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Good morning,

This is the Texas Minute for Wednesday, August 12, 2026.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan [[link removed]]

--" width="434" src=" Abbott Pushes Mandatory 10-Year Prison Sentence for Teacher Sex Crimes In a proposal unveiled yesterday in Lubbock, Gov. Greg Abbott said Texas educators who engage in inappropriate relationships with students should face at least 10 years behind bars. This comes, Brandon Waltens reports [[link removed]], as the state continues grappling with widespread allegations of sexual misconduct in public schools.

In the last year, Abbott said, there have been more than 1,600 allegations of inappropriate educator-student relationships. That is nearly triple the number from the previous year. His proposal would also prohibit community supervision and deferred adjudication in place of incarceration, prevent parole or mandatory supervision before an offender has served at least 10 years, and require offenders to register as sex offenders.

"In the past, some teachers have had sex with students and got only probation. Not anymore in Texas." – Greg Abbott [[link removed]]

Texas Scorecard has extensively reported [[link removed]] on educators across the state accused of sexual misconduct involving students, as well as concerns about how school districts and state officials respond to allegations.

RELATED EDUCATION NEWS More Charges for Magnolia Teacher Accused of Molesting Students [[link removed]] --" width="434" src=" Real Texans Brad Buckley on Protecting Rural Texas [[link removed]] On this new edition of REAL TEXANS, Brad Buckley talks about [[link removed]] the controversial powerline project cutting through his district. We also talk about how his background as a veterinarian impacts his life as a lawmaker. --" width="434" src=" Local Government Spending Outpaces Population, Inflation Across Texas A new report by the Texas Public Policy Foundation has found that spending growth in the state's most populous cities and counties have exceeded a combined population and inflation benchmark from 2015 to 2025. Grant Halk has the details [[link removed]].

The study argues that local government spending should generally not grow faster than population and inflation. Among other things, the study noted the impact of wasteful spending, such as the City of Austin's decision to put $1.1 million toward hiring a firm tasked with designing a new city logo.

"Local governments across Texas have been spending outside the bounds of what is considered reasonable, placing an increasingly unaffordable burden on taxpayers as a result," wrote TPPF analyst John Bonura. "Unfortunately, there are no mechanisms outside of elections to prevent excesses in local government spending."

While four constitutionally defined limits exist on various aspects of state spending, Bonura's report notes that no such limitations currently exist for local governments. Gov. Greg Abbott has made local spending restraint and property tax reform a priority heading into the 90th Legislative Session. --" width="434" src=" Lago Vista City Council Votes To Remove Flock License Plate Readers In a unanimous vote, the Lago Vista City Council has ordered the removal of all Flock automatic license plate readers [[link removed]]. The devices use AI-driven technology to log vehicles’ license plate numbers and other identifying information, such as make, model, color, cosmetic damage, and modifications.

The technology has been hotly contested across the country, with some citizens calling for guardrails on the technology while others have vandalized the units, triggering criminal investigations.

Lago Vista Mayor Shane Saum said [[link removed]] that the cameras were added as a budget item in 2022 without much public discourse regarding their implementation. "I think the public felt a little duped that these were installed three years ago."

As city employees work to remove the cameras, four remain in place, but none are operational. --" width="434" src=" Confusion Over Abbott’s Data Center Audit in East Texas East Texas residents are raising concerns about continued data center construction, reports Hunter Burney [[link removed]]. At issue is Gov. Greg Abbott’s recent directive for state regulators to audit new data centers, but it only applies to sites connecting to the Texas power grid.

Part of the confusion arises from the fact that some of the state's infrastructure is powered by entities outside the purview of the grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas. For example, portions of the state in East and North Texas are connected to grids controlled by regional transmission organizations, such as Southwest Power Pool and Midcontinent ISO.

Black Mountain Power LLC reportedly purchased 600 acres in northeast Bowie County earlier this year for the construction of a data center. Bowie County is not in ERCOT. Work appears to be moving forward there, and the company has not responded to inquiries about how the governor's directive might impact their operations.RELATED NEWS State Rep. Presses TCEQ and Data Center Company On Development [[link removed]] --" width="434" src=" USDA Expands Border Surveillance To Combat New World Screwworm The U.S. Department of Agriculture is partnering with the Customs and Border Protection agency's aerial assets to survey livestock for signs of New World screwworm [[link removed]].

This is a parasitic fly whose females lay eggs in open wounds or body openings of warm-blooded animals. Once hatched, the larvae burrow into and feed on the living tissue of an infected animal. There have been 44 confirmed cases [[link removed]] of infestation in Texas livestock, and none in wildlife.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced [[link removed]] earlier this week that her agency is cracking down on illicit livestock movements to help prevent the parasite’s spread. --" width="434" src=" More Texas News --" width="434" src=" Number of the Day

41

The number of counties—out of 254—that are not served by the Texas Interconnection. Instead, their power comes from neighboring grids.

Source: Texas Comptroller [[link removed]]

--" width="434" src=" Today In History

On August 12, 1908, the first Model T rolled off the production line at the Ford facility in Detroit, Michigan. The vehicles were assembled by hand over the course of 12 hours.

--" width="434" src=" Quote-Unquote

"Only a rank degenerate would drive 1,500 miles across Texas without eating a chicken fried steak." – Larry McMurtry

--" width="434" src=" Support Texas Scorecard 🔒 [[link removed]] Directory of Texas' State & Federal Officials [[link removed]]

Contact information, biographies, and campaign finances.

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