If you’ve got writer’s block, UT Austin has the program for you. The University of Texas at Austin’s Michener Center for Writers has unveiled the Steinbeck Writers Retreat, an opportunity for writers to live and write at Nobel and Pulitzer-prize-winning author John Steinbeck’s former residence. Steinbeck is famous for a number of iconic works, most notably “Of Mice and Men,” “The Grapes of Wrath,” “Tortilla Flat,” and “East of Eden.” Sitting on the East Coast in Sag Harbor, New York, the home is where Steinbeck wrote his two final books and where he learned he’d won the Nobel Prize in Literature. The Steinbeck Writers’ Retreat will allow writers the breathing room to unlock their creativity in one of the most inspiring settings on the East Coast as they walk in the steps of one of time’s greatest authors, John Steinbeck.UT President Jay Hartzell, in a statement While writers stay and write at the residence, they will also deliver public readings, workshops and work with Michener Center students. The residencies will be available to writers of fiction, poetry, plays, and scripts that are at different stages of their careers. They will also be offered to alumni of the UT Austin…

Mexico’s top diplomat said Friday her country has sent a diplomatic note to the U.S. government expressing concern that Texas’ deployment of floating barriers on the Rio Grande may violate 1944 and 1970 treaties on boundaries and water. Foreign Relations Secretary Alicia Bárcena said Mexico will send an inspection team to the Rio Grande to see whether any of the barrier extends into Mexico’s side of the border river. She also complained about U.S. efforts to put up barbed wire on a low-lying island in the river near Eagle Pass, Texas. Bárcena said that if the buoys impede the flow of water, it would violate the treaties, which requires the river remain unobstructed. Mexico has already asked that the barriers be removed. Texas began rolling out the new floating barrier on the Rio Grande in early July. It is part of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s multibillion-dollar effort to secure the U.S. border with Mexico, which already has included busing migrants to liberal states and authorizing the National Guard to make arrests. Migrant advocates have voiced concerns about drowning risks from the buoys and environmentalists questioned the impact on the river. Once installed, the above-river parts of the system and the webbing they’re connected with…

Embattled Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will not testify in his upcoming impeachment trial that could result in the Republican being permanently removed from office, according to his defense team. In a lengthy statement released Monday night, Paxton’s lead attorney against criticized the proceedings that led to the GOP-controlled Texas House impeaching the state’s top law enforcement in May. The trial in the Texas Senate is scheduled to begin Sept. 5. “‘They had the opportunity to have Attorney General Paxton testify during their sham investigation but refused to do so,” attorney Tony Buzbee said in a statement. “We will not bow to their evil, illegal, and unprecedented weaponization of state power in the Senate chamber.” A spokesman for the House managers leading the impeachment did not immediately return a message seeking comment Tuesday. Paxton, a Republican, is temporarily suspended from office pending the outcome of his trial on 20 articles of impeachment that include charges of bribery and abuse of office. Separately, he is under FBI investigation over accusations that he used his power to help a donor. That donor was indicted in a federal court in Austin last month on charges of making false statements to banks. Paxton is also still awaiting trial on felony securities fraud charges from 2015….

ERCOT, the operator of Texas’ power grid, is issuing a Weather Watch from June 25 to June 30 in anticipation of high temperatures paired with expected higher electrical demand across the state. Grid conditions are expected to be normal however reserves may be lower. “ERCOT is trying to be more transparent,” University of Houston Energy Fellow Ed Hirs said. Hirs said the Weather Watch is something people should pay attention to. “I think what ERCOT is explaining is it’s going to be hot and the grid is going to be stressed,” Hirs said. “We do bring them outside when the sun is going down because it is getting hotter out here,” said Angelique Grace from a park in Euless. She and her family are already preparing for what’s to come knowing temperatures will likely be over 100 degrees for several days ahead. “Staying hydrated,” Grace said. “Just staying cool. Keeping that air conditioner running.” ERCOT said there is a possibility of reaching an all-time peak demand record next week. But adds there is enough capacity to meet forecasted demand. Still, ERCOT says it will monitor conditions closely and will deploy all available tools to manage the grid. …

Texas is eliminating paper license plates. Gov Greg Abbott (R) signed HB718 into law Monday bringing an end to the state’s troubled temporary paper license tag system. The new law will replace all paper tags with metal ones starting July 1, 2025. A yearlong series of reports from NBC 5 Investigates led to calls for change. Our series, “Paper Tag Nation” exposed how criminals obtained car dealer licenses so they could access the Texas DMV’s online system and then print and sell fraudulent paper tags. Some of those tags were then used on cars involved in serious crimes. State Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) told the Senate during the legislative session that passage of the bill would deliver a blow to organized crime. Over the last year, the Texas DMV has implemented new security measures and suspended dozens of licensed car dealers suspected of using the state’s own system to sell fraudulent tags on the black market.  But as the DMV cracked down, counterfeiters stepped in making and selling entirely fake tags and capitalizing on the widespread confusion created by the proliferation of fraudulent tags printed out of the DMV’s system. PREVIOUS REPORTS
June 12, 2023 – Gov. Abbott signs law eliminating paper license plates…

