A federal court orders the Trump administration to prevent the Supplemental Food Assistance Program (SNAP) from lapsing. What happens now?
A trial is set to begin this month against defendants for their alleged roles in the July 4 shooting at an ICE detention center in Alvarado. Why this may be a playbook for prosecutions now that Antifa has been designated a terrorist organization.
Public school districts trying to comply with new laws against DEI and sexual content in books are turning to AI with some surprising results.
Also, this week in Texas music history we remember the time post-punk legends Gang of Four made their way to the Lone Star State.
Shooting
Rodney Crowell talks new album, career
A deadly shooting this morning at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement office in Dallas. We’ll share the latest details.
Workplaces across the state trying to calculate the implications of a new $100,000 fee for H-1B applications. We’ll hear more on the questions raised by the new policy and the possible fallout.
How college football in Texas and beyond is being reshaped by new NIL rules allowing for direct athlete pay by advertisers and sponsors.
And the return of Rodney Crowell: Music and conversation with a Texas songwriting legend.
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 12, 2025: Austin Police identified the suspect in the shooting near Zilker Park
Central Texas top stories for September 12, 2025. Austin Police have identified 30-year-old Brandon Thompson as the suspect in the shooting of two people near Zilker Park this week. The 183 North Project is running months behind schedule. The Austin City Council has approved new rules for short-term rentals like Airbnb. Central Health has given initial approval to a new budget and tax rate.
KUT Morning Newscast for September 11, 2025: Austin’s proposed short-term rental rules aim to crack down on unlicensed operators
Central Texas top stories for September 11, 2025. People operating short-term rentals in Austin without a license could risk being removed from online rental sites. Austin Police say they’re looking into their text-based alert system after confusion yesterday during the search for a man who shot two people, including an APD officer. Georgetown is making big investments in increasing its water supply and improving local infrastructure. Local first responders are honoring those who died at the World Trade Center in New York 24 years ago today. The second-ranked Texas volleyball beat number four Louisville last night.
Some people feel the news are overwhelming right now. Experts say there’s a way to cope.
Tariffs, job cuts, tragic flooding, and a fatal shooting in Austin. The news cycle can be exhausting for some, how does that impact us? KUT’s Jennifer Stayton spoke with with Central Texas neuropsychotherapist Bella J. Rockman about it.
KUT Morning Newscast for August 13, 2025: APD points to failures in the mental health system after deadly shooting at North Austin Target
Central Texas top stories for August 13, 2025. APD Chief Lisa Davis points to the mental health system after a shooting at a Target in North Austin that left three dead. The Austin City Council could adopt its next budget today. With the deadline approaching, advocates say students without legal status are scrambling to find a way to pay for the first installment for the fall semester at UT Austin. September 4th is the official deadline to apply for FEMA assistance after the July floods. The Texas Senate passed a bill aimed at cracking down on abortion pill prescribers and manufacturers. More Central Texas school districts go back to school today, watch out for traffic.
KUT Morning Newscast for August 12, 2025: AISD released a list of schools to help the school consolidation process
Central Texas top stories for August 12, 2025. The motive is still not clear in the shooting Monday afternoon in the parking lot of a Target in North Austin. The Austin Independent School District has released a list of schools to help decide which ones should close and how school boundaries should be redrawn. Travis County’s public hospital district Central Health will lay out its proposed budget for county commissioners today. Texas House Democrats are into their second week out of state, protesting a Republican redistricting plan, but they say they are willing to come back and attend the special legislative session. Some Central Texas school districts start school today, watch out for more traffic.
Dinosaur tracks uncovered near Austin after floods
Just one more full week is left in the Texas Legislature’s special session, and with House Democrats away, what happens next?
Some of those Democrats have decamped to California, which is now mulling a possible redistricting effort to offset potential Republican gains in the midterms.
The IRS says churches can now endorse candidates, a move that could give Texas pastors more power than ever.
And: The recent flooding in Travis County revealed fossilized dinosaur tracks. UT Austin paleontologist Matthew Brown describes what was found.
Texas Standard is a listener-supported production of KUT & KUTX Studios in Austin, Texas.
You can support this podcast at supportthispodcast.org
Palestine fights Union Pacific’s move to leave town despite 1872 contract
Defense attorneys for the Walmart mass shooter, who’s already sentenced to life in prison, are asking for the court to take the death penalty off the table or drop the charges altogether due to alleged prosecutorial misconduct.
As we move closer to Election Day, The Texas Newsroom is exploring the role of religion in politics.
And: The city of Palestine, once a booming railroad town, is in a legal battle with Union Pacific to enforce an 1872 contract that promised the railroad company would stay “forever.”
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.
The state is facing a middle-class housing crunch
Housing availability is too low across Texas – and the cost to buy a home is just too high. We’ll have the details of a new report that shows the middle class feeling the brunt of the housing crunch.
Seniors were some of the hardest hit during the power outages caused by Hurricane Beryl. What’s being done to protect them before the next storm?
FEMA applications for damage caused by Beryl have far outpaced any other recent storm in Harris County, even Hurricane Harvey.
What we know about how CEOs are using artificial intelligence to make high-level executive decisions – and when humans should step in and override AI’s choices.
