MRT 7/1-6/26 (free): Huffines Appointed Comptroller // Schatzline Joins Gov. Abbott Office // Abbott: Ban Rural Data Centers // TXSE Soft Launches // RIP Bill Archer

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TOP NEWS

“Comptroller candidate Don Huffines appointed to role ahead of November election” via KXAN‘s Adam Schwager – AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Republican nominee for Comptroller Don Huffines is now the incumbent heading into November’s election. On Thursday, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott appointed Huffines to replace acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock, who resigned from the position. Huffines’ appointment is effective on Aug. 1. In March, Huffines shattered Hancock’s hopes of winning the role permanently, handing him a resounding defeat in the Republican primary. Now, he’ll take over the job earlier than anticipated.

“Don Huffines brings the right mix of business experience and conservative principles to this vital office,” said Abbott in a statement. “He is a fifth-generation Texan, successful businessman, and proven conservative leader who puts taxpayers first. His private-sector experience and dedication to limited government make him exceptionally qualified to lead the state’s finances and protect every taxpayer dollar with integrity and accountability.”

“I’m honored by the trust Governor Abbott has placed in me,” said Huffines in the same release. “My commitment is simple: run government lean, protect every tax dollar, and keep Texas the best place to live, raise a family, and run a business.”

In November, Huffines is facing State Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D-Austin, to determine who will control the state’s finances for the next four years. “Texans are struggling right now, and they need someone who will ask hard questions about where their money is going,” Eckhardt said in a statement to Nexstar. “It’s unlikely that another Abbott appointee is going to do that, but I’ve been doing it for 20 years as a public servant—I’m ready to give Texans the answers they’re looking for as the independently elected Comptroller in November.” (KXAN)

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“Texas leads nation in proposed power plants for data centers, which would emit large amounts of greenhouse gases” via The Texas Tribune‘s Alejandra Martinez and Hien An Ngo – Texas is poised to lead the nation in power plants built to fuel data centers, according to a new report from an environmental watchdog group that warns the plants plan to emit tons of greenhouse gases and air pollution that will cause significant climate impacts and risks to human health.

At least 74 natural gas-fired power plants that each would generate at least 100 megawatts of electricity are planned across the nation to supply electricity directly to data centers, with 32 of those projects located in Texas. That’s more than any other state, according to a new analysis from the Environmental Integrity Project.

The power plants are planned for Comal, Anderson, Bexar, Pecos, Caldwell and many other Texas counties.

Those proposed Texas facilities could emit more than 287 million tons of greenhouse gases annually — equivalent to 61 million gasoline-powered cars driving for a year — according to Clean Air Act construction permit applications, draft permits and final permits for the data center power plants that EIP reviewed. (TX TRIB)

“Texas Stock Exchange Launches as Dallas Builds Y’all Street” via The New York Times‘ Jesus Jiménez – For years, Dallas has been building a rival to Wall Street, firm by firm. This month, the pitch goes live.

The Texas Stock Exchange, the first to be built and based in the state, will begin trading with a phased rollout; test stocks first, corporate listings expected by the fall. As modest as this opening sounds, it is one of the most concrete signs of an ambition the city has chased for years: to turn Dallas into an alternative to Wall Street.

The bet lands at an awkward time for the city. Even as Dallas courts the world’s biggest financial institutions, it has lost some of its most recognizable names downtown. AT&T, based in the city since 2008, said in January that it was moving its global headquarters to the suburbs. The Mavericks and Stars said they might follow the telecom giant’s lead and leave downtown as well. And Neiman Marcus plans to close its flagship store downtown after occupying it for more than a century.

Those last three announcements, which came in the span of about 25 hours, prompted ire and disappointment from many Dallas residents. (The New York Times)

“On the upper Texas coast, many petrochemical facilities may not be prepared for fiercer storms” via The Texas Tribune – Nearly two decades had passed since the storm. For many, the memory of what had happened on Goat Island had largely vanished into the Gulf of Mexico. Instead, what residents remembered that year were the piles of boats and cars washed up along the highway to Galveston and the twisted mounds of debris where homes once stood. It was late summer 2008, and Hurricane Ike had just struck, decimating parts of the upper Texas Gulf Coast.

But Goat Island — a spit of swampy land just east of Galveston — also flooded, and with it an oil and gas facility that sat on its uninhabited shores. When the hurricane struck, piping to the St. Mary Land and Exploration Company’s storage tanks snapped apart, releasing thousands of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf. By the time St. Mary workers arrived a day later, the tanks were empty.

There were nearly 450 reported releases of oil, gasoline and other hazardous substances into the air and water during Ike, including the incident on Goat Island. None of these releases was catastrophic. But the area’s luck may not hold.

