Here are things you need to know for Tuesday, July 7:
1. Texas clawing back $32 million in unemployment benefits after finding 46,000 people were overpaid
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More than 46,000 Texans who lost their jobs in recent months are having portions of their unemployment benefits clawed back after the Texas Workforce Commission found that they were initially overpaid.
The overpayments, first reported by the Houston Chronicle, are estimated to be more than $32 million in total since March.
2. Thousands of international students may need to leave US if their schools transition to online-only learning in fall, ICE announces
International students who are pursuing degrees in the United States will have to leave the country or risk deportation if their universities switch to online-only courses, Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced Monday.
In a news release Monday, ICE said that students who fall under certain visas “may not take a full online course load and remain in the United States,” adding, “The U.S. Department of State will not issue visas to students enrolled in schools and/or programs that are fully online for the fall semester nor will U.S. Customs and Border Protection permit these students to enter the United States.”
3. Mayor calls for state GOP to cancel GRB event amid COVID-19 crisis; top doc says it has potential to be ‘super spreader’ event
Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner is calling for the Texas GOP’s executive committee to cancel its in-person convention as the city faces the COVID-19 pandemic, and make the event a virtual one.
The in-person convention is slated for the George R. Brown Convention Center on July 16. Roughly 6,000 people are expected to attend.
If the event is not canceled, Turner outlined several health guidelines -- from health screenings to social distancing measures -- that would need to be enacted for the event to go forward.
4. Nurses at Humble hospital go on strike to demand more PPE, better work conditions
About 30 nurses and nurse technicians at an Humble rehabilitation hospital took to the picket line Monday to demand more personal protective equipment, hazard pay and better working conditions.
The nurses protested outside Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital as they marched along McKaye Avenue.
5. Metallica donating $50,000 to Lone Star College students who will take part in high-demand programs
Metallica is donating $50,000 in scholarship money to Lone Star College students in high-demand programs.
Part of Metallica’s “All Within My Hands” Foundation, the money is given to students looking into programs in transportation, healthcare, and manufacturing, according to a press release Monday. This is the second year in a row Metallica has provided scholarships to students attending Lone Star College.
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WORD OF THE DAY
Radicle [rad-i-kuhl] (noun) 1. (botany) a. the lower part of the axis of an embryo; the primary root; b. a rudimentary root; radicel or rootlet; 2. (chemistry) (formerly) radical; 3. (anatomy) a small rootlike part or structure, as the beginning of a nerve or vein.
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
July 7, 1930: Construction of the Hoover Dam begins. Over the next five years, a total of 21,000 men would work ceaselessly to produce what would be the largest dam of its time, as well as one of the largest manmade structures in the world.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Work is much more fun than fun.” - Noel Coward