Austin News

KERA | By Bill Zeeble Published June 3, 2025 at 11:29 AM CDT A bill banning Diversity, Equity and Inclusion work in Texas’ K-12 schools is on its way to the governor’s desk. Senate Bill 12 bans DEI policies in hiring and training, bans student groups centered around gender identity and sexual orientation, and prohibits school employees from…

The bill, which is poised to become law, creates up to a $250,000 fine for medical professionals who change a patients’ listed sex outside of certain exemptions. By Ayden Runnels May 22, 20257 PM Central The Texas House on Thursday approved a bill requiring health agencies to create a new field in medical records for the…

Lawmakers added $100 million to a child care scholarship program but failed to expand access to free preschool for children with disabilities. By Jess Huff June 23, 20255 AM Central LUFKIN — Texas lawmakers this year added $100 million to a scholarship fund to help families across the state pay for early child care, an extraordinary investment that…

Revelations around abuse at a San Antonio group home have parents worried and advocates reflecting on years of issues in Texas. by Paul Flahive Posted on June 5, 2025, Last month, employees of Maofu Home Health, a provider of group homes for people with intellectual disabilities with facilities across the state, were arrested for abusing…

If it becomes law, the bill would define sex based on reproductive organs and require state documents and policies to comply with that framework. By Eleanor Klibanoff May 10, 2025 Dozens of trans people and their allies gathered in the outdoor Capitol rotunda Friday, chanting at the top of their lungs. They will not erase us.…

By Blaise Gainey Published May 13, 2025 at 5:38 AM CDT The Texas House passed a measure on Monday that opponents say could raise the price of gender-affirming health care for adults in Texas — or simply stop insurance providers from covering the care altogether. Since the bill was previously approved by the Texas Senate, it now…

Students are concerned the legislation could silence supportive teachers, dismantle safe spaces, lead to overenforcement and prevent honest conversations about identity. By Sofia Sorochinskaia April 29, 2025 5 AM Central When Marshall Romero came out as a trans male in 2021, he didn’t think his identity would become a political issue. But in the years since,…

Texas v. Becerra would remove rights under Section 504 By Lucciana Choueiry, 4:40PM, Wed. Mar. 5, 2025 On Tuesday, a coalition of disability rights activists gathered outside the Texas State Capitol, braving the dusty winds to send Attorney General Ken Paxton a clear message. Organized by ADAPT of Texas, the rally opposed the September 2024 lawsuit, Texas v. Becerra,…

By  ELEANOR KLIBANOFF/The Texas Tribune Updated 2:29 PM CST, December 3, 2024 Twenty five years ago, the Texas Legislature passed a sweeping set of reforms to resuscitate the state’s collapsing rural health care system. Now, health care providers, advocates and local leaders are proposing similarly aggressive action to pull the rural maternity care system back from…

By Kate McGee Published December 12, 2024 at 1:02 PM CST University professors across the political spectrum in Texas are preemptively self-censoring themselves for fear of damaging their reputations or losing their jobs, according to a new survey from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a First Amendment advocacy group. More than 6,200 professors from across…