Law

Texas Standard: May 27, 2019

It’s a day to remember: those who gave their lives in service of the nation. But it’s also the end of the 86th legislative session. We will look at the state’s budget and what’s in it. Plus, a bill in Congress that stalled and it has money for Harvey recovery, what’s next? And how could 5G interfere with predicting the next Harvey? We’ll explore. And we’ll take a look at how restorative justice could restore more than individual lives and revive neighborhoods. And the little computer program that could… COBOL has been dismissed but is still going strong. Those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 13, 2019

Tick tock… the clock is winding down on the Texas Legislative session. But there’s a lot left to be done. We’ll have the latest on what affects you from under the dome. Also, the big business of toy guns. So realistic, police can’t tell the difference. And that’s had deadly consequences. And if you take the back roads through rural parts of Texas, you’ll see towns dotted with dance halls. Many have been shuttered or lost to time, but there’s a renewed effort to get them swinging again. Plus, efforts to highlight and reframe the story of the Alamo keep bumping up against other important parts of Texas history. We’ll have the latest on that and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 8, 2019

Austin’s the largest city in the U.S. without a public defenders office, but that may be about to change. We’ll look at why the push and what it means. Also, we’ll meet the Texas doctor developing replacement internal organs using 3d printers. And delays for trucks trying to cross the border, the U.S. and Texas in particular stand to pay a high price. And is Austin the first city in the south with a paid sick leave policy? A politifact check that could get contentious and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: March 8, 2019

After weeks without wedge issues in the legislative session, two GOP lawmakers say Texas cannot remain silent on the issue of late-term abortions. In the wake of fights in Virginia and New York, we’ll have more on how the abortion issue could rattle the work on bread and butter matters here in Texas. Also, former CBS newsman Dan Rather tells us about a story he thinks is as big as the development of the atomic bomb, and his concerns we’re not talking about it. Plus the week in Texas politics and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: March 4, 2019

Texas has 44 billion dollars set aside for education: the biggest such endowment in the U.S. So why is the state spending less on schools? We’ll have the latest. Plus, in Texas’ biggest city, concerns growing over recent shootings involving children. Police are focusing on gangs, but heath workers want to look at something different. Also, millennials now more than a trillion dollars in debt thanks to college. How the price of higher ed is shaping up to be a factor in the forthcoming political season. Plus an iconic oasis in West Texas reopens, are you ready to take the plunge? All that and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: February 25, 2019

A male only military draft is unconstitutional says a federal court judge in Houston. Should women have to sign up for selective service? We’ll have the latest. Also, Texas is #1 in cases of a mystery polio-like illness striking children, according to last years numbers from the CDC. We’ll hear how TX doctors and parents are fighting back. And the price of gasoline spiking at the pumps: why’s this is happening at a time when oil production in west Texas is reaching record levels. We’ll take a look. Plus a fight over casino style games in Texas hits home for Native Americans. All of that and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: January 3, 2019

The calendars have switched over to 2019 and that means some new Texas laws are or will soon go into effect. We’ll tell you what you need to know. Also, Mexico’s new president is making the entire border with the U.S. into a special zone to encourage would-be migrants to stay put. We’ll ask one expert whether the plan will work. Plus, jobs these days often involve sitting at a desk and getting food is as easy as pushing a button… How our hunter-gatherer bodies aren’t adapting. And have you ever seen an albino cockroach? It may not be what you think. All that and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: December 27 2018

Hundreds of asylum seekers released in El Paso with little warning, straining resources and highlighting big issues at the border. We’ll talk with Bob Moore in El Paso about the latest. Also, race and criminal justice: we’ll take look at just how different America’s prison population is from the population at large and why. Plus a Texas lawmaker tells us why he’s fighting for the expansion of medical marijuana. And did you unwrap a new gadget for Christmas or Hanukkah? Our tech expert Omar Gallaga tells us what to do with the old one. Also, the calls for civility in politics and online have come from every corner. But some say it’s not enough. Those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: December 20, 2018

Will this be the legislative session that fixes the way Texas funds public schools? We’ll explore new recommendations. And speaking of the legislative session, there are new bills filed. We ask lawmakers why certain bills are near and dear to their hearts. We also say goodbye to members of the Texas delegation in Washington. And ’tis the season to go shopping, and get a discount: we’ll tell you how. All of that and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: October 9, 2018

Migrants entering the U.S. illegally can request asylum according to U.S. law, but not according to the President. We’ll explore the emergency order on asylum seekers. Also, a federal court orders Texas to pay back millions after a scandal involved special education, we’ll take a look. And a Texas-sized problem for folks with disability parking privileges. Plus an effort in Dallas to get more women conducting symphonies: are their neighbors listening? We’ll explain. And what a week in Texas politics: we’ll look back with the Texas Tribune and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: September 19, 2018

