Tag Archives: The Lege

Put Spring ISD on the TEA takeover watch

Posted on January 19, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Didn’t see this coming. Dekaney High School is one failing accountability grade away from a state takeover of Spring ISD, and district leaders told trustees Tuesday that they are pursuing aggressive turnaround efforts at the north Harris County campus. The … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged HISD, Kregg Cuellar, Mike Miles, Mike Morath, schools, Spring ISD, Texas, Texas Education Agency, The Lege | Leave a comment

Three abortion stories

Posted on January 18, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Two of them at least have the potential to be positive. That’s good, right? Texas court clears path for Planned Parenthood lawsuit challenging state abortion law A Texas appeals court has allowed three Texas Planned Parenthood affiliates to move forward … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged abortion, Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine, Aid Access, Ashley Maxwell, Bryan Hughes, California, Gavin Newsom, Jack County, Kamyon Conner, Kathy Hochul, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Letitia James, Lilith Fund, Liz Merrill, Louisiana, Margaret Carpenter, mifepristone, Neesha Dave, New York, Planned Parenthood, Remy Coeytaux, Sadie Weldon, SCOTUS, Second Court of Appeals, Supreme Court, telemedicine, Texas, Texas Equal Access Fund, Texas Right to Life, The Lege, Third Court of Appeals, Whole Woman’s Health Alliance | Leave a comment

We sure have a lot of mass shooting memorials

Posted on January 18, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

Good Lord. This is some upsetting stuff, so stop reading now if this is not something you want to face today. On May 18, 2018, a student entered Santa Fe High School, between Houston and Galveston, and opened fire with … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged gun control, guns, Joe Moody, Santa Fe, Texas, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, The Lege, Uvalde | Leave a comment

That’s a lot of ballot challenges

Posted on January 15, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

First there was this. Tarrant County Republican Chairman Tim Davis wants seven Democratic judicial candidates running in the March 3 primary election removed from the ballot, saying their candidate filings had several errors. Davis formally challenged the ballot applications and … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2026 | Tagged Democratic primary, Election 2026, HD92, HD94, HD98, judicial races, petitions, primaries, Salman Bhojani, Tarrant County, Texas, The Lege, Tony Tinderholt, Zee Wilcox | Leave a comment

Dallas and Williamson forced to abandon voting centers for Primary Day

Posted on January 10, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. In an about-face, Dallas County Republicans last week decided against hand-counting ballots in Texas’ March primary, saying they weren’t able to line up enough workers, among other hurdles. That leaves just two … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2026 | Tagged Allen West, Dallas County, Democratic primary, early voting, Election 2026, electronic voting machines, hand counting, primaries, Republican Party, Secretary of State, Texas, The Lege, voting centers, Williamson County | Leave a comment

First trial over Uvalde law enforcement response to begin

Posted on January 7, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

First of two, assuming no plea deals or late-in-the-day dismissals. Former Uvalde schools police Officer Adrian Gonzales was among the first officers to arrive at Robb Elementary in 2022 after a gunman opened fire on students and teachers. Gonzales’ criminal … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged Adrian Gonzales, Christina Busbee, Corpus Christi, DPS, guns, Pete Arredondo, Texas, The Lege, Uvalde | Comments Off

Council proposal to limit HPD cooperation with ICE fails

Posted on January 5, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

I’m annoyed by this, but it’s not the end of the line. A City Council proposal that would have given Houston police officers discretion over calling federal immigration officials during traffic stops has officially met its demise. The policy change … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Local politics | Tagged Alejandra Salinas, Houston, Houston City Council, HPD, ICE, immigration, John Whitmire, Letitia Plummer, Tarsha Jackson, The Lege | Comments Off

An opening statement on the 2026 elections

Posted on January 4, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

This is going to be a somewhat long post about the upcoming elections and my coverage of candidates in the primaries. I’ve got some ground to cover, so settle in. At this time, we have the following elections on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2026 | Tagged Abbie Kamin, Al Green, Amanda Edwards, Angelica Luna Kaufman, CD09, CD18, CD29, CD36, Christian Menefee, Congress, Democratic primary, District C, District Clerk, Election 2025, Election 2026, Harris County, HCDP, HD131, Houston, Houston City Council, Joseph Panzarella, Nick Hellyar, Patrick Oathout, primaries, runoff, SD09, Senate, special election, Texas, The Lege | 2 Comments

Appeals court upholds restraining order on prosecutor reporting requirements

Posted on January 1, 2026 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: The newly created 15th Court of Appeals has upheld a temporary injunction blocking Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s attempt to force local district attorneys to give him sweeping access to their prosecutorial data, marking the second time … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged 15th Court of Appeals, Attorney General, Bexar County, Dallas County, District Attorney, El Paso, Harris County, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Sean Teare, Texas, The Lege, Travis County | Comments Off

