Texas Legislation

New music exhibit features iconic items owned by Willie Nelson, Taylor Swift and more

A new law making it a state crime for migrants to enter Texas without authorization faces a major test in a federal courtroom. We’ll hear the latest.

In Houston ISD, the biggest school district in the state, officials appointed by the state are getting pushback over plans to expand school reforms.

A Texas presidential museum turns a spotlight on Taylor Swift’s guitar, Willie Nelson’s boots and hundreds of other artifacts to help tell the story of American music.

Plus: The week in politics with The Texas Tribune.

Texas Standard: May 31, 2022

As funerals begin for the nineteen students and two teachers killed at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, President Biden promises action on gun safety. How likely is that to happen and what sort of change could be coming? Also, criticism growing over the response of law enforcement as the situation unfolded last week in Uvalde. Why did training efforts aimed at stopping school shooters fail and where do we go from here? These stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: July 12, 2021

Hundreds of Texans descend on the capitol for marathon weekend hearings on measures to overhaul Texas voting system. Republican lawmakers in Texas are poised to pass what many democrats consider to be bills aimed at voter suppression. We’ll have the latest. Also Amarillo once a bright spot in the fight to get Texans vaccinated against COVID-19 now near the bottom of the list among metros. What happened? And what comes next? And as a child, she was inspired by someone who looked like her on the TV show Star Trek. Now, she’s the new director of the Johnson Space Center. Her story and much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 26, 2021

What a difference a year makes! The George Floyd ACT Poised to pass unanimously in Texas has stalled. Today we’ll tour the Texas Legislature and report on the progress, or lack there of, legislators have made. From police reform bills to bail reform to permit-less carry and marijuana related bills, we’ll take a look at the implications. Plus, in Texas literature Pulitzer Prize winner Annette Gordon Reed tells us how she mixed personal stories with history. And jolting the electric vehicle market here comes Lightning – ford’s newest F-150. Plus feral cats and the kids who are feeding them. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 20, 2021

The Legislature has the power, but does it have the will? Where’s the long promised fix to prevent massive outages like the one last winter? What happened to a much anticipated overhaul aimed at preventing another deadly round of power failures. Also an update on prison and bail reform. And as cryptocurrencies crash, the transplanted Texan who seems to have unusual power in the markets. Plus the best community college in the nation? a hint: it’s in the Lone Star State. And an historian pushes back on a project aimed at teaching what are described as Texas values. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: April 26, 2021

Despite resistance from Republicans at the capitol, pressure mounts on Texas to expand medicaid. Bob Garret of the Dallas Morning News with an update on a push that could provide Medicaid coverage to more than 1.4 million additional Texans. Also, whatever happened to the George Floyd Act introduced in the Texas Legislature earlier this year? More on police reform efforts at the capitol. And the west Texas county leading the state in a major metric in the pandemic fight. Plus are the priorities shifting for a top Texas sports and tourism destination? Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: April 22, 2021

Six weeks to go and the race is on. A big budget battle set at the Texas capitol today, as the clock ticks toward the end of the session. From changes to Texas abortion laws to voting laws, to what to do about power in the wake of February’s massive blackouts and more… Where do we stand on a huge range of issues lawmakers are considering under the pink dome?We’ll get up to speed. Plus Representative Joe moody on a bipartisan package for criminal justice reform. And our own Kristen Cabrera on federal efforts to help Texans who’ve already suffered from the loss of a loved one due to COVID-19 cover the costs of interment. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: February 17, 2021

It was set up to be an electrical island independent from a national power network. Cold comfort for millions of Texans right now. With a winter storm leading to rolling blackouts leaving more than 4 million Texans in the cold, the nonprofit deigned to manage the state’s power grid finds itself getting sudden national notoriety, as angry Texans demand answers. What is ERCOT, and who’s really at the switch behind this current power crisis? As the Lone Star State anticipates a thaw, things heat up between electricity providers and lawmakers now calling for investigations. The latest on the winter storm and its many ripple effects today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 7, 2019

Is a cut in property tax worth the hike in sales tax? A would be swap gets more scrutiny as an important vote looms on the horizon, we’ll do the numbers. Also, what would be a major expansion of the Texas medical marijuana program gets a big boost in the Texas House. And over on the Senate side, lawmakers take action on school finance fixes, we’ll have details. Also, the emergence of a video sparks calls to reopen the investigation into the arrest and death of Sandra Bland. Those stories and so much more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: June 7, 2017

Pink dome deja vu: Governor Abbott calls Texas lawmakers back to the city he loves to rail against. We’ll explore going in to legislative overtime. Also, after signing a bill banning texting and driving, governor Abbott pledges to go an extra mile, and some local governments won’t like it. Plus the return of the bathroom bill and a thousand dollar raise for Texas teachers? We’ll set the stage for the just announced special session. And 12 thousand new jobs in just six months. Why surprising new numbers in Texas oil and gas may not add up to what you think it does. Those stories and lots more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: May 11, 2017

It’s not just an America thing, y’all: we’ll explore the fallout from the Comey affair and the price to be paid beyond our borders. Also crunch time hits the Texas capitol along with an avalanche of unfinished business. An update from Mike Ward of the Houston Chronicle. And now hear this, because your phone just might have: how millions of apps installed on smartphones could be eavesdropping on you right now. Plus does getting a college degree really matter? A new survey from Rice University says a growing number of white Americans say no. And when is a detention facility a childcare center? When the Texas legislature says it is? Those stories and a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:

Texas Standard: March 27, 2017

Who’s in charge here? With the president giving more latitude to the military, rising civilian casualty counts in Syria trigger growing concerns. Plus reading, writing and reboot. Texas public school students hunker down for assessment tests statewide, but the score that may wind up mattering most: the one for the test makers. We’ll hear why. Also, fancy a trip to the moon? As commercial space tourism becomes big business concerns about who’s in charge of safety and who’s writing the rules for the future of private space travel. And the would-be laws you haven’t heard about. We’ll check out the so called sleeper bills. Those stories and lots more today on the Texas Standard:

July 10, 2015

We gave them 140 days to make a difference in the lives of Texans. What got done, what didn’t and what it means for you on this special edition of the Texas Standard.
This hour, we’re teaming up with the Texas Tribune to take on a story that affects nearly 27 million of us who’ll have to live with the decisions of the 181 people who represent us. On the table before the 84th Texas legislature: schools.The Environment Energy. Health care. and much more…But as lawmakers leave Austin, what are we left with? Guns, Grass, Oil and Gas, deconstructing the 84th legislative session, a collaboration with the Texas Tribune today on the Texas Standard.

May 25, 2015

Record breaking rainfall drives Texans from their homes, flooding out roadways triggering twisters and prompting new warnings. The final days of the 84, what Texas lawmakers face in the homestretch. Growing concerns about abuse in foster care, songwriting with soldiers, and some grilling tips for Memorial Day.