In an open letter, former staffers and other insiders said the state party has fallen short on strategy and failed to act with urgency under Scudder’s leadership.

Tyler has spent the last decade remaking its parks and sidewalks to allure families. At the same time, a constellation of groups are helping parents take care of their families.

The city, which does not have a paid family leave policy, established the program to help new parents return to work without sacrificing bonding with their new babies.

As Texas faces growing water challenges, the donation to the Texas Water Trust — a little-known conservation tool created nearly 30 years ago — was the first in two decades.

Scattered showers and thunderstorms are developing to the north and west of the Houston metro area Saturday.

On the Democratic side, state Rep. Gina Hinojosa captured the nomination to take on Abbott while Rep. Vikki Goodwin is in the lead for the lieutenant governor nomination.

Rescue crews in an East Texas city completed an unusual and complicated rescue Saturday when a hot air balloon struck a cell tower, getting stuck over 900 feet above the ground with two people on board.

Some advocates for the region worry freshmen lawmakers will start deal-making at a deficit, while other voters see a chance for new blood.

Before she was a firebrand congresswoman, Jasmine Crockett was a public defender — and local Democratic party chair — in Texarkana.

The sheriff’s office says deputies were dispatched to the bridge just after 10 p.m. Sunday night. They found a truck on fire underneath the bridge on the west bank of the river. Once the fire was extinguished, human remains were found inside.

Rhonda Ward, a first-time candidate for elected office who previously served on the state GOP’s policy committee, is challenging Trent Ashby for the East Texas seat.

U.S. Rep. Chip Roy has broken with his party, and called out President Donald Trump and Attorney General Ken Paxton. He says his loyalty is to Texas and to the Constitution.

In Pineland, a fresh batch of local elected officials and an expansion of the town’s biggest employer have created the conditions for an economic renaissance. A dearth of housing could slow growth.

East Texas experienced some of the worst freezing rain. Dense forests and icy roads are making it more difficult to restore electricity.

ERCOT officials expected to see power demand close in on power supply by Monday 8 a.m., but the grid held “flawlessly,” Abbott said.

Texas cities and counties largely control when and where liquor can be sold. Just three counties are totally dry.

Christmas tree sales are up in the Lone Star State, even as many tree farmers are aging out of the business with no successors.

A Houston woman who says she was wrongfully evicted during the pandemic is speaking out about how Lone Star Legal Aid helped her win her case — as the nonprofit now faces the possibility of losing nearly half of its federal funding.

Increased costs in food and payroll at child care centers effectively wiped out the one-time investment state lawmakers approved earlier this year, a new report found.

Rural leaders who have worked years to improve broadband access said they were disappointed by the sharp decrease in federal dollars.

A new Texas law says every public school classroom must display a poster listing the Ten Commandments.

Citing a new state law, Attorney General Ken Paxton told four cities to cancel planned tax hikes. But La Marque leaders say their tax increase is critical to keeping the city afloat financially.

The proposed project that would install 43 high-capacity wells drew the ire of East Texans, worried their wells would run dry.

You asked our AI chatbot about Texas’ water supply. We answered some of the questions that it couldn’t.

Texas will use $1 billion in sales tax a year for the next two decades to help secure the state’s water supply.

Texas voters will decide Tuesday whether the state should continue spending $1 billion a year to secure the state’s water supply. Part of that investment will be spent to find new water supply.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is accusing the companies behind Tylenol of deceptively marketing the pain reliever to pregnant mothers.

Phillip Surls, a local businessman who owns much of the property around the Cutoff, has argued he blocked access to the stream to protect his cattle and that the waterway is not public.

An East Texas farm sued the local groundwater conservation district that has authority over the aquifer that would be pumped. As part of a settlement, the district has voided its original permits.

The U.S. doesn’t produce the minerals and metals needed for renewable energy, microchips or military technology. Companies are rushing to open new mines in Texas.

Once considered a safe haven to explore identity, Texas campuses are invalidating and alienating trans people, students say.

A third straight week of bone dry weather may get a little relief from a weekend cool front

The Henderson County Sheriff’s Office said the murders happened early Friday morning.

Texas’ top criminal court has again paused the execution of Robert Roberson, just days before he had been set to become the first person in the U.S. put to death in a shaken baby case.