Feds settle lawsuit with Colony Ridge developers

Posted on December 28, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Noted for the record. Federal authorities and the Houston-area developer Colony Ridge have agreed to settle a lawsuit in which the government accused the company of duping Latino homebuyers into seller-financed mortgages that many defaulted on in a scheme that … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra, Legal matters | Tagged Billy Knox, Colony Ridge, Consumer Financial Protection Act, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Dan Patrick, DPS, Equal Credit Opportunity Act, Fair Housing Act, foreclosure, Greg Abbott, immigration, Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act, Jay Dean, Jay Knight, John Harris, Justice Department, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Liberty County, special session, Steve McCraw, Texas, The Lege, Trey Harris | 1 Comment

App store age verification law blocked

Posted on December 26, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

For now, at least. A federal judge has temporarily blocked a new Texas law adding restrictions on children’s use of app stores. Senate Bill 2420, which was supposed to activate on Jan. 1, establishes age verification requirements and mandates parental … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged age verification, Apple, Computer & Communications Industry Association, data privacy, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, Google, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, SCOTUS, Students Engaged in Advancing Texas, Texas, The Lege | Comments Off

Help track the book bans

Posted on December 26, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Are you looking for a way to Do Something in the new year? Here’s a good option for you. Dozens of parents and community members have signed up to help track book bans across the state, by learning how to … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged activism, censorship, libraries, PEN America, school libraries, Texas, Texas Freedom to Read Project, The Lege | Comments Off

Hearing for the school DEI ban lawsuit

Posted on December 23, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

It’s legitimately hard to keep track of all the crappy laws our Legislature passes and the lawsuits filed to block them. The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas asked a federal judge Thursday to put a preliminary injunction on a … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged ACLU of Texas, Brandon Creighton, diversity, Florida, gay rights, GSA Network, HISD, Jeff Leach, Katy ISD, lawsuit, Mike Morath, Plano ISD, schools, Students Engaged in Advancing Texas, Texas, Texas Education Agency, The Lege, Transgender Law Center, transgender rights | Comments Off

The full slate

Posted on December 22, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

In case you hadn’t heard. A Democrat is running in every state and federal race on the Texas ballot next year, the first time in modern state history that either party has fielded a full slate of candidates, according to … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2026 | Tagged Beto O'Rourke, Congress, Democratic primary, Election 2026, Greg Abbott, Harris County, judicial races, Kendall Scudder, SBOE, Senate, TDP, Texas, Texas Majority PAC, The Lege, Wendy Davis | 1 Comment

San Antonio will move its elections to November

Posted on December 22, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Good move. San Antonians will cast ballots for municipal elections in November of odd-numbered years — instead of May — beginning in 2029 after a fractured City Council approved the calendar change, a move championed by Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones. … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged City Council, Election 2029, Gina Ortiz Jones, San Antonio, Texas, The Lege, turnout | Comments Off

A bathroom bill workaround

Posted on December 20, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I like this approach. One week after the state’s controversial “bathroom bill” took effect, Austin City Council voted Thursday to begin crafting a plan to make city-owned restrooms gender inclusive. The Texas Legislature enacted Senate Bill 8, formally titled the … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged Austin, City Council, Houston, Mike Siegel, Texas, The Lege, Transgender Education Network of Texas, transgender rights | 1 Comment

App store age verification lawsuit heard

Posted on December 19, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Might get a quick ruling on this one. On Tuesday morning, U.S. District Court Judge Robert Pitman heard arguments for and against blocking a new law requiring parental consent for children under 18 to use their mobile device’s app store. … Continue reading →

Time for another Lone Star Rail update

Posted on December 19, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Because I will always write about Lone Star Rail updates. As Travis County Judge Andy Brown runs for reelection, one of his top campaign priorities is building a train between Austin and San Antonio. “You want trains; I want to … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged Amtrak, Andy Brown, Austin, Central Texas Passenger Rail Advisory Committee, commuter rail, freight rail, high speed rail, I-35, Lone Star Rail District, Peter Sakai, RESTART Lone Star Rail District, San Antonians for Rail Transit, San Antonio, Texas, Texas Passenger Rail Advisory Committee, Texas Rail Advocates, The Lege | Comments Off

