Texas lawmakers are pushing over 100 bills to increase criminal penalties, which could lead to overcrowding of jails and prisons, and strain law enforcement resources.
Tag: Texas Tribune
Posted inTexas Tribune
Orator, conscience, advocate: State lawmakers honor Sylvester Turner with bipartisan accolades in Capitol ceremony
Former U.S. Rep. Sylvester Turner was honored with a memorial service in the Texas House chamber, where lawmakers remembered him for his oratory, advocacy for his constituents, and his relationships with his colleagues, highlighting his commitment to bipartisanship and his legacy as a public servant.
Posted inTexas Tribune
Feds are opening more detention centers in Texas as Trump administration steps up deportations
The Trump administration has reopened a South Texas Family Residential Center to hold migrant families facing deportation, adding thousands of beds to Texas’s 21 detention centers, which currently hold the most immigrants of any state.
Posted inTexas Tribune
Robert Morris, former Texas megachurch pastor and Trump adviser, indicted for child sex crimes
Robert Morris, the former spiritual adviser to President Donald Trump and pastor of Gateway Church in Dallas, has been indicted in Oklahoma for child sex crimes that date back to the 1980s.
Posted inTexas Tribune
Texas House bill would weaken renters’ rights, advocates say
House Bill 32 aims to help property owners deal with squatters by speeding up the state’s eviction process, making it easier for landlords to find judges who will side with them in eviction cases, and making it harder for low-income tenants to obtain legal assistance.
Posted inTexas Tribune
In Texas, private firms cash in on property tax late fees, piling debt onto struggling homeowners
Texas has one of the most punitive systems in the nation for property tax debt, where private law firms can charge up to 20% on top of existing base taxes, penalties, and interest, resulting in billions of dollars in revenue for the firms.
Posted inPolitics
Texas Senate majority unveils bill requiring voters to prove their citizenship
Jessika Morales, 33, helps Francisco Jubera, 63, register to vote at the Nueces County Courthouse in Corpus Christi on Sept. 11, 2024. Credit: Gabriel V. Cárdenas for Votebeat
Posted inPolitics
U.S. Rep. Keith Self cuts short committee hearing after colleague objects to him misgendering trans member
U.S. Rep. Keith Self, R-McKinney, abruptly adjourned a congressional hearing after being confronted for misgendering U.S. Rep. Sarah McBride, the first openly transgender member of Congress, and later stated that “it is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female.”
Posted inTexas
How state lawmakers are trying to crack down on illegal immigration
Texas lawmakers are filing bills to further cement the state’s role in immigration enforcement, including requiring local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration authorities, forcing state contractors to use E-Verify, and giving property tax breaks to landowners who allow the state to build border barriers on their property.
Posted inHealth
Will lawmakers let Texas’ maternal mortality committee review abortion deaths?
Texas lawmakers are considering bills to lift restrictions on the state’s maternal mortality review committee, allowing them to review abortion-related deaths and near-misses, and to improve confidentiality and timeliness of their work.
