Central Texas top stories for April 15, 2025. Families, students and staff came together to weigh in on the future of Dobie Middle School. Ten international students in the Texas State University System had their visas revoked, that includes two at Texas State University. House Bill 4283 would allow the Texas Attorney General to investigate and fine cities and counties if the AG thinks their policies violate state law. El Buen Samaritano is offering free vaccines today.
Ken Paxton
KUT Morning Newscast for April 9, 2025: The City of Austin is facing a $33 million shortfall for next fiscal year.
Central Texas top stories for April 9, 2025. Texas Attorney General Republican Ken Paxton has announced he’s running for U.S. Senate. The City of Austin’s facing a $33 million budget deficit for the next fiscal year; it might ask voters for help. Austin’s City Council has only a few weeks to decide where to build parks over I-35. Rent prices in Austin have continued to fall for almost two years. A new program in Hays County will connect people caught driving while intoxicated with treatment instead of sending them to jail.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for April 3, 2025: Austin-area businesses are bracing for the effects of tariffs.
Central Texas top stories for April 3, 2025. Businesses big and small here in the Austin area are bracing for the effects of the tariffs. Today is the last day to register to vote in the May 3rd local elections. A formerly indicted Austin police officer will serve on the state police oversight board. The federal investigation of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton concerning allegations of corruption has been dropped. Chances of rain and thunderstorms enter the forecast starting tonight.
Trump’s new tariffs could hit Texas businesses hard
One of Texas’ top economists weighs in on the impact of Trump’s tariffs, what looks like the end of a U.S.-led free trade era, and what it could add up to for Texas.
It looks like John Cornyn may have a serious challenger for his seat in the Senate: Attorney General Ken Paxton.
The latest AI trend has users generating images in the style of animator Hayao Miyazaki and his Studio Ghibli works, sparking debates over copyright and artistic integrity.
Our March Madness bracket for the best song about Texas comes right down to the wire. Your vote could decide it all.
And: We’ll hear from Zell Miller III, Austin’s inaugural poet laureate.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for April 2, 2025: Austin-area teens are teaching their peers how to get involved in the political process.
Central Texas top stories for April 2, 2025. Homelessness is on the rise among people under the age of 25. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is close to deciding whether to challenge Senator John Cornyn in next year’s primary election. Save Our Springs is suing in state court over the plan to expand MoPac through South Austin. Firefly Aerospace is working with NASA on a mission to increase understanding of severe weather patterns on Earth. An opportunity is coming up this week to get your pet spayed or neutered free of charge.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for March 14, 2025: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is ordering the reversal of changes to the sex listed on documents for Transgender Texans.
Central Texas top stories for March 14, 2025. I-35 southbound in North Austin is back open this afternoon following a horrific crash overnight. The Austin area is under a Red Flag Warning until 9 o’clock tonight. The latest on a lawsuit against Austin-based conspiracy theorist Alex Jones from the family of Sandy Hook victims. Williamson County Commissioners voted today to promote Precinct 3 Commissioner Valerie Covey to help oversee the court until a new county judge is appointed. Williamson County is partnering with neighboring Burnet County to grow the region’s space industry.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for February 14, 2025: The legal battle between a New York Doctor and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton continues.
Central Texas top stories for February 14, 2025. A Texas judge is ordering a New York doctor to stop prescribing abortion pills to people in Texas. Austin ISD is instituting a hiring freeze on March 1st to try to reduce its growing budget shortfall. A new report from the ERCOT suggests there’s more work ahead to bolster the state’s energy system. The Austin City Council is updating its on-street parking rules for the first time in 15 years. The Austin marathon will cause street closures this weekend.
Inside the Conjunto Music Hall of Fame & Museum
At least five bills have been filed in the Texas Legislature so far to require Texas voters to show proof of citizenship. A look at the implications.
How education could take center stage in the upcoming 89th Texas legislative session.
Attorney General Ken Paxton files a motion to prevent testimony at the Capitol from death row inmate Robert Roberson.
And: Kristen Cabrera visits the Conjunto Music Hall of Fame & Museum for the Texas Museum Map project.
KUT Morning Newscast for December 20, 2024
Central Texas top stories for December 20, 2024. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a motion to prevent Texas death row inmate Robert Roberson from testifying. More homes are selling in the Austin area than this time last year. Cold Weather Shelters will open tonight in Austin. Hear all the details of tomorrow’s football game, it’s the Longhorns against the Clemson Tigers.
YouTube cleaning sensation AuriKatariina heads to Texas
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit claiming a New York doctor illegally prescribed abortion pills to a Texas resident.
A state plan to provide incentives for affordable housing: A Houston Chronicle investigation finds little affordable housing being built – and taxpayers holding the bag.
Two Texas families take legal action against an AI chatbot, alleging it served up sexual and self-harming content to kids.
Finnish cleaning star AuriKatariina, with 3.4 million YouTube subscribers and billions of views, is on the hunt for Texas’ dirtiest house to clean.
