Central Texas top stories for November 29, 2024. The City of Austin this year awarded $3,000 grants to dozens of local groups that are working to address food insecurity and climate challenges, hear from one of the organizations that is helping people by bicycle. Did you know you could get your vegetables for free at a garden close to I-35? Folks at Texas Parks and Wildlife want to make fishing more accessible in Austin. The University of Texas and Texas A&M will face each other in a very expected football match.
Texas Parks and Wildlife
SpaceX backs out of Boca Chica Beach land swap
A Houston-area nonprofit that helped thousands find a new life in the U.S. disappears. A new investigation reveals surprising answers about what happened to the Alliance.
More international students than ever before are studying in the U.S., and among the top destinations are the University of North Texas and UT Dallas.
How a much-talked-about Department of Government Efficiency could affect the hundreds of thousands of federal workers in Texas.
In a surprise move, SpaceX has pulled out of a land swap deal with Texas Parks and Wildlife.
And: A few months ago, 17-year-old Tobi Haastrup didn’t know what a first down was. Now, the Houston player is one of the hottest prospects in college football.
How news organizations are partnering with public libraries
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wants the state to lead in dementia research. Why it’s such a priority and what happens next.
More people than ever get their news via social media, but with feeds looking very different for different folks, how do you bring people together? As the Standard’s Sarah Asch reports, the public library might help.
A school district in the Panhandle has a unique model for providing scholarship money for students. Commentator WF Strong says it began with a gift.
Plus: Rainbow trout may soon be arriving at a body of water near you. How to take advantage.
KUT Morning Newscast for August 13, 2024
Central Texas top stories for August 13, 2024. As the summer heat keeps rolling, worker’s rights advocates and a local congressman are calling for action on proposed rules to limit heat exhaustion. Austin City Council members are considering hiring 16 new full time park employees. A Travis County judge has temporarily blocked the Texas Education Agency from releasing A-through-F accountability ratings. Many districts in central Texas are going back to school today. Texas State University will offer classes in Central Mexico. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is warning people not to dump aquarium pets into local waters.
Exploring SpaceX’s potential land swap with Texas
The Texas Supreme Court hears arguments in a case challenging a law banning puberty blockers and hormone therapy for trans minors.
John Whitmire, Houston’s new mayor, campaigned to be “tough-but-smart on crime.” Houston Public Media’s Andrew Schneider takes a look at some of Whitmire’s plans for law enforcement.
SpaceX wants to give the state 477 acres of land near a national wildlife refuge in exchange for 43 acres from Boca Chica State Park, near its launch site – but the plan is drawing local pushback.
And: West Texas A&M University plans a new institute to advocate what the school’s president calls “Panhandle values.” Critics fear it’s a push to spread conservative values across the university.
Food safety & tree protection tips as Texas awaits an arctic blast
Most parts of Texas are preparing for a big freeze as an arctic front moves in. We’ll have the latest on what to expect, plus how to prepare your trees to survive a Texas winter and tips on food and food safety in case the power goes out.
The U.S., U.K. and other allies have launched retaliatory airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen; some fear it could expand global tensions and widen the conflict ongoing in Gaza. A UT expert on global studies weighs in.
Plus: The week in politics with The Texas Tribune.
State stops effort to reclaim Fairfield Lake State Park
Expensive homes owned by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton have not been disclosed to the state as required by law. Investigative reporter Lauren McGaughy of the Texas Newsroom has more.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will no longer try to use eminent domain to reclaim Fairfield Lake State Park, ending a months-long struggle between the state and a Dallas developer.
The digital divide has for decades been a concern. Why many in Texas worry things are getting worse.
And: Remember expectations of a blue wave? How are Democrats’ chances for political success in Texas shaping up for 2024?
What you need to know about viewing the upcoming solar eclipses from Texas
Though Attorney General Ken Paxton has been acquitted on all impeachment charges, whistleblowers say they’re not giving up. Sergio Martínez-Beltrán of the Texas Newsroom shares more.
It’s rare for an eclipse to be visible at the same location within several years, much less a few months – but the skies over a portion of Texas will be ground zero for observing both an annular and a total solar eclipse.
At the Rescue Mission of El Paso, plenty of food is coming in – but it’s not to feed people experiencing homelessness. Instead, those people are feeding others. Texas monthly barbecue editor Daniel Vaughn shares the mission of Hallelujah! BBQ.
Senate adopts rules for Ken Paxton impeachment trial
The rules are in: How Texas senators will manage the history-making impeachment trial of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton.
Texas parks officials want to keep nearly 2,000 acres of parkland open to the public using eminent domain. Leaders in the county where Fairfield Lake State Park is located say not so fast.
First Twitter, now Reddit? The details are different, but another information-sharing site is seeing major owner/user conflict.
She has one of the most recognizable names in Texas history, but how much do you really know about Lady Bird Johnson? A new podcast explores.
Plus, the latest on severe weather across the state.
Why Fort Worth ISD is canceling sex ed this year
Fallen trees and branches, downed power lines and more as Texas weathers the first statewide winter storm of 2023. The worst of the weather stretches along a line west of I-35, but most Texans are feeling the impact one way or another, with driving extremely hazardous and scattered outages leaving hundreds of thousands without power.
There’s been lots of talk about property taxes in this legislative session. How’d they get so high in the first place?
Fort Worth ISD scraps its plans for a sex education course after spending millions in the ramp-up. So why the reversal?
Also a PolitiFact check of gun violence claims.
Texas Standard: October 13, 2022
The Biden Administration announces a plan to offer thousands of Venezuelans a legal path into the United States. Policy and politics factor into the Biden Administration’s announcement for a humanitarian parole program for Venezuelan migrants, we’ll hear more. Also, Texas parks close in on a tipping point with record numbers of visitors. So whats next? Our conversation with the person picked to take over as head of Texas Parks and Wildlife. And country singer Margo Price and her memoir on creative challenges, motherhood, and making it in a male dominated industry. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: March 8, 2022
A Houston native and American basketball icon arrested and detained in Russia. What can the U.S. do to secure her release? We’ll have more on WNBA star Brittney Griner and concerns she’s being held as a political prisoner in Russia as western pressure over Ukraine swells. Also, decades after NASA’s big move to Texas, economist Ray Perryman sizes up the space industry’s multi-billion dollar trajectory. And the Rolling Pines Fire reconsidered: a report on what caused the most recent big fire near Bastrop, and what it could mean long term. And the case for the face of the new right in Texas. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: February 14, 2022
Romancing the voters on this valentines day, Texas politicians in local and statewide races try to win over early voters in the nation’s first primaries. We’ll hear from the elections official of the state’s most populous county on a recent court decision in a fight against new voting regulations. Also, a Texas-based expert weighs in with the latest on what the US says is a rapidly advancing danger of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: January 6, 2022
Texans reflect on the anniversary of an event that many fear has called into question the future of American democracy itself. On the one year anniversary of the capitol insurrection, President Biden warns of the ongoing dangers to our democracy. Today, a conversation with representative Collin Allred of Dallas who was on the floor of the House that day and says the threat, rather than fading into history, remains. Also a reckoning for the role of Texans in that attack of January 6th 2021. Plus the Texas primaries as an acid test for Trump and the Republicans. Those stories and much more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 31, 2019
Immigration, elections, new laws, challenges to natural resources. What were the top stories in Texas during 2019? That’s our focus for this hour. On this New Years Eve, we’re refocusing the rear view mirror on the year that was. We’ll hear from Victoria DeFrancesco Soto of the LBJ School at UT-Austin, Brandon Rottinghaus of the University of Houston and Lauren McGaughy of the Dallas Morning News as we begin an exploration of the topics that shaped Texas over the past year.
Texas Standard: November 8, 2019
It’s been a long time coming, but now that a state takeover of Houston ISD is happening… We’ll look at questions that remain about how it will unfold. Vetting migrants has always been a talking point for President Trump. Now a new facility is giving border agents access to classified information they haven’t had before. Plus Texas voters passed a measure supporting tax money for parks. We’ll look at how that money will be spent. And remembering a Puerto Rican astrologer who crossed borders of all sorts. Also, have you ever felt a song is about you? Taking that to the next level. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: July 2, 2019
Congresswoman Escobar talks with us a day after touring detention facilities and finding out she was the target of comments on a secret Facebook group. That secret Facebook group reportedly made up of at least some current and former Border Patrol agents. The content, at times disturbing. We’ll have more. Plus, it looks like a deadline to print the U.S. census was missed. Why it matters and what’s next. And have you been to a Texas State Park lately? Many are overcrowded and in disrepair. Why Texans will soon have a chance to fix that. And celebrating the anniversary of a woman’s right to vote with the recognition that the reality of that right was uneven. Those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: April 24, 2019
A Texas democrat enters the race for U.S. senate, facing a 3 term incumbent with a massive war chest. Veteran M.J. Hegar throws her hat into the ring for the Senate seat held by John Cornyn. What are her chances and what does it mean for another much talked about potential challenger? Also, the Dallas D.A. getting pushback from the governor and others over plans not to prosecute some petty thefts. The D.A. says its criminalizing poverty. And one giant leap for legalized hemp in the Lone Star State. All those stories and more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: January 28, 2019
Another Presidential Tweetstorm, this time with a Texas twist: one suggesting widespread voter fraud. We’ll take a closer look at the claim and the source. Also, a Texas city won national attention for becoming the first to go with 100% renewable electricity. Now some are asking did the city pay too high a price? We’ll take a look. And chaos in Venezuela leading to uncertainty in Texas: we’ll hear why. Also, the Corpus Christi caller times warns: what you don’t know about a particular routine government procedure can hurt you. The paper’s opinion editor explains plus a whole lot more today on the Texas Standard:
Texas Standard: December 28, 2018
The border remains the top issue in national politics, but in Texas it’s also a local issue. We’ll hear from a state representative on the latest in her district. Plus, Texas is once again one of the deadliest states for law enforcement officers. We’ll break down the numbers including a disturbing trend involving firearm deaths. And if one Texas lawmaker has his way the severance tax could get a bit of a makeover in the next legislative session. What it is and why you should care. Also, the Texan believed to be the country’s oldest man has died at 112. We’ll take a look back at his life. All of that and so much more today on the Texas Standard: