Texas Standard

March 24, 2023

What’s in the Texas House budget

The opioid fentanyl has become a scourge for many communities. But where is it coming from? New court filings shed light on the fentanyl supply chain. We’ll tell you where it comes from, and how it’s being smuggled into Texas. The Texas economy just keeps growing. How does this keep happening, and when will it […]

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March 23, 2023

‘The Long Game’ highlights the drive behind Mexican American golf trailblazers

Senate Bill 8 would provide education savings accounts of $8,000 that some Texas students could access to switch from public to private school. We’ll have the latest on the bill moving through the Legislature. Also at the Legislature: Lawmakers might be messing with Austin once again, this time on a particularly touchy subject in the […]

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March 22, 2023

Is prosecuting librarians the next front in Texas’ book wars?

You’ve heard about library book bans in Texas, but behind the scenes there is a campaign underway to prosecute librarians for putting certain books on the shelves of school and public libraries. After four decades, Texas politician Ben Barnes comes clean about his role, and that of former Texas Gov. John Connally, to delay the […]

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March 21, 2023

Indigenous chefs take center stage at Willie Nelson’s Luck Reunion

Almost a year after the Uvalde school shooting, a new investigation by the Texas Tribune reveals it was the type of weapon used, an AR-15, that prompted officers to back off from the room where the shooter was holed up. Reporter Zach Despart joins us to explain. A closer look at bills in the Legislature […]

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March 20, 2023

What’s next as pandemic-era housing assistance winds down

Several bills are aimed at building more homes, but what about Texas renters, many reeling from the end of assistance programs? State lawmakers are being urged to take action on housing affordability, or more precisely, the lack thereof. What’s an education savings program? Critics say it’s just another spin on school vouchers. Sergio Martínez-Beltrán of […]

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March 17, 2023

This West Texas town has been under a boil-water notice for nearly 5 years

State lawmakers heard hours of testimony on a bill that would restrict gender-affirming care for minors. Senate Bill 14 wouldn’t just end access to gender-affirming care for young Texans, it would also revoke the medical license of any doctor who provides it. How Texas’ first family of oil and gas both regulates and profits from […]

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March 16, 2023

How to testify at the Texas Legislature

After the Texas Education Agency’s announcement that it will take over the Houston Independent School district, we’re taking a look at what previous state takeovers could signal for this one. “Stand up and be heard” – that’s what we’re often told to do when the Legislature’s in session. But how does one do that, exactly? […]

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March 15, 2023

Breaking down the saga at the Dallas Zoo

School vouchers, now styled as school choice, are back before state lawmakers. They have been rejected in the past, but will this year be different? Senate Bill 8 would provide Texas parents with an education account, taxpayer money that could be used to send students to private school. And the bill has special features designed […]

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