Tag Archives: Texas

Courthouse News reports: Shielding Texas’ electricity grid manager from liability in dozens of lawsuits tied to a winter storm blackout debacle, the state’s highest court ruled Friday the manager is entitled to sovereign immunity. The issue of whether the Electric Reliability Council of Texas had sovereign immunity, a legal doctrine that as applied here bars lawsuits against the state of …

The Washington Post reports: The Supreme Court on Friday ruled for the Biden administration in an important immigration case, saying Texas and Louisiana lacked the legal standing to challenge the executive branch’s priorities on who should be deported. At issue is a Biden administration policy that says the Department of Homeland Security should focus on arresting recent border crossers and …

CBS News reports: Former Texas Congressman Will Hurd announced he’s running for president on “CBS Mornings” Thursday. “This morning, I filed to be the Republican nominee for president of the United States,” Hurd told “CBS Mornings.” Hurd, 45, was first elected to serve Texas’s 23rd Congressional District in 2014, beating a Democratic incumbent by two points. The majority-Hispanic district stretches …

The Texas Tribune reports: Suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton will answer to 16 of 20 articles of impeachment at a trial to begin Sept. 5, the Texas Senate said Wednesday night after spending about 20 hours drafting the trial rules in private. Paxton’s wife, Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, can attend, but she will not participate in deliberations or closed sessions …

The Texas Tribune reports: Gov. Greg Abbott on Saturday vetoed a bipartisan bill that would have expanded vote-by-mail access for people with disabilities — specifically people who are blind or paralyzed and need assistance marking their ballot. Advocates say Abbott’s veto of House Bill 3159 is a blow for voters with disabilities who have for years called for the Legislature …

The Hill reports: Texas has become the latest in a growing number of states to pass legislation that LGBTQ rights groups say targets drag shows, banning “sexually oriented performances” that take place in the presence of minors. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) quietly signed the state’s Senate Bill 12 into law June 18. His office did not immediately respond to …

“I have twice been elected to represent the nearly one million Texans who reside in Senate District 8, and it is a tremendous honor and privilege to be their voice in the Texas Legislature. “Each time I was elected, I took an oath to uphold the Constitution and the laws of this great state, and Texas law compels each member …

The Texas Tribune reports: In a week when parts of the state are getting triple-digit temperatures and weather officials urge Texans to stay cool and hydrated, Gov. Greg Abbott gave final approval to a law that will eliminate local rules mandating water breaks for construction workers. House Bill 2127 was passed by the Texas Legislature during this year’s regular legislative …

USA Today reports: Gov. Greg Abbott has signed a bill that would prohibit diversity, equity and inclusion offices in Texas public colleges and universities starting in 2024. Both chambers of the Texas Legislature approved the final version in May of Senate Bill 17, which would ban public higher education institutions from maintaining or establishing DEI offices. It also prohibits higher …

Politico reports: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced Wednesday he had sent a group of migrants to Los Angeles, the latest attempt by a red-state governor to provoke progressive California on immigration. Abbott’s decision expands a program that has sent thousands of migrants to Vice President Kamala Harris’s residence in Washington as well as to Denver, Chicago and Philadelphia as part …

The Texas Tribune reports: Texas’ highest criminal court ruled Wednesday that the securities fraud case against now-suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton’s should remain in Houston, settling a key issue in the 8-year-old case as Paxton faces an impeachment trial in the Texas Senate this summer. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, in a 6-3 ruling, overturned lower-court decisions that said …

NBC News reports: Five years after Democrats came close to unseating Republican Sen. Ted Cruz in Texas, a group of strategists has launched the “Lose Cruz” super PAC. Backed by seven-figure funding, the super PAC will try to drive anti-Cruz messaging through rapid response, with ads online and on television. The first ad is expected next week. “Ted Cruz has …

The Houston Chronicle reports: In the upcoming impeachment trial of Attorney General Ken Paxton, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has likened the Senate proceedings to a real-world courtroom, with senators serving as jurors and Patrick as the judge. However, this raises concerns over potential conflicts of interest within the trial. Paxton owes Patrick around $125,000 in outstanding campaign loans, while one …

An update on this morning’s news via The Texas Tribune: Nate Paul, the Austin real estate investor central to allegations of illegal conduct by suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton, has been charged with eight counts of making false statements to financial institutions. Paul, 36, allegedly overstated his assets and understated his liabilities to fraudulently obtain loans, according to a 23-page …

The Texas Tribune reports: Nate Paul, the Austin real estate developer central to allegations of illegal conduct by Ken Paxton, Texas’ now-suspended attorney general, was arrested by the FBI on Thursday. Paul was booked into the Travis County Jail at 4:25 p.m. on a federal warrant, said Kristen Dark, a spokesperson for the Travis County Sheriff’s Office. The nature of …

The Texas Tribune reports: The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office says it has completed its investigation into the transport of 49 migrants from San Antonio to Martha’s Vineyard last September by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration and filed criminal charges with the local district attorney. A statement from the sheriff’s office says it has filed several counts of unlawful restraint, both …

The Texas Tribune reports: Conservative activists Catherine Engelbrecht and Gregg Phillips used the nonprofit True the Vote to enrich themselves, according to a complaint filed to the IRS. On Monday, the nonprofit watchdog group Campaign for Accountability called for an investigation into True the Vote, which has made repeated false claims about voter fraud in elections. The complaint said True …

The Roys Report reports: Daniel Savala, who’s accused of sexually abusing multiple men in the Assemblies of God’s Chi Alpha Campus Ministries, has been arrested in Houston on sex abuse charges involving minors. On Friday morning, Savala, 67, was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Lone Star Fugitive Task Force at his residence in downtown Houston and booked at the Fort …

The Texas Tribune reports: Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law Friday a bill that bars transgender kids from getting puberty blockers and hormone therapies, though the new law could face legal challenges before it takes effect on Sept. 1. Senate Bill 14’s passage brings to the finish line a legislative priority for the Republican Party of Texas, which opposes any …

NBC News reports: A Texas school superintendent sent lewd photos to an undercover officer posing online as a 15-year-old girl he planned to meet with, authorities said. Michael Keith Stevens, 47, superintendent of the Itasca Independent School District, was arrested Thursday and accused of online solicitation of a minor, according to court records. “He sent pictures of his private parts …