Today, Galveston County is home to 22 refineries and chemical plants. Another five petrochemical facilities are proposed or under construction, according to Oil & Gas Watch. Since Ike, meanwhile, the county’s population has grown by more than 80,000. (TX TRIB)

“Over 100 Fort Worth-area kids were accidentally shot in 2 years. Five of them died” via Fort Worth Star-Telegram‘s Lina Ruiz – As children spend more time at home during summer break, experts want parents to be mindful of proper gun storage and safety practices to keep their families safe.

Cook Children’s Health Care System in Fort Worth is reminding families of the importance of responsible gun ownership, as the risk of unintentional gun injuries increases when firearms are stored improperly and children are out of school. From October 2023 to September 2025, Cook Children’s treated patients who were the victims of 121 unintentional gun injuries, five of which were fatal, according to Harley Roden, Aim for Safety program coordinator at Cook Children’s Center for Community Health.

“Safety doesn’t take the vacation, so as much as summer is all about the vacation and getting that break, safety doesn’t take that break,” Roden said.

Cook Children’s Aim for Safety program provides education and resources for parents with the goal of mitigating these incidents. In 2025, the program distributed 488 gun safes and 3,523 cable locks to the community. Cable locks, which disable firearms when they’re not being used, can be found in the emergency rooms of Cook Children’s Fort Worth and Prosper medical centers at no charge to community members. The gun safes have been provided at community events and can be requested through Cook Children’s. (FWST)

“Buyouts offered to nearly a quarter of UT Tyler employees amid budget shortfall” via The Texas Tribune‘s Jessica Priest – The University of Texas at Tyler is offering buyouts to about a quarter of its employees, but officials have not publicly released details about the cost-cutting move.

The incentives are intended to keep UT Tyler “affordable and prepared for the future” while allowing the university to continue its teaching and research mission, said Beverley Golden, the university’s associate vice president for strategic communications and media relations.

Information about who is eligible, how much employees could receive or when they would leave was not immediately available to the public Thursday. Golden said the buyouts aren’t expected to affect course offerings or student services.

The Texas Tribune asked Golden for details regarding the buyouts — including how payments would be calculated, deadlines, and the number of employees who had accepted so far — and requested employee-facing materials, such as a memo, FAQ or summary of the program’s terms. She did not answer those questions. (TX TRIB)

“Former U.S. Rep. Bill Archer, Texas congressman of three decades, dies at 98” via Houston Chronicle‘s Jarrod Wardwell – Former U.S. Rep. Bill Archer, a Republican who represented Texas’ 7th congressional district in the Houston area for three decades, died on Saturday, according to the University of Texas campus named after him. He was 98.

Archer served in Congress from 1971 to 2001 and spent six years as the chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. He was a key figure in lowering the death tax, expanding IRAs, driving health care and welfare reform and instituting a $500 per child tax credit for middle-income citizens, according to the Archer Center — the University of Texas System’s Washington, D.C. campus named in his honor.

“The University of Texas System is fortunate, proud and honored to have Congressman Archer’s name permanently associated with our work and our mission,” Chancellor John M. Zerwas, MD said in a statement posted online. “Through his extraordinary legacy of leadership and public service, thousands of Archer Fellows have been exposed to the highest ideals of civic engagement and inspired to carry those values forward in their own lives and careers.”

U.S. Rep. Pete Sessions, who serves in the 17th congressional district, said Archer died while with his wife Sharon Archer in Virginia. (HOU CHRON)

2026  

“Texas Senate race is dead even, poll finds” via The Washington Post‘s Scott Clement – The survey suggests Democrats have a chance to win a statewide contest in Texas for the first time since the 1990s.

Democrat James Talarico is tied with Republican Ken Paxton in Texas’s closely watched U.S. Senate election, according to a New York Times-Siena University poll released Tuesday.

The survey suggests President Donald Trump’s unpopularity and Paxton’s past controversies are giving Democrats a chance to win a statewide contest in Texas for the first time since the 1990s.

Overall, the poll finds 47 percent of likely voters support Paxton, the state’s attorney general, while 47 percent support Talarico, a state lawmaker who earned a master’s degree in theological studies. Another six percent are undecided. (WAPO)

“Supreme Court gives Paxton boost with campaign finance ruling” via The Texas Tribune‘s Kayla Guo and Gabby Birenbaum – The U.S. Supreme Court’s Tuesday decision to strike down caps on coordinated spending by political parties and candidates could boost GOP Senate nominee Ken Paxton, giving national Republicans a new tool to eat into James Talarico’s fundraising edge.