Camp Mystic wants the lawsuits against it moved to Kerr County

Posted on December 18, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. Attorneys for Camp Mystic, the Texas Hill Country retreat where 25 children and two counselors were killed in a flash flood on July 4, are trying to move four lawsuits against the camp from Travis County to Kerr County, … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged Anna Margaret Bellows, Blakely McCrory, Camp Mystic, Chloe Childress, Dick Eastland, Ellen Getten, flooding, Guadalupe River, Hadley Hanna, HTR TX Hill Country, Jane Hunt, Katherine Ferruzzo, Kellyann Lytal, Kerr County, Kerrville, Lainey Landry, lawsuit, Lila Bonner, Lucy Dillon, Lulu Peck, Mikal Watts, Molly DeWitt, Mystic Camps Family Partnership, Mystic Camps Management, Natural Fountains Properties, Texas, The Lege, Tweety Eastland, Virginia Hollis, Virginia Naylor | 3 Comments

Fifth Circuit upholds dismissal of land ownership ban lawsuit

Posted on December 14, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Not a surprise. On Thursday, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court’s decision to dismiss a lawsuit against Senate Bill 17, a new law that restricts people with citizenship, permanent residence or political ties to China, Russia, … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged Asian Texans for Justice, China, Chinese American Legal Defense Alliance, class action, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, lawsuit, Texas, The Lege | Comments Off

How aggressive will Dems be in legislative races?

Posted on December 12, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

This is a good start, but I hope they ratchet it up from there. The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, the party’s national arm that targets legislative races, announced Wednesday that it plans to put resources into Texas next year for … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2026 | Tagged Beto O'Rourke, Christina Morales, Collin County, Congress, Dallas County, Denton County, DLCC, Donald Trump, Election 2018, Election 2020, Election 2022, Election 2024, Election 2026, Harris County, HD108, HD112, HD118, HD121, HD133, HD138, HD34, HD37, HDCC, SBOE, Senate, Tarrant County, TDP, Texas, The Lege | 3 Comments

TEA takes over three more districts

Posted on December 12, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Mike Morath sure is busy. The Texas Education Agency is replacing the elected school boards of the Beaumont, Connally and Lake Worth school districts, Education Commissioner Mike Morath announced Thursday. State law allows Morath to either close a campus or … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged Beaumont ISD, Board of Managers, Connally ISD, Fort Worth ISD, HISD, Lake Worth ISD, Marlin ISD, Mike Morath, schools, Shepherd ISD, Texas, Texas Education Agency, The Lege, Wichita ISD | Comments Off

We bought some strategic Bitcoin

Posted on December 12, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Yippie. The state of Texas recently purchased about $5 million worth of bitcoin through a BlackRock-administered exchange-traded fund, a representative for the state comptroller’s office confirmed in an email to The Dallas Morning News on Monday. The purchase came several months after … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged Bitcoin, Comptroller, cryptocurrency, cryptomining, Giovanni Capriglione, Texas, Texas Blockchain Council, The Lege | 1 Comment

Waymo and school buses

Posted on December 10, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

This is a real problem. In November, on Austin’s South First Street, cameras caught a Waymo automated vehicle drive past an Austin Independent School District school bus’ flashing stop signs. At first, the driverless car stopped while a student crossed … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged Austin, Austin ISD, driverless cars, school buses, school zones, taxis, Texas, The Lege, Waymo | Comments Off

Deadline Day roundup, part 1

Posted on December 9, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I’m putting Part 1 in the headline because there’s always some delays between filings at county headquarters and what you can see on the SOS candidate filings page. I was waiting on the Jasmine Crockett announcement as I began this, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2026 | Tagged Abbie Kamin, Adrian Garcia, Al Green, Amanda Edwards, Annise Parker, Audrie Lawton, Benjamin Flores, Carla Wyatt, CD02, CD07, CD08, CD09, CD10, CD18, CD22, CD29, CD30, CD33, CD36, CD38, Charlene Ward Johnson, Christian Menefee, Colin Allred, Commissioners Court, Comptroller, Congress, Democratic primary, District Clerk, Election 2026, filing deadline, Governor, Gretchen Brown, Harold Dutton, Harris County, Harris County Attorney, Harris County Clerk, Harris County Judge, Harris County Treasurer, HD131, HD139, HD142, HD144, HD149, Hubert Vo, James Talarico, Jarvis Johnson, Jasmine Crockett, Julie Johnson, Land Commissioner, Lesley Briones, Letitia Plummer, Lizzie FLetcher, Marc Veasey, Mary Ann Perez, Sarah Eckhardt, Senate, Shaun Finnie, Sylvia Garcia, Tarrant County, Teneshia Hudspeth, Terry Virts, Texas, The Lege | 1 Comment

