Good morning, 

This is the Texas Minute for Thursday, June 5, 2025.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Trump DOJ Forces Texas to End In-State Tuition for Illegal Aliens

• Just two days after the Texas Legislature adjourned without passing legislation to end in-state tuition for illegal aliens, the Trump administration’s Department of Justice filed a federal lawsuit against the state of Texas. Immediately, Attorney General Ken Paxton settled the suit, obligating the state to end the program. Brandon Waltens has the story.
      
• "Ending this discriminatory and un-American provision is a major victory for Texas." – Ken Paxton
      
• The lawsuit challenged longstanding provisions of the Texas Education Code that allow certain illegal aliens to pay in-state tuition at public colleges and universities—rates that are significantly lower than those charged to U.S. citizens from other states.
      
• The lawsuit noted that federal statute have barred states from offering postsecondary education benefits based on residency to illegal aliens unless the same benefit is available to all U.S. citizens regardless of residency. The DOJ argued, and Paxton agreed, the Texas law is in direct violation of that statute and therefore preempted under the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution.
       
• Beginning in 2001, Texas has allowed illegal alien students to qualify for in-state tuition if they attended Texas high schools and resided in the state for a certain period. During his 2012 presidential campaign, former Gov. Rick Perry defended enacting the law and infamously called critics of the policy “heartless” during a nationally televised debate.
       
• Legislation filed this year by State Sen. Mayes Middleton (R-Galveston) would have repealed that provision and barred state-funded financial aid from going to illegal aliens. Despite being placed on the Senate's intent calendar, the measure was never brought up for a vote.
      
• Frankly, it is beyond embarrassing that President Trump had to address this moronic policy because Texas' Republican lawmakers haven't had the guts to do so.

RELATED NEWS

• Collectively, the group illegally entered the country 480 times and accumulated 473 criminal convictions for a wide range of serious, violent crimes.

Lottery Commission Begins Transfer Process to Department of Licensing & Regulation

• Texas Lottery commissioners are already in the process of transferring oversight of the lottery to the Department of Licensing and Regulation, less than a week after lawmakers voted to abolish the embattled commission. As Luca Cacciatore reports, the early movement is notable given that Gov. Greg Abbott has not yet signed the legislation into law.
      

• The commission came into existence shortly after voters approved the lottery in 1991 under promises it would fund public education. It has come under heightened scrutiny in recent months after revelations of rigged jackpots, potential money laundering, and collusion between government agency employees and vendors to game the lottery for profit.
      
• In addition to changing which agency oversees the lottery games, the new law also includes strict regulatations on the purchase of tickets and establishes an abbreviated sunset review period for the entire system.
      
• For more background, you can find our full coverage and investigations of the Texas Lottery on our website.

Tarrant County Approves Republican Redistricting Plan

• For the first time since 2011, Tarrant County Commissioners Court approved new boundaries for its districts—which will increase Republicans’ advantage on the county’s five-member governing body starting with the 2026 elections. Erin Anderson has the details.
      

• Democrats have already filed a lawsuit challenging the new district lines, drawn to advance Republicans from a three- to a four-member majority on the commissioners court.
      

• All countywide elected offices—including county judge—are held by Republicans, as are most of the partisan elected positions in Tarrant County. Yet under the 14-year-old county districting plan that is being replaced, Democrats hold two of the four commissioners court precincts.
      
• Immediately following the commissioners' vote, State Rep. Tony Tinderholt (R–Arlington) announced his candidacy for one of the newly redrawn commissioner precincts. Tinderholt had previously announced he was not running for re-election to the Texas House.

EPA Clears Houston’s Fifth Ward Site After Dioxin Scare

• Months after dioxin levels five times higher than federal safety standards were discovered behind Hester House in Houston’s Fifth Ward, new Environmental Protection Agency testing has deemed the area safe for public use.
      
• But, as Michael Wilson reports, some residents remain cautious and have lingering questions about the long-term implications.

Quote-Unquote

"The criterion of truth is that it works even if nobody is prepared to acknowledge it."

– Ludwig von Mises​

SHOWS

Directories of Elected Officials