The 6-to-3 decision eliminated federal limits on how much political parties could spend on expenses like advertising in coordination with their candidates, with the high court finding that such caps violated the First Amendment.

As a result, political parties can spend without limit, in direct coordination with candidates, likely opening the floodgates to even more political advertising and spending.

“This is a massive victory for the First Amendment,” Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters said in a statement. “The RNC has been preparing for this ruling, and we are ready to expand the ways we directly help and provide resources to Republican candidates across the country.” (TX TRIB)

“Talarico walks back comments on religion and gender after Paxton’s win” via ABC News – Texas state Rep. James Talarico, the Democratic nominee in the pivotal U.S. Senate race in Texas, appeared on Wednesday to walk back some of his past comments on religion that have become a major line of attack in the race against Republican state Attorney General Ken Paxton.

When asked about his comments in 2021 during floor debate in the legislature that “God is non-binary” in an interview on ABC News Live, Talarico replied that “Ken Paxton is clipping my past cringey comments to distract from his career of corruption,” as part of a “playbook” of “distraction and division.”

When pressed on his comments, Talarico replied that they were “meant to be deliberately provocative” and that he believes “you can’t use human categories to define God.” He said that Republicans are seizing on the comments “to try and distract from the corrupt system that Ken Paxton embodies.”

Talarico’s comments along with other statements on transgender rights and immigration were highlighted in Paxton’s first general election ad, which ends with the tagline “Radical Talarico: too low-T for Texas.” “Low-T” is a reference to levels of testosterone that is used to insult men for a lack of masculinity. (ABC News)

“Trump announces midterm convention for Republicans in Dallas in September” via KXAN – Donald Trump announced Tuesday that Republicans will hold their first-ever national convention ahead of November’s midterm elections, an unusual event aimed at boosting turnout in races that will decide whether the party maintains control of Congress.

The convention will be held in Dallas on Sept. 9 and 10.

Although both major parties traditionally hold blockbuster conventions during presidential campaigns, Trump has long floated the idea of a similar gathering this year to focus voters’ attention on a sprawling collection of House and Senate races.

If Democrats regain control of either chamber, they will be empowered to block Trump’s agenda and launch investigations into his administration for the final two years of his term. (KXAN)

STATE GOVERNMENT  

“Gov. Greg Abbott calls for ban on data center development in rural Texas neighborhoods” via The Texas Tribune‘s Taylor Goldenstein and Kayla Guo – Gov. Greg Abbott called for blocking new data center development in rural parts of the state during a campaign stop in East Texas on Tuesday.

“We must prohibit them from building AI data centers in rural Texas neighborhoods,” Abbott said at the Bullard event, which primarily discussed his plan to cut property taxes, adding that this issue “dovetails right into fighting for East Texas values.”

Abbott’s push for a prohibition in rural neighborhoods appears to go further than a sweeping regulatory framework he unveiled earlier this month, which called for data centers to add new power generation to the grid, pay for their own infrastructure costs, reuse their own water and implement measures such as setbacks, among other proposals aimed at limiting their impact on residential communities.

In a statement, Abbott campaign spokesperson Eduardo Leal said, “everything the Governor said today tracks with his June 10th letter.” (TX TRIB)

“Gov. Abbott blasts Supreme Court ruling preserving birthright citizenship” via Texas Public Radio – Gov. Greg Abbott blasted the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to preserve birthright citizenship on Tuesday, calling it ‘a missed opportunity’; after the justices rejected President Donald Trump’s effort to end the long-standing constitutional guarantee.

On social media, the governor argued birthright citizenship has become “a powerful magnet for illegal immigration,” and called automatic citizenship for children born to noncitizen parents “an absurdity that was never contemplated by our Constitution nor agreed to by the American people.”

“Congress must clarify that American citizenship means something,” Abbott posted. “The American people and the sovereignty of our nation deserve nothing less.”

Abbott was joined by U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, who called the ruling “a travesty.” (TPR)

“Rep. Nate Schatzline resigns from Texas House to lead “election integrity” policy in Gov. Abbott’s office” via The Texas Tribune‘s Kayla Guo and Alejandro Serrano – State Rep. Nate Schatzline, R-Fort Worth, resigned from the Texas House Thursday to take a new position as Gov. Greg Abbott’s senior adviser on election policy.

Schatzline, who was among the most hardline conservative members of the Texas House, is set to lead “policy development and legislative strategy efforts related to election integrity,” according to a Thursday announcement by Abbott’s office.