Lawsuit filed over labeling requirement in Texas MAHA law

Posted on December 8, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

It’s that time, when new laws face whatever court challenges they’re going to get. Several food and beverage trade associations are asking a federal court to strike down a package-labeling provision in a new state law aimed at combating obesity, diabetes and … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged American Beverage Association, Consumer Brands Association, Donald Trump, Food Industry Association, Lacey Hull, lawsuit, Lois Kolkhorst, MAHA, National Confectioners Association, RFK Jr, Texas, The Lege | Comments Off

Of course that DPRIT lawsuit filed by crackpots was done incorrectly

Posted on December 7, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

It’s more fun this way. If an Austin court hearing this week is an early indication of how a lawsuit blocking Texas’ $3 billion dementia research fund will fare, state leaders who championed it and the voters who overwhelmingly approved it by more … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2025, Legal matters | Tagged Attorney General, constitutional amendments, Dan Patrick, DPRIT, Election 2021, Election 2023, Election 2025, electronic voting machines, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Robert Nichols, Secretary of State, Texas, The Lege, Travis County | Comments Off

Why Kerr County turned down state flood grant money

Posted on December 7, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting. Three weeks after flash floods in Texas’ Hill Country killed more than 100 people, state lawmakers chastised Kerr County leaders for rejecting money a year earlier to create a warning system that could have alerted residents to rapidly … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged Drew Darby, Flood Infrastructure Fund, flooding, Guadalupe River, Joe Moody, Kerr County, Texas, Texas Water Development Board, The Lege | Comments Off

SCOTUS upholds the new Congressional map

Posted on December 5, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Shocked, shocked I am. The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday upheld Texas Republicans’ new GOP-heavy congressional map, handing the party a key victory as it heads into what is predicted to be a bruising midterm cycle. In a 6-3 ruling, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2026, Legal matters | Tagged Adam Kincaid, Attorney General, CD09, CD18, CD22, CD27, CD28, CD30, CD32, CD34, CD35, Congress, Donald Trump, Election 2026, filing deadline, Greg Abbott, Jeff Brown, Justice Department, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, LULAC, MALC, MALDEF, NAACP, National Redistricting Foundation, Phil King, primaries, redistricting, SCOTUS, special session, Texas, The Lege, Todd Hunter, Voting Rights Act | 1 Comment

Camp Mystic’s reopening

Posted on December 5, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

I dunno, man. The owners of an all-girls summer camp in the Texas Hill Country, where 25 campers and two teenage counselors died in catastrophic July 4 flooding, announced plans on Tuesday for new safety upgrades that will be in place when … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged Camp Mystic, flooding, Greg Abbott, Guadalupe River, lawsuit, Texas, The Lege | Comments Off

The SOS still can’t figure out citizenship

Posted on December 4, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

Same song, different verse. County election officials investigating the eligibility of 2,724 Texas voters flagged as potential noncitizens have so far found that hundreds of the voters registered through the state Department of Public Safety, which requires proof of citizenship … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged Celia Israel, Donald Trump, DPS, drivers licenses, Greg Abbott, immigration, Jane Nelson, Secretary of State, Texas, The Lege, Travis County, voter registration | Comments Off

Class action lawsuit filed over the Ten Commandments law

Posted on December 3, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

About time. After receiving two favorable rulings from judges, a coalition of advocacy groups filed their third lawsuit Tuesday challenging a new state law that requires the Ten Commandments to be displayed in every public school classroom in Texas. The new … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged ACLU of Texas, Alamo Heights ISD, Americans United, class action, Clear Creek ISD, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, Freedom From Religion Foundation, Greg Abbott, HISD, Katy ISD, Ken Paxton, lawsuit, Louisiana, Mara Nathan, Mike Morath, Schertz-Cibolo-Universal ISD, SCOTUS, ten commandments, Texas, Texas Education Agency, The Lege | Comments Off

We may never know what’s in those intimate Abbott-Elon emails

Posted on December 1, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

This was from just before Thanksgiving week, I’m just getting to it now. Months after fighting to keep secret the emails exchanged between Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s office and tech billionaire Elon Musk’s companies, state officials released nearly 1,400 pages … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged Attorney General, Elon Musk, Greg Abbott, Ken Paxton, lobbyists, special session, Supreme Court, Texas, Texas Public Information Act, The Lege | Comments Off

Drink that THC while you still can

Posted on November 30, 2025 by Charles Kuffner

The clock is ticking. Houston saw a boom in drinks infused with THC over the past several years, with bars and restaurants seizing on the products as an alternative for people who don’t drink alcohol. Now that trend might be … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, glorious food, National news | Tagged cannabis, Congress, Dan Patrick, Donald Trump, Election 2026, hemp, Senate, shutdown, Texas, THC, The Lege | 1 Comment

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