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It’s been a little over nine months since lawmakers first gaveled in the beginning of the 87th Texas Legislature. Since then, there’ve been two Democratic walkouts, three special sessions and more back and forth over hot button issues than is possible to accurately count. Lawmakers accomplished the must-do items of passing a budget and then redrawing district maps. They also passed Gov. Greg Abbott’s top priority bills from the session. So there’s a likelihood – though no guarantee – that the third special session will be the last. Immediately in the wake of the regular session political watchers were calling it one of the most conservative in recent memory. Permitless or “constitutional carry” and a restrictive abortion ban are now laws of
the land. In the special sessions that followed, the Republican-led House and Senate also tacked on more rules regarding voting and a ban on trans students participating on public school sports teams that align with their gender identity. You can read more about all that below. But judging from
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some comments from our listeners , not everyone feels more important work has been accomplished: a definitive fix to the electric grid, solid plans to move past COVID and more. Did lawmakers’ priorities get lost, as
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one past guest memorably called it , amid “a Luby’s-style conservative buffet of items” at the Lege? As always, we’re eager to hear your takes. Reach out on
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Facebook ,
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Twitter ,
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Instagram or by
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dropping us a line . Thanks for reading, and for tuning in!
- Laura Rice

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@LauraRiceKUT

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As third special session ends, Legislature OKs redistricting maps, a tax cut and restrictions on trans athletes

Gov. Greg Abbott got most, but not all, of his priority issues through the House and Senate.

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After decades of service in Texas, 100-year-old priest in Beaumont faces retirement – and return to Spain

Despite seven decades of service in Southeast Texas, Father Luis Urriza – a 100-year-old Roman Catholic priest – is being asked to return to his home country against his will.

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New wildfire-fighting program for girls aims to bring more gender diversity to the profession

Most wildfire-fighters are men. An inaugural program through the Texas A&M Forest Service is meant to change that.

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Read More




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So-called 'critical race theory' bill has left school districts to interpret what it means for classroom learning

An NBC News reporter was tipped off that one interpretation led to guidelines for teaching the Holocaust with “opposing” perspectives.

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Read More




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Texas attorney general sets up unit for voter fraud claims in November election
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(Texas Newsroom)
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Lubbock County's software issues have left some wrongfully jailed
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(Texas Tech Public Media)
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Congressional subcommittee criticizes San Antonio company in new report on COVID assistance
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(Texas Public Radio)
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Council members question housing program at the center of Mayor Turner’s ethics allegations
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(Houston Public Media)

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COVID-19
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hit Texas nursing homes hard in the first year of the pandemic. The same was true across much of the country. Because older adults and those with weakened immune systems are so susceptible to the coronavirus, the Biden administration has announced plans to
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mandate that nursing home staff be vaccinated . The deadline for that is expected later this month, and won’t apply to assisted living facilities. I was interested to find out what vaccination rates across Texas are right now and whether they have changed in recent months. Getting that answer wasn't easy. For one, Texas does not track how many people work for its more than 3,000 nursing and assisted living facilities. That makes it difficult to determine what percentage of staff is vaccinated at any one time. We were able to hone in a bit more on nursing homes thanks to the federal government's reporting on homes with vaccination rates of 75% or more. That's what the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) consider a "realistic goal for providers to meet." Right now, only
around 30% of all nursing homes in Texas meet that criteria. But the numbers didn't change much between August and September. You can
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search vaccination rates at facilities in your area on our interactive maps. Still to be determined is whether the federal mandate would even be enforceable in Texas considering Gov. Greg Abbott's executive order banning such mandates. You can bet we'll be keeping an eye on it, and keeping you updated on air and online.
- Caroline Covington

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@coco_covey

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