The two-term lawmaker had been floated in recent weeks as the governor’s potential choice for secretary of state, Texas’ top elections officer, according to unconfirmed media reports that The Texas Tribune could not independently verify. On June 2, Secretary of State Jane Nelson announced she would step down from the office in mid-July, just months before a blockbuster midterm.

“Nate Schatzline is a dedicated conservative leader with a proven record in the fight for election integrity,” Abbott said in a statement. “His experience in the Texas House and service in the Trump administration will be a tremendous asset as we protect the voices of Texas voters.” (TX TRIB)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT  

“CPS Energy plans larger South Texas Project stake, eyes microreactors” via San Antonio Express-News‘s Kelsey Brown – The South Texas Project Electric Generating Station, one of the largest nuclear power facilities in the nation, sits southwest of Bay City. CPS Energy aims to grow its South Texas Project stake, with future plans to explore nuclear microreactors as power demand rises.

A new CPS Energy generation plan that amps up the utility’s reliance on natural gas also grows its footprint in another powerful yet controversial form of energy: nuclear energy.

The city-owned utility’s stake in the South Texas Project spans more than three decades. But now, CPS Chief Strategy Officer Elaina Ball said the utility is looking to increase its ownership of the plant, with future plans to own its own nuclear microreactors.

“It hits sort of the trifecta of the things that we, as a utility, are focused on — which is having reliable, affordable and cleaner sources of energy,” Ball said about nuclear energy. (SAEN)

“Dallas will furlough 4,200 city employees amid budget gap” via The Texas Tribune‘s Joshua Fechter – Dallas will furlough more than 4,200 city employees for three days to counteract a $30 million budget shortfall expected this year, city officials said Tuesday.

The state’s third largest city has seen higher-than-expected costs this year as its revenue fell short, driven by a drop-off in expected sales tax revenue. Overtime for police officers and firefighters and increased health care costs for employees, including higher medication costs for treatments such as GLP-1s, helped drive costs beyond what the city had planned, Dallas officials said in May.

To help bridge the gap, about half of the city’s civilian employees must take off work without pay on July 10, Sept. 4 and Sept. 28, city officials announced. A group of city executives must also take another two unpaid days off sometime before Sept. 16.

“Furloughs are not our preferred solution,” Dallas City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert said in a statement. “However, they enable us to reduce expenses, protect jobs and employee health benefits, and continue delivering services to our residents.” (TX TRIB)

“Corpus Christi declines to seek federal grant for long-debated water desalination plant” via The Texas Tribune‘s Colleen DeGuzman – A sharply divided Corpus Christi City Council declined Tuesday to apply for a federal grant to help build a proposed $978.8 million water treatment project.

Council members traded insults and accusations on their way to a 5-4 vote that casts further doubt on a proposed desalination plant meant to provide a drought-resistant water supply in about three years.

Council members Roland Barrera, Mark Scott and Everett Roy suggested tapping a U.S. Bureau of Reclamation grant program that offers up to $120 million to help build desalination plants across the country.

Barrera said he proposed the grant application with little hope of passing a bitterly conflicted City Council, but felt it was worth the effort because the city needs the funding. (TX TRIB)

“Austin Energy increases solar incentives for homeowners, businesses” via KXAN‘s Cami Knott — Austin Energy (AE) customers can now receive even larger financial incentives to install solar panels, as the utility increased its residential and commercial solar rebates beginning Wednesday. AE said the changes were designed to lower the upfront cost of installing solar systems and encourage more customers to generate their own renewable energy.

“These incentive updates are designed to accelerate local solar adoption, support the local solar industry and support Austin’s climate goals,” AE General Manager Stuart Reilly said in a statement. “It’s the definition of a win-win when you can also help customers offset energy costs by generating clean electricity on-site.”

The incentive increases come as Texas continues to expand its solar industry. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association, Texas ranks second in the nation with 51.9 gigawatts of installed solar capacity and has the country’s fastest-growing solar economy, including the largest utility-scale solar and energy storage projects. The organization projects the state’s installed capacity will grow another 62% by 2030, allowing Texas to surpass California before 2027.

For homeowners, the AE rebate for installing a solar photovoltaic system larger than 3 kilowatts increased from $2,500 to $4,000 per project, which is a 60% increase. Commercial and nonprofit customers are also eligible for higher incentives through the utility’s capacity-based and performance-based rebate programs. (KXAN)

#TXLEGE  

“A year after deadly floods, Texas lawmakers haven’t addressed training for emergency coordinators” via The Texas Tribune‘s Emily Foxhall – In legislative hearings after last year’s July 4 floods, the state’s emergency management chief made some recommendations to state lawmakers. They included empowering the agency to vet volunteers who show up after disasters and establishing clearer guidelines for local officials to decide whether to do autopsies during mass casualty events.