Rain chances aren’t super high as we start the work week, but there are still some pop-up showers and storms across the area Monday.

Wednesday will be warm and humid with highs in the mid-90s. There will be more cloud cover in the afternoon with a 20% chance for a passing downpour.

The firing happened over two years after Texas A&M stressed its support for academic freedom and amid a changing higher education landscape.

Law enforcement in East Texas are searching for the suspect they say vandalized a statue of Jesus outside a Catholic Church near Tyler.

The House refused Senate changes allowing exports to continue while the state studies its underground water supply. Lawmakers left the Capitol without reaching a compromise.

Audrii’s Law is now in effect and will help protect children across Texas from child predators.

Legislation pushed by Gov. Greg Abbott would bar voters at the polls from immediately casting a ballot based on a last-minute update to their address.

A 35-year-old East Texas man appeared in federal court Monday on charges of attempting to commit bank fraud, aggravated identity theft and impersonating an officer or employee of the United States, U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei announced.

A Dallas businessman has proposed studying the aquifer to see if he can pump millions of gallons out of East Texas, a plan that residents distrust.

Starting Sept. 1, cultured meat sales will be banned for the next two years even though the product isn’t ready to be sold at a large scale.

Dallas businessman Kyle Bass has proposed exporting millions of gallons of water from East Texas to other parts of the state.

There have been an increased in black bear sightings in East Texas, according to biologists with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD).

The governor announced he was expanding his special session agenda shortly after the Texas House passed a congressional map that Democrats had delayed by leaving the state.

The GOP push to redraw the state’s congressional maps isn’t just a partisan move but one that deeply affects how Texans are represented in Congress.

Twenty-eight men have died by court-ordered execution so far this year in the U.S., and nine other people are scheduled to be put to death in seven states during the rest of 2025.

After losing her job during the pandemic, a Houston woman turned to her roots — literally. She launched a wine label on her family’s historic land in Shankleville, Texas, with a bigger mission: to revitalize the rural economy, celebrate Black agricultural legacy, and empower women in wine and farming.

A judge has set a new execution date for a Texas man who had been set last year to become the first person in the U.S. to be put to death for a murder conviction tied to a diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome.

Jerry Wayne Longmire is becoming a viral sensation on social media for this unique comedy style that's relatable to many Texans. Get to know him and where you can catch his performance.

Soon after Birdwell announced his retirement, state Rep. David Cook, R-Mansfield, said he was running for the seat.

Lawmakers sought to close gaps in education and support funding for agriculture, disaster preparedness and health care this year.

Texas is poised to lead the country in an initiative to inform denizens of what’s in their food. Food industry experts say it’s going too far.

The schools were closed last week after years of declining enrollment. The school communities said increased choices were to blame.

Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 2000, known as Audrii’s Law, which mandates sex offender registration for child grooming offenses in Texas.

You may remember Billy Bob Thornton from any of the numerous movies and TV shows he's done or the music he's released with his band "The Boxmasters," but you may not know about his unconditional love for Texas, even though he doesn't consider himself a "pure blood Texan."

A woman from a city in East Texas has been arrested after law enforcement found the burned remains of dogs in front of her home.

Texas lawmakers have unanimously voted to send H.B. 2000 - better known as Audrii’s Law - to Governor Greg Abbott’s desk to be signed into law.

The Texas House is considering a bill to abolish May elections, which have the lowest turnout of any election.

If approved, the legislation would expand one of the state's most popular loan programs with even lower interest rates.

Democrats and other critics say Texas legislation threatens to keep citizens who can’t easily access the right documents from voting.

Residents in Trinity County will now have to travel 30 miles to access the closest hospital.

Texas Republican lawmakers in regions known for support of public schools defended voting for vouchers, saying they gained leverage to seek concessions.

Multi-agency operation seizes over 10 kilograms of meth, 14 firearms in sweeping bust

After a deal to pipe water from Lake O’ the Pines to North Texas came to light, residents voiced opposition everywhere they could to block it.

Dozens of federal offices were expected to close in Texas, but the reality continues to shift.

Lawmakers are pursuing legislative changes that would keep more people locked up in overcrowded county jails while awaiting resolution to their cases.