And: UT and Oklahoma are now in the SEC. If you don’t really get why that matters, we’ll have the cliff’s notes as college football season kicks off.
‘The Stadium’ reconsiders the role of our modern arenas
The Democratic National Convention kicked off with an emotional evening and Texans among the featured speakers.
A jury found that the parents of the accused gunman in the 2018 Santa Fe High School shooting were not responsible for his actions.
Highway lanes are shrinking in Austin. It’s part of national trend – but what does it mean for safety?
Why an effort to ban books in a Rio Grande Valley high school library failed.
Also: A new book from historian Frank Guridy delves into why sports stadiums are more than places to cheer on your favorite team.
What’s ahead for U.S. gymnastics at the Olympics
A faculty committee at UT Austin found that university leaders violated their own rules when calling police to respond to protests over the war in Gaza at the end of the spring semester. Audrey McGlinchy of KUT News shares the latest.
Five years after the mass shooting at a Walmart in El Paso, a new memorial is unveiled to honor the 23 people killed.
Serious questions have been raised over a private contractor providing healthcare services to prison inmates in many states, including Texas.
And: Texas was well-represented at the men and women’s gymnastics team and all-around events at the Paris Olympics. A look at what’s ahead for the athletes.
Bighorn sheep being released in Franklin Mountains outside El Paso
The Santa Fe community is seeking answers and accountability for the 2018 school shooting as the accused shooter’s parents appear in court this week.
Houston police admit systemic failure in the processes that led to 264,000 cases being dismissed over eight years.
On the anniversary of the 1966 UT Tower shooting, a man who helped a fellow student that day shares a letter he’s kept for decades.
Bighorn sheep are returning to the El Paso area. A look at the challenges of re-establishing the herds.
And: What is a museum? We’re diving into the answer as we kick off a new series exploring the state.
Former Houston police chief speaks out about ouster
Today in Houston, one of the first speeches by the new presumptive Democratic nominee for president, though not formally a campaign speech. Vice President Kamala Harris delivering the keynote to the American Federation of Teachers meeting in Texas’ biggest city.
Also in Houston, a former police chief alleges he was pushed out to bury a department scandal.
With more frequent extreme weather, Texans are worried about keeping the lights on: Californians? Not so much. What we might learn from their experience.
And you’ve heard “Hooray for Hollywood,” but what about Waco? Lights, camera and all the action on today’s Texas Standard.
Historic church site in South Texas recognized as stop on Underground Railroad
A Galveston County judge has pushed back the start of a trial in a civil lawsuit against the parents of the accused gunman in the Santa Fe High School shooting, which left eight students and two teachers dead in 2018.
Houston has a new acting police chief in the wake of the abrupt retirement of Chief Troy Finner. We’ll have the latest.
The Jackson Ranch Church in the Rio Grande Valleyis being recognized as a stop on the Underground Railroad ushering enslaved people to freedom in Mexico.
Plus: A group of Gen Z rappers go on a road trip across Texas in the new film “Lost Soulz.”
A visit to the traditional Mexican rodeo in San Antonio
One year later, a survivor of the Allen mass shooting talks about his long road to recovery.
New water rules take effect in the Rio Grande Valley as some border cities cope with historically low reservoirs.
With the rise of cloud-based services and AI, the demand for power has soared. What it means for the state Texas.
A new book by University of Houston professor Brandon Rottinghaus takes a look at the political life of Rick Perry, Texas’ longest-serving governor.
And we’ll go to a charreada in San Antonio where Mexico’s rodeo skills are on display.
What we know about the bribery charges faced by U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar
Heavy rains led to severe flooding in parts of Harris County and counties to the north, prompting evacuations, boat rescues and substantial property damage. We’ll get an update on the latest.
Texans voted in numerous municipal elections over the weekend. How some closely watched races turned out.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife were indicted late last week on conspiracy and bribery charges, accused of accepting bribes in connection with Azerbaijan.
On the one-year anniversary of a mass shooting at an outlet mall in Allen, Asian American groups call for a hate crime designation.
And: PETA has released the results of a years-long investigation into unlicensed horse racing, which they call particularly prevalent in Texas.
Could Texas’ electric grid finally connect to other states?
A grand jury in Uvalde will consider possible charges over law enforcement’s failed response to the mass shooting at Robb Elementary.
An Air Force general who was stationed at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph faces a court-martial over charges of sexually assaulting a subordinate.
The Texas power grid is famously separate from the rest of the country – but a plan has been quietly moving forward to connect it to a grid operating in the southeastern U.S.
And: Shipping lanes are shifting routes amid attacks in the Red Sea. What are the ripple effects in Texas?
Standoff between Texas and the feds continues over Rio Grande access
Tensions between Texas and the federal government intensify over Border Patrol access.
On the day after the release of the findings of a federal investigation into the 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, what we’re learning and what it could mean for accountability.
With the intensification of winter weather this week, how advocates for people experiencing homelessness are trying to shelter and care for Texans left out in the cold.
A sneak peek at the Super Bowl prospects for the Houston Texans, facing a big playoff challenge this weekend.
And we’ll have the week in politics with Matthew Watkins of the Texas Tribune.