And: The New York Times sparks a controversy over the use of “y’all.” Texas Monthly would like a word.
Trade schools thrive as electric vehicle demand grows
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has sued two giants of the chemical business, 3M and DuPont, over so-called forever chemicals contained in household objects.
A new kind of car needs a new kind of mechanic. The Standard’s Kristen Cabrera goes inside a school for hybrid and electric vehicle repairs.
The old art form of tintype photography is being revived in Waco.
And: EA recently made 23 of its accessibility patents freely available to help developers create more inclusive games.
Cold snap grips West Texas and the borderlands
What possible cuts to Medicaid under the new Trump administration could mean in Texas, which already limits coverage.
A cold front is blowing through El Paso, bringing high winds and freezing temperatures.
Princeton’s growing pains have led to tension in its mayoral runoff election.
Most of those involved in high-speed chases by state troopers going after suspected smugglers are teens and young drivers. An interview with one of those behind the wheel.
And: We’ll take a look at the two Texas teams that made it into the college playoffs, the Texas Longhorns and the SMU Mustangs.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for October 10, 2024
Central Texas top stories for October 10, 2024. The Austin Fire Department is telling people to avoid FM 969 east of highway 183 because of a brush fire in the area. The city of Austin is looking at a new approach to attracting recruits as it grapples with shortages in public safety staffing. No-refusal blood draws for people suspected of driving intoxicated will continue throughout the year. Travis County is holding its second job fair in an effort to fill more than 100 jobs. Another mosquito trap has tested positive for West Nile virus in Georgetown. The latest in the battle between Project Connect and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Frontier Airlines will start flying from Austin to Atlanta. Drought is spreading in the Austin area. A new park is coming to San Marcos.
KUT Morning Newscast for October 1, 2024
Central Texas top stories for October 1, 2024. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed another lawsuit yesterday against Travis County. Rental assistance in Austin’s new city budget. Austin voters will soon decide who’ll represent them on the City Council. The San Marcos City Council is moving forward with a plan for the city’s future development.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for September 30, 2024
Central Texas top stories for September 30, 2024. This September has been one of the driest ever recorded in Austin. A deal between Baylor Scott & White Health and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas will keep health services in-network for thousands of Texas patients. Today is an Ozone Action Day. Attorney General Ken Paxton filed yet another lawsuit against the Travis County Commissioners Court. Delta Airlines is launching five new routes out of Austin this spring. Applications open tomorrow for the City of Austin’s first ever poet laureate program. U.S. News and World Report ranked Huston-Tillotson University as the number one private historically Black college and university in Texas.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for September 27, 2024
Central Texas top stories for September 27, 2024. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the City of Austin. Austin ISD voters will soon be deciding whether to approve a new tax rate that would generate millions of dollars in additional revenue for the district. Austin FC’s Q2 Stadium just became the first soccer-only stadium in the world to earn TRUE Gold certification. A big expansion of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is officially cleared for takeoff. You’ve got a chance tomorrow to get a first look at new plans for the future of I-35. Travis County wants to get the word out about a new scam call tactic.
Texas Extra: The Poll Party
Barely half of Texas voting age population turned out for the 2020 presidential election. And the story is worse for young voters. We wondered, what can we do about that? So the Texas Standard joined forces with our home music station, KUTX, and the UT Austin student station, KVRX, for what we called a poll party. The focus was issues important to young voters. But we think there’s something here you might find interesting no matter your age.
KUT Morning Newscast for September 18, 2024
Central Texas top stories for September 18, 2024. Travis County filed a federal lawsuit accusing state leaders of violating the National Voter Registration Act. Austin has seen a rise in its older population over the last decade, that’s according to a new Census survey. Travis County Commissioners postponed a vote on the budget for Central Health. Barton Springs pool will open tomorrow. The Austin History Center is hosting conversations with the community to celebrate Hispanic/Latino Heritage month.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for September 6, 2024
Central Texas top stories for September 6, 2024. UT-Austin fell in the bottom ten out of more than 250 institutions nationwide in a ranking of the best and worst colleges and universities for free speech. Potential fraud in the application process has raised questions about the Texas Energy Fund. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued Travis County today over a program encouraging voter registration. The Cheneys throw their support behind Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. Austin’s Bat Fest is tomorrow. Del Valle ISD is getting a new acting superintendent after the current one announced his retirement. Longhorns visit The Big House this weekend. This should be a better weekend than last to fill up your gas tank.
Alamo Trust battles to keep Ferris wheel out of historic neighborhood
Rick Perry, the longest-serving governor in Texas history, is returning to the Capitol as an adviser for House Speaker Dade Phelan. What it means for Texas politics.
Five years after a mass shooting in Odessa, a new sculpture rises in hopes of helping the city heal.
Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the State Fair of Texas and the city of Dallas over a gun ban at the fair.
A fast-spreading disease is threatening grape harvests and vineyards across the state.
And: The Alamo Trust is working to block the construction of a proposed Ferris wheel near the historic site.