Animal health care experts raised concern that telehealth would lead to misdiagnosis and erode what little care already exists in rural Texas.

Senate Bill 31 supporters say it would clarify when doctors should intervene to save a pregnant woman’s life, but critics say its vagueness and a measure to resurrect pre-Roe laws hamper it.

More than a year after Texas’ House Bill 8 took effect, some schools have offered free tuition, grown dual credit programs or helped students’ credits transfer when they move on to four-year schools.

Two-thirds of the state’s roughly 100 jails and prisons in Texas are not fully air conditioned in inmate housing areas.

Adding more funding to scholarships is just one way experts say state lawmakers could address Texas’ child care crisis.

A Texas House Representative has filed a bill to rename a part of a busy Central Texas highway after President Donald Trump.

On Monday, 71 dogs, cats and puppies were rescued after being found in deplorable conditions on a school bus in Galveston Island State Park. On Tuesday, the Galveston Island Humane Society said they found three of the dogs had microchips and one dog had a rabies tag. They were able to identify all four dogs, A’rhx, Bentley, Pyros and Cheyenne.

The Lufkin school district says it must do a better job of promoting itself amid growing competition from charter schools and homeschooling.

Texas is getting more than $3 billion from the federal government to help expand internet access.

Reported domestic violence incidents have risen 26% since 2019.

From teacher pay and preparation to special education and DEI, here are issues Texas lawmakers are prioritizing this legislative session.

Every so often, they come across some unusual things while in the process of doing their jobs. This past deer season was no exception.

A federal judge blocked a new National Institutes of Health policy from going into effect in 22 states that sued the agency, but Texas wasn’t part of the suit.

Local officials, school advocates and tax policy experts said such a proposal could have dire impacts on basic services.

Texas Game Wardens concluded an investigation in Montgomery County that led to the arrest and conviction of two men for illegally transporting seven deer, including a captive white-tailed deer.

An East Texas knife shop owner is going viral on TikTok after refusing to transfer an emblem onto Hitler Youth knives, sparking widespread support online.

The U.S. Marshals said Robert Johnson, who was wanted for sexually assaulting a child, was caught at a McDonald’s in Clear Lake, where they said he frequented often, but Johnson didn’t go down easy.

Some residents see the charging stations as an economic boom to the town, while others find it an assault on the oil and gas industry in Texas.

Richards, the eldest daughter of Gov. Ann Richards, forged her own path as a tireless advocate for women across Texas and the United States.

Advocates say interstate compacts, which allow professionals to use their work licenses in multiple states, can solve Texas’ workforce shortage. Skeptics fear Texas would send more workers than it would receive.

A storm system which is bringing winter precipitation to parts of North and East Texas will bring the potential of heavy rainfall to parts of the Houston area Thursday.

The Tribune’s data journalists helped visualize everything from voter participation and extreme weather to gaps in the state’s border wall. Here are some of the highlights.

Officials hope state lawmakers will boost the budget of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman office, an independent state agency, which can often be an elderly Texan’s only lifeline to the outside world.

The legislation includes financial aid and money for recent natural disasters, but farmers still will be relying on outdated provisions from the 2018 bill.

A Votebeat analysis shows how such requirements risk disenfranchising key voter groups, including Native Americans and college students.

Some voucher opponents are ready to compromise; others are hoping supporters will fumble over the program's size, eligibility and accountability.

In his new role, Rosser will be responsible for helping Texas meet its goal to increase the number of Texans ages 25 to 34 with a postsecondary credential to 60%by 2030.

Despite the efforts of local governments and others, the move to provide internet access to millions of Texans has been slow and faces new challenges.

More than 250 Texas prisoners are on the waitlist to join the Lee College reentry class. Programs like these prepare students to find jobs and help lower recidivism.

Wynn Rosser will be in charge of guiding the state’s postsecondary education policies. He currently leads a foundation focused on rural East Texas and previously worked at Texas A&M.

Robert Roberson was set to be the first person in the U.S. to be executed on a “shaken baby syndrome” diagnosis after getting convicted for killing his 2-year-old daughter. He maintained his innocence and in October 2024, his sentence was put on a temporary pause.