You’ve heard of the Friday night lights? On this September 21st, the main event across Texas: the Friday night fight: Cruz versus O’Rourke. It’ll be live nationwide, will you be tuning in? R.G. Ratcliffe of Texas Monthly joins us with a cheater’s guide to tonight’s first of three debates between democratic congressman Beto O’Rourke and the GOP incumbent, Ted Cruz. Plus, you’ve heard about the wall? As arguments continue over funding, legal walls go up in the nation’s most diverse city: we’ll explain. Plus the week in Texas politics with the Texas Tribune and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: July 17, 2018

It’s being called by some treasonous; more and more Republicans now breaking with the President. Words matter. We’ll try to decode them. Also, MS-13, a hyper violent gang from Central America at the center of a new litmus test in U.S. politics. How much of a threat does the gang really pose in the Lone Star State? And how the zero-tolerance border backlash has put some San Antonio lawyers in the national spotlight raising 20 million dollars to help separated families. Plus in our spotlight on health: what looks like a psychiatrist shortage in west Texas. And east Texas bugs beware: the mosquito assassins are in the air. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: June 20, 2018

How much longer? If there’s growing bipartisan opposition to the policy of separating families at the border, why isn’t congress stepping in? Today on the Standard, Democratic Congressman Vicente Gonzalez of McCallen joins us to talk about gridlock in Washington and heartbreak on the border. Also, fears of an all out trade war with China rising. How it might play out in our own backyard. And how do you spell dynasty? T-E-X-A-S. A Lone Star sweep of the national spelling championships gets people wondering what’s in the water? We’ll find out. And 50 years after the landmark documentary Hunger in America turned a spotlight on San Antonio, we’ll explore its lasting impact. All of that and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: June 19, 2018

Texas Democrats and Republicans introducing legislation to stop the separation of families illegally entering the U.S. With all eyes on what’s happening in South Texas right now, lawmakers of both parties now scrambling to push legislation to deal with whats been described as a humanitarian crisis. But will the bills make a real difference, or is it just for political show as the outrage grows? We’ll take a closer look at what’s being proposed. Also a troubling new report on first responders and suicide, we’ll take a look. And encouraging news to tackle climate change: taking carbon out of the air… is it for real? And if so, how soon will it happen? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: April 17, 2018

The Commander is Chief wields a lot of power over U-S military action, but where do those powers begin and end? We’ll explore. Also, it’s been almost 10 years since Hurricane Ike devastated Galveston. But the city still hasn’t rebuilt much of the housing many depend on. And it’s been exactly 5 years since a fire and explosion at a Central Texas fertilizer plant killed 15 people and destroyed a large part of a small city. What’s been done to prevent another catastrophe like West, Texas? Also, Pulitzer prize-winning author Lawrence Wright’s new book hits shelves today. “God Save Texas” is all about the state he calls home, including what he describes as AM and FM Texas. Plus we’ll hear the argument for why it seems Texas lawmakers could have been drunk when writing the liquor laws. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: March 9, 2018

For the first time in history a US president will meet with the leader of North Korea. Vindication of a strategy or something else? We’ll explore. Also, an accused pedophile has his conviction thrown out because a judge used electric shock to coerce testimony. What happens to the judge? Nothing, so far. So who’s policing the bench? And a new vision for computing as apple reaches out to visually impaired coders in Texas. Plus fangs for the memories: 60 years of the Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup.That and the week in politics from the Texas Tribune and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: February 1, 2018

It could be more penny-pinching ahead for Texas lawmakers and the state budget. We’ll get the economic outlook from the Texas controller. Plus one year after President Trump announced an executive order restricting travel from some Muslim-majority countries. Now Texas immigrants from those countries still face uncertainty. We’ll have the story. And taking the pulse of US-Mexico relations as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson heads south of the border. Also kids these days are exposed to a lot of technology from a very young age. What we should consider when it comes to childcare tech. Plus remembering the Space Shuttle Columbia and its crew 15 years after it disintegrated in the skies over east Texas. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: January 2, 2018

2018 means a slew of new laws are going into effect. Are there any that effect you? We’ll have the details. Also, remember the failing blowout preventer from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill? A proposed rollback in regulations targets drilling in places like the Gulf of Mexico. Plus: a dispute between Texas and New Mexico over water from the Rio Grande is going to country’s highest court. We’ll have the details. And a Texas high school won back to back to back state championships in 2017. But the school’s story of winning intertwines with a story of loss, we’ll have the details. And the why US may need to change its strategy to combat drug cartels on the other side of the border. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: October 30, 2017

The Manafort connection: what does his indictment mean in the search for answers to Russian election influence? We’ll have a Texas take. Also, can you go to jail for being late on a rental payment? Depends. In Texas, the price for missing your furniture bills could be jail. We’ll hear how, and what Texas lawmakers are saying. Also, stem cell treatments: still in their infancy, but some fear they’re being offered without evidence of efficacy. But now Texas has become one of the first states to green light adult stem cell treatment for cancer patients. Also, gulf land for sale, but no takers? Interest has dried up from the oil industry. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard: