Another August day, another forecast for record-setting heat – and plenty of questions about whether the power grid can manage the strain. So far, so good, to the surprise of many who’ve been bracing for calls to conserve electricity. What different about the energy mix this go-round?
Texas Instruments recently received a $1.6 billion Department of Commerce grant for new chip-building facilities.
In the least populated county in Texas, where truly every vote counts, a judge has overturned an election. We’ll hear about a shakeup in Loving County.
Plus: A new pin on our growing Texas Museum Map, this time in the border town of Eagle Pass.
Power Grid
KUT Afternoon Newscast for August 12, 2024
Central Texas top stories for August 12, 2024. Two women have filed federal complaints against Texas hospitals which they say denied them treatment for life-threatening pregnancy conditions. Texas lawmakers have been hearing testimony today on creating a school voucher program. More triple-digit highs in the forecast for the coming days. The City of Austin is reminding people to stay aware of local and statewide power grid conditions. Current and former Texas Longhorn athletes are bringing home 16 medals from the Paris Olympic games. It’s back to school season in Central Texas.
How the Texas Lottery helped a big spending group become surefire winners
Texas Congressman Lloyd Doggett on Tuesday became the first Democrat on Capitol Hill to call for President Biden to abandon his re-election bid.
In several high-profile cases, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed rulings from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, where Texas cases go on appeal.
Ever try your luck at the lottery? We’ll hear about an out-of-state scheme to win big by buying up the odds.
And soda’s unintentional pop: KUT’s Mose Buchele takes the lid off the mystery of exploding cans in hot cars.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for May 9, 2024
Central Texas top stories for May 9, 2024. A San Marcos man was charged with illegally carrying a gun during a protest on the University of Texas campus last week. How the power grid held up under yesterday’s unseasonably hot temperatures. A cold front is bringing a chance of rain and severe weather to Central Texas. The UT Austin president says the university will not allow disruptions to its graduation events. Travis County District Attorney José Garza can use county money to help him fight a petition filed to remove him from office. #1 ranked Longhorns in their final Big 12 Softball tournament.
KUT Morning Newscast for February 14, 2024
Central Texas top stories for February 14, 2024. Car crashed into St. David’s North Austin Medical Center last night. Congressman Greg Casar is filing a bill to further connect Texas to neighboring power grids. Hays county election integrity group. The Austin Convention Center facelift.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for January 16, 2024
Central Texas top stories for January 16, 2024. Hard freeze warning. State of the power grid. City of Austin’s response to this year’s freeze and past events. Austin Travis County EMS hypothermia calls. Longhorns Basketball.
KUT Morning Newscast for January 16, 2024
Central Texas top stories for January 16, 2024. Frigid forecast. Latest state of the power grid. Why we drip faucets in freezing temperatures. Austin-Bergstrom’s lights snow dusting explained. Mother’s Milk Bank at Austin is approaching its 25th anniversary.
KUT Afternoon Newscast for January 12, 2024
Central Texas top stories for January 12, 2024. Latest timeline for inbound freezing temperatures. Grid outlook for this weekend. Landlords shutting off water ahead of freezing temperatures. Austin-Bergstrom prepares for freezing temperatures. MLK day march and celebration plans. Voter registration in Texas. Austin ISD makes progress on special education evaluation backlog. The Hays County Health Department will open its Immunization Clinic next week.
KUT Morning Newscast for January 11, 2024
Central Texas top stories for January 11, 2024. Grid outlook ahead of cold snap. Austin-Bergstrom’s new concourse plan. Austin-Bergstrom flight cancellations due to grounding of Boeing 737 Max 9 planes. The City of Austin is trying to crack down on unauthorized short-term rentals. Healthcare enrollment stats.
What more electric vehicles mean for the Texas electric grid
Momentum is growing among Republicans to use the U.S. military to take on drug cartels in Mexico in the fight against fentanyl. How serious is such talk?
More ripple effects following a ruling by a federal judge in Amarillo that would effectively ban the abortion drug mifepristone.
The Dallas Federal Reserve finds young adults feel increasingly disconnected from work and school – but there may be more to the story.
And with more electric vehicles hitting the road in Texas, how will the need for pluggable power affect the state’s electric grid?
A fight over how to address the state’s power grid issues is brewing at the Texas Capitol
The battle to find a solution to the problem pits powerful industries, regulators and politicians against each other, and it could have an outsized impact on your energy bill.
The latest on Texas’ winter freeze
As temperatures plummet with a major cold front bearing down on the lone star state, down into the teens in many parts, we continue to monitor conditions across Texas. Eric Berge of Houston’s Space City Weather joins us with an overview, the dangers ahead, and when we can expect to thaw out from this last big chill of 2022. Also a rethink of ways to address the mental health crisis. And the week in politics with the Texas Tribune. These stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:
KUT Morning Newscast for December 5, 2022
Central Texas top stories for December 5, 2022. Austin runoff early voting. Austin ISD superintendent search. Teacher salary report. Public Utility Commission power grid overhaul. UT Football Bowl bound. UT Volleyball NCAA tournament. Ronald Reagan Bridge.
The Campaign
Nearly two years after the big blackout in Texas, how big of an issue is the power grid in the 2022 race for governor?
We talk with Julian Aguilar, a reporter for the Texas Newsroom.
The Disconnect Season 2 is a project of The Texas Newsroom, the collaboration among NPR and the public radio stations in the state. It received support from FRONTLINE’s Local Journalism Initiative, which is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
The Midnight Connection
We’ve already learned how Texas (or at least most of it) is an energy island — mostly cut off from grids in other states.
In this episode, we’ll hear about the time when one power company went rogue and threw a transmission line across the Oklahoma border.
This is the story of why they tried and how they failed to build a bridge off the island — and how it shaped the Texas grid today.
The Disconnect Season 2 is a project of The Texas Newsroom, the collaboration among NPR and the public radio stations in the state. It received support from FRONTLINE’s Local Journalism Initiative, which is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
BONUS: The Megawatt We Don’t Use
We’ve talked about the supply-side fixes — but what about the demand side?
The Disconnect Season 2 is a project of The Texas Newsroom, the collaboration among NPR and the public radio stations in the state. It received support from FRONTLINE’s Local Journalism Initiative, which is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
The Fixes
A year and a half after the blackout, lots of Texans are still wondering if they can rely on the power grid. After conservation alerts and one pretty close call this summer, it can seem like the grid is still on a knife’s edge. We look at what’s changed, what hasn’t and how that lack of trust is playing out in one Texan’s life.
The Disconnect Season 2 is a project of The Texas Newsroom, the collaboration among NPR and the public radio stations in the state. It received support from FRONTLINE’s Local Journalism Initiative, which is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
The Money
Texans have seen their electric bills rise dramatically since the blackouts last year. We’ll break down all the links in the electric supply chain that each need to get paid — and explain how we’ll still be paying the costs of the blackout for decades to come.
The Disconnect Season 2 is a project of The Texas Newsroom, the collaboration among NPR and the public radio stations in the state. It received support from FRONTLINE’s Local Journalism Initiative, which is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
The Toll
In the time since the blackout, state officials, ERCOT and power generators have tried to convince Texans that they’ve got things under control. But a lot of people aren’t convinced. And with good reason. In this episode, we’ll explore how the trauma of the blackout is still with us — and how we still haven’t dealt with the true toll of the disaster. We’ll hear from one family who lost an entire generation.
The Disconnect Season 2 is a project of The Texas Newsroom, the collaboration among NPR and the public radio stations in the state. It received support from FRONTLINE’s Local Journalism Initiative, which is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Texas Standard: July 15, 2022
The state of Texas is suing the Biden administration over abortion guidance to hospitals. The federal rules instruct emergency room doctors to provide abortion services in emergency conditions. Texas’ own law provides exceptions for the health of the pregnant patient. So why is the state suing? Also, the state terminating its guardianship over scores of young runaways once in the care of child protective services. What happens to those young people? Other stories include the Austinite who many believe invented psychedelic rock. Plus the week in politics and so much more today on the Texas Standard: