dems’ return to Austin and what comes next.
Old satellites, tools, even food wrappers: Space debris is piling up. Now, a Texas company’s recycling initiative has NASA’s attention.
A new fight is emerging over the sale in Texas of kratom, an herbal supplement with opioid-like effects often found for sale at convenience stores.
And: A UT Austin-led team has discovered the oldest, most distant black hole yet – 13.3 billion years old.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

Texas Democrats flee state, break quorum over redistricting

More than 50 Democratic lawmakers have left the state so the Texas House would not have a quorum, trying to derail a redistricting plan that could add five more congressional seats for Republicans in the midterms.

Harvest season is arriving in South Texas, but many cotton farmers are still reeling from drought, inflation, and weakened demand. Some are cautiously optimistic as new federal funding becomes available. The Standard’s Felicity Guajardo reports.

And: One in four U.S. sports bettors say they’ve missed bills because of gambling losses, according to a new survey highlighting the risks of easy, app-based betting and its lack of oversight.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

Families are cutting back on food and medicine to pay the power bill

The Epstein controversy has federal lawmakers taking an early recess, putting off important business.
Summer heat means some Texans have to choose between paying for air conditioning or basic necessities.
Is a violent protest at an ICE facility in North Texas the new normal as the country copes with a rise in extremism?
What’s happening in Harris County jails, where a dozen people have died so far this year.
And: A preview of Major League Soccer’s All-Star Game, happening tonight in Austin.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

Texas lawmakers begin special session focused on floods, maps

Lawmakers recently ended a regular session of the Texas Legislature, but on this Monday, they’re back. They call it a special session: 30 days to complete a long list of action items including a response to the Hill Country flooding, the regulation of THC consumables, and a rare mid-decade push for redistricting that has some Democrats complaining the fix is in for next year’s midterms.
A hold on billions of education dollars sends Texas public school administrators scrambling.
Also, European sanctions against Russia’s oil industry – will there be ripple effects in Texas?
And this week in Texas music history.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

In wake of Hill Country floods, how to talk to kids about tragedy

A week after the Hill Country floods, the president and first lady will visit Kerr County as the search for the missing continues and storms are in the forecast for the weekend.
Talking to kids about tragedy: A Dallas-based pediatric psychologist on how to deal with their questions and their anxieties.
Gov. Greg Abbott has added flood response to the call for the upcoming special session of the Legislature, along with another new item – mid-decade redistricting.
Plus: The week in Texas politics with The Texas Tribune.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

Immigration crackdown hits touring regional Mexican artists

Why a stretch of border just over the West Texas state line has become the deadliest place for migrants.
How cuts included in the president’s “big, beautiful bill” could affect Texans who depend on Medicaid and Obamacare.
Why Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law the largest state-funded psychedelic research initiative in history.
Solar panel scams targeting Texans – especially elderly, disabled and low-income homeowners.
And regional Mexican music fans: some of your favorite bands won’t be visiting the U.S. because their visas were revoked.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

Texans rally statewide on ‘No Kings Day’ to oppose Trump polices

Texas-based historian and author Jeremi Suri joins with the latest about the military back-and-forth between Iran and Israel, threatening to become an even larger all-out war, and what that could mean on the home front – including Texas’ role as the world’s energy capital.
Protests against president Trump’s second administration reach a new high water mark with thousands turning out at events across Texas and the rest of the country over the weekend.
And: LBJ Foundation CEO and presidential historian Mark Updegrove draws leadership lessons from seven American presidents in his new book.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

Why ranchers are ‘absolutely terrified’ of the New World screwworm’s return

A old law suddenly no more: a judge strikes down in-state tuition for undocumented students in Texas.
What changes can Texans expect for energy and the environment after this week’s conclusion of the 89th Texas Legislature?
After the Smokehouse Creek Fire scorched over 1 million acres, lawmakers also passed a slate of wildfire preparedness bills.
The devastating New World screwworm, eliminated from North America decades ago, are on their way back. The Standard’s Michael Marks talked to ranchers who remember what it was like to fight them.
And: Texas sheriffs could be required to help enforce federal immigration law.

Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.

You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org

As Texas ranks near the bottom in high school attainment, a Texarkana nonprofit has a solution

Texas lawmakers have approved additional funding for public schools, including more money for teachers.
Some San Antonio school districts have found a way to help struggling students catch up following the pandemic. What can we learn from those efforts?
Texas ranks near the bottom when it comes to adults with a high school education. As the Standard’s Sarah Asch reports, a literacy program in Texarkana offers a solution.
Despite headline-grabbing moves by companies like Tesla and Oracle, tech employment in Texas’ biggest cities is slipping.
And: Global oil production is ramping up. What that means for summer travel.

Houston is the fastest-sinking city in the US, study finds

Abortion pills, denial of bail, and a ban on land purchases for some people: What’s happening in the final weeks of the Texas Legislature?
After jackpot controversies, multiple resignations and a ban on online lotto ticket sales, the state’s lottery system is now under investigation.
Cities on the rise across Texas are quite literally sinking, with Houston faring the worst out of any major U.S. metropolis.
The latest projections on a fast-approaching hurricane season.
And: Checking in with Catholics across the state on the first Sunday with a new pope.

Questions remain after death of man in Dallas County jail

Though a voucher-like plan has passed in Texas, lawmakers are far from done with education-related changes. What’s still on the legislative docket? Just about a month left before scheduled sine die at the Texas capitol, Andrew Schneider of Houston Public Media shares some of the less well-known school-related measures lawmakers are considering.
In other news, a death at a Dallas County jail raises questions about how such deaths are investigated and reported. Marina Trahan Martinez of KERA North Texas drills down on what happened and what’s at stake.
Also, after federal cutbacks, long lines at Social Security offices and why they may get longer.

Could SpaceX’s Starbase become an actual city?

Almost half of all Texas counties don’t have a hospital or birth center that provides obstetric care. A look at the challenges and what’s being done to support pregnant people across rural Texas.
How some Houston fourth graders are calling for changes at school by petitioning for reusable lunch trays and learning how to make their case to lawmakers.
More than just a launch site? The countdown is on for local residents to decide whether join a new town called Starbase.
Texans looked good at the Masters, but there was another narrative that had golf fans glued to their chairs. Golf journalist Kevin Robbins with the drama.

Baylor bets big on E-sports with first-ever program director and coach

A second child has died of measles in Texas as cases continue to rise. How this latest outbreak compares with that of the ’90s.
Baylor has just hired its first-ever E-sports director and coach: Adam Stanley of Brewton-Parker College, a small private college in Georgia and powerhouse in E-sports.
Hosting the Final Four of the college men’s basketball championship has been a big boon to San Antonio. We’ll hear more as the Houston Cougars get set for their championship game against Florida tonight at the Alamodome.
And: A homecoming for Texas actor and comedian Michael Yo as the Moontower Comedy Festival gets underway in Austin.

How a Houston man spent 18 years in jail without a trial

How hot is it in Texas prisons? After many questions about deadly heat, a new discovery: the facts as presented may have been fake. Investigative reporter Lauren McGaughy of The Texas Newsroom with the discovery of falsified records in an ongoing scandal about heat-related deaths behind bars.

A Houston inmate jailed for 18 years who never got his day in court: How did that happen, and could there be more?

What do you get when you cross a mouse with a woolly mammoth? It’s no joke: A Texas company says it’s just the beginning.

Also, who owns Texas? The results of an investigation of land ownership.
And this week in Texas music history.

What are current struggles signaling for Texas-based Tesla?

The Legislature is considering bills that would lift restrictions on how Texas’ maternal mortality committee can investigate maternal deaths, including by reviewing abortion-related deaths.
Looking for a Tesla? Or trying to sell one? How politics appears to be reshaping the market for the Texas-based company long considered the leader in the electric vehicle space.
Also: Seismic activity in West Texas prompts regulators to put the brakes on the subsurface injection of wastewater. But one company appears to be flaunting the directive.

‘Uvalde Mom’ profiles woman behind viral act of bravery

Protests planned and hearing scheduled at the Capitol this week. The issue? Taxpayer money for private schooling. Blaise Gainey of the Texas Newsroom with the latest on what to expect this week at the Legislature.
Millions in federal funds to help legal immigrants is now being held up in D.C. How is this affecting services in Texas?
Prices at the pump – how are on again/off again tariffs having an impact on what we’re paying?
A new documentary debuts centering on the woman dubbed by the media as the “Uvalde Mom.”
Also, dismay among many Texans who work with fabric and crafts as a mainstay retailer unravels.

Troops may return to Big Bend National Park

With a hot, dry summer looming, how some state lawmakers want to reduce the risk of wildfires.
It’s been decades since active-duty troops patrolled Big Bend. Now they may be headed back to the national park.
Nearly two years after one of the deadliest human smuggling incidents in Texas, a look at how victims’ families and survivors are coping.
And: We’ll check in with the Texas Newsroom’s Blaise Gainey about the week ahead at the Legislature and what’s coming up for school funding.