During a discussion with the Texas Public Policy Foundation Friday afternoon on bills passed during the 88th legislative session, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott talked about the ongoing work to reduce and eventually eliminate the state’s property tax. Abbott reiterated Friday to TPPF CEO Greg Sindelar his intent to deliver to residents the largest property tax cut in the history of the state that will eventually lead to the elimination of property taxes. This session, legislators are working to reduce the property tax burden through tax compression, which is the state’s ability to use existing taxpayer money to buy down the school district maintenance and operations tax rate, effectively lowering the overall property tax obligation. The Texas House earlier this week approved a compression bill during Abbott’s first special session. In the Texas Senate, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wants to pass a bill using compression, too, but the Senate’s plan also includes a larger homestead exemption of $100,000 to drive property taxes down even further than compression alone. To date, the chambers have not yet come to an agreement on which plan will make it’s way to the governor’s desk. Abbott said Friday his plan is to use compression over multiple legislative…

The Texas Senate voted Sunday night to advance a bill that would kill vehicle safety inspections. But, an amendment added to the bill would push back the end of inspections by two years, until 2025. Some Republican lawmakers have tried for years to shut down the state’s inspection program, saying inspections are an inconvenience to drivers and do not improve road safety. On the floor of the Senate Sunday, Sen. Nathan Johnson (D-Dallas) urged his colleagues to keep inspections, saying lives are at stake. Johnson pointed to a new American Society of Civil Engineers study that found inspection programs have reduced car crash deaths across the country. “It found that states that have vehicle safety inspections have 5.5% fewer fatalities per year than states that don’t have inspection programs. In Texas that’s 261 dead people every single year,” Johnson said. But with a 20-11 vote the Senate opted to end inspections.  The amended bill now goes back to the House for consideration. Even if Texas eliminates safety inspections, drivers in major urban areas like the large DFW counties would still need annual emissions inspections which are mandated under federal rules. As lawmakers have debated the effectiveness of inspections, a monthslong NBC…

Thirteen people dead in two mass shootings. Eight immigrants killed when an SUV slams into a crowded bus stop. The likely approval of legislation that would let the Republican governor overturn elections in the most populous county, a Democratic stronghold. All in the past two weeks. These issues and the forces behind them – anger and guns, immigration turmoil, deep political divisions about what democracy means – are playing out across American life in various ways. But in Texas, with its immense size and a population that grows by more than 1,000 people a day, the stage is far bigger – and often louder. It’s enough to make even the proudest Texan wrestle with how he sees the state. “This is out of control right now,” said Jay Leeson, an illustrator and cartoonist who lives in Lubbock, a city in the Texas High Plains. He describes himself as a “conservative West Texan” whose kids “know how to handle guns, know how to ride horses, know how to do all the Texas things.” The “Texas things.” Texans have heard this all before. They’ve been hearing it for generations. That everyone is armed. That it’s a wildly conservative place full of oil…

Authorities on Monday still had not captured a gunman in Texas who killed five neighbors, and as the search dragged into a third day with false alarms and few apparent leads, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott faced backlash over drawing attention to the victims’ immigration status. An FBI agent on the scene near Houston acknowledged they have little to go on in the widening manhunt for 38-year-old Francisco Oropeza, who has been deported four times since 2009, but who neighbors say lived on their street for years prior to Friday night’s shooting. Abbott offered a $50,000 reward over the weekend for any tips that might lead to Oropeza, and while doing so, the three-term governor described on Twitter all the victims as “illegal immigrants” – a potentially false statement that his office walked back and apologized for Monday. Critics accused Abbott, who has made hardline immigration measures a signature issue in Texas, of putting politics into the shooting. KPRC in Houston reported that at least one of the victims was a permanent legal resident, despite the governor’s claim. “We’ve since learned that at least one of the victims may have been in the United States legally,” Abbott spokeswoman Renae Eze said…

An American Airlines worker died Thursday after being injured at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, according to airport officials. The worker was injured in the area where planes pull up to the terminal, an airport spokesperson said. Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services said it was called shortly after 2 p.m. Thursday and found a person dead from “traumatic injuries.” Corporal Destiny Silva with the Austin Police Department said the employee had been operating a ground service vehicle that struck a jet bridge. APD’s Vehicular Homicide Unit is investigating the crash as an accidental death, according to Corporal Silva. “I don’t have any indication that anyone is not cooperating. The main focus here is that someone unfortunately lost their lost in an unfortunate accident. We are utilizing all of our resources,” Silva said Thursday evening. American Airlines released a statement on the matter Thursday. “We are devastated by the accident involving a team member at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport,” said a spokeswoman for American Airlines. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and our local team members.” Fort Worth-based American declined to comment further. The name and sex of the worker and details about how they were injured were not immediately available. Working around…