HOUSTON (KIAH) — The Texas Supreme Court on Tuesday issued a temporary stay against Harris County’s guaranteed income program, hours before payments were to begin to over 1,900 low-income families. The Court granted the stay until it can consider the merits of the case filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Harris County has until Monday, April 29 to respond to the Court. The stay came hours after Paxton filed an emergency motion to send the case to Texas’ highest court, asking that the court pause the Uplift Harris program from giving out payments before it officially starts on Wedn ..read more

MISSION, Texas (Border Report) -- Powerful state leaders who hold the keys to billions of dollars in Texas transportation funds toured the Rio Grande Valley on Monday to see infrastructure projects on the border first-hand. Deported veteran dies while waiting to return home to US Leaders of both the Texas House and Senate transportation committees were among those who toured the region. Texas state Sen. Robert Nichols, a Republican who chairs the Senate Transportation Committee, and State Rep. Terry Canales, a Democrat from Edinburg who chairs the House Transportation Committee, were both part ..read more

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Millions of Taylor Swift fans spent the weekend listening to her new album "The Tortured Poets Department," unpacking hidden messages and decoding lyrics in the pop star's 11th studio album. The 14-time Grammy winner is no stranger to breaking records, but managed to outdo herself again with the release of her 31-track double-album, "TTPD: The Anthology." Swift dropped the surprise double album on Friday at 1 a.m. CT after releasing the expected first one at 11 p.m. CT. Within hours of releasing the album, Swift smashed streaming records. According to Spotify, "TPP ..read more

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — A federal appeals court agreed to temporarily excuse Texas from paying $100,000 per day over failures in the state’s foster care system.  Last week, U.S. District Judge Janis Jack found Texas in contempt of court for violating two of her previous orders in the longstanding lawsuit. Attorneys representing Gov. Greg Abbott and leadership at the Health and Human Services Commission and the Department of Family and Protective Services then asked for a stay, arguing their clients “have worked tirelessly to safeguard the welfare of the children in their care” and to comp ..read more

McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) -- Freshman U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz says House Speaker Mike Johnson is scheduled to visit McAllen on Monday for a sit-down on the border, and to help with her Republican re-election campaign to represent this South Texas district, Border Report has learned. U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz, R-Texas, is a first-time congresswoman representing Texas Congressional District 15. (De La Cruz Photo) "Right now we have the Speaker of the House Mike Johnson coming down to McAllen, Texas. We're going to sit and talk about the border being, obviously, the number one issue on ..read more

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — The American Psychological Association (APA) is calling on social media platforms to create “special protections” to help offset the negative effects of social media usage for children and teenagers.   A new study from the APA found people under the age of 25 have more vulnerabilities that social media companies may take advantage of. This includes responses to social feedback, relationship skills, malicious actors and the need for sleep.  “Platforms built for adults are not inherently suitable for youth,” the study says. “Social media use, functionality, and permi ..read more

EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – Alicia Barcena was in El Paso on Wednesday with a message to residents of Mexican descent uncomfortable with Texas’ aggressive efforts to enforce immigration laws: You are not alone. “We want Mexican and immigrant communities here to know Mexico will support them whether or not SB4 is enforced,” Mexico’s foreign minister said during the first of four stops in Texas to meet with her 11 consuls general in the state. “We are very concerned; that’s why we are here to promote initiatives like 'Know your rights,' legal assistance and 24-hour protection for our nation ..read more

Editor's note: The above video shows KXAN News' top morning headlines from Wednesday, April 17, 2024. AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Construction is underway on air conditioning projects in five additional facilities operated by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, intended to cool more inmates and guards after both groups have raised concerns about the conditions during Texas' hot summer months. The projects will cool an additional 2,149 beds, with another 11,565 eyed for 13 additional AC projects currently in the "design" phase. 135 people have died in Texas prisons since June 1; Families demand an ..read more

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Dallas Congressman Colin Allred raised more than $9.5 million in this year's first quarter, outraising U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz in the race for his seat. This year, Cruz has raised $6.9 million in the first quarter, according to new filings with the Federal Elections Commission. Allred is also surpassing the numbers Beto O'Rourke was bringing in at this stage of his campaign in 2018, when the El Paso Democrat ran the most competitive statewide campaign for his party in decades. During the first quarter of 2018, O’Rourke raised over $6.7 million in his race against Cruz, but u ..read more

EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – Citing a lack of resources, El Paso County officials are asking Texas to use its own judges and jail space to hold migrants arrested at the border wall on state charges. The plea comes after the Texas Department of Public Safety on Friday arrested another 200 migrants on rioting charges after some cut razor wire the state had placed along the Rio Grande, and tried to make their way to the Border Patrol on the other side. “It looks like we’ll be able to process 140 to 145 (by) today. […] We’re trying to process 20-30 at a time,” County Judge Ricardo Samaniego t ..read more