There was another glaring problem that Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd told legislators about: Unlike paid firefighters and police officers, the state has no required training for all local emergency management coordinators, the people tasked with planning for and helping to lead the response to disasters.

“I do think it’s time that we as a state decide there needs to be a baseline for people that get appointed into that position,” Kidd told lawmakers at a July 23 hearing focused on the floods.

Nine months later, in April, he told another state committee investigating the disaster: “To be an emergency management coordinator in the state of Texas, you need the signature of a mayor or judge. Period. That needs to change.” (TX TRIB)

BUSINESS NEWS  

“Texas governor’s office asked for broadband rules that help Elon Musk’s Starlink” via Houston Public Media‘s Mose Buchele – The state office that distributes billions to expand Texas rural broadband is facing allegations of “favoritism” and offering “sweetheart” deals to companies that provide low earth orbit satellite broadband.

The Texas office responsible for distributing over $5 billion in state and federal money to expand rural broadband faced allegations of “favoritism” and offering “sweetheart” deals at a recent hearing of the state Senate’s Business and Commerce Committee.

At the June 24 hearing, lawmakers suggested the Texas Broadband Development Office was changing rules and giving special treatment to companies that offer broadband via “low earth orbit,” or LEO, satellites.

According to testimony, some of those changes came at the suggestion of the office of Gov. Greg Abbott. (Houston Public Media)

“Semiconductor tech company FormFactor gets $24M grant for new facility in Farmers Branch” via Dallas Morning News‘ Trevor Bach – FormFactor, a California-based semiconductor technology company, is planning a manufacturing facility in Farmers Branch.

FormFactor, a California-based semiconductor technology company, has been awarded a $24 million grant from the state of Texas for a new manufacturing facility in Farmers Branch, Gov. Greg Abbott’s office announced Thursday.

The facility, which FormFactor expects to ramp up production in 2027 and bring hundreds of jobs, will also reinforce Texas’ — and especially North Texas’ — strong position in the booming global semiconductor industry. The tiny, highly complex chips are found in everything from laptops to hearing aids and also provide the infrastructure that enables artificial intelligence.

In a statement, FormFactor CEO Mike Slessor nodded to his company’s role in the larger AI boom, referring to FormFactor “as the world’s leading supplier of advanced probe cards, which are used by global manufacturers of the logic and memory chips at the heart of the AI revolution and modern data centers.” (DMN)

“Labor strike at Houston-area Ashland chemical plant enters second week” via Houston Chronicle‘s Maliya Ellis – About 70 union workers on strike at the Ashland Specialty Chemicals plant in Texas City entered their second week on the picket line on Wednesday in a push to retain workplace protections.

Workers at the pharmaceutical-grade chemical manufacturing plant — including machinists, operators and pipefitters represented by four unions — are striking indefinitely over several issues, including a company proposal to remove contract language that restricts employees from performing work outside their area of specialization. Union leaders say the proposal could endanger employees and Texas City residents if workers perform specialized tasks without proper training.

“This is Texas City: they know all too well of the disasters that can happen in these facilities when you try to cut corners,” said Lewis Crawford, lead negotiator for the Texas City Metal Trades Council and a business agent with the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 564. “That’s what this is.”

In a statement, Ashland spokeswoman Carolmarie C. Brown said the chemical manufacturing company “is dedicated to the safety, health, and security of our employees, their families, and the communities where we work and live.” She said Ashland had taken steps to minimize disruption to its customers and that the company would not comment on the status of its negotiations with union representatives. (HOU CHRON)

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION  

“Trump administration won’t renew USMCA, raising risks of higher prices and lost jobs for Texas” via Houston Public Media‘s Andrew Schneider – During his first term, President Trump hailed the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), negotiated by his administration, as far superior to its predecessor, NAFTA. Now, he says he’s willing to let it expire unless Mexico and Canada agree to significant concessions.

The Trump administration has served notice that it will not renew the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) in its current form, increasing the likelihood that the free trade agreement will be allowed to lapse in ten years’ time — potentially leading to higher prices, lower foreign investment and lost jobs for Texas in the interim.

“The United States will continue to engage with Mexico and Canada to address the agreement’s shortcomings and our trade deficits with these countries,” U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said, announcing the decision. “However, the agreement remains in force pending resolution of these issues or until the agreement’s termination. As previously announced, the United States will meet with Mexico the week of July 20 for a third round of bilateral negotiations related to the USMCA joint review.”

When Trump negotiated the USMCA during his first term as president, to serve as a replacement for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), he called it the “fairest, most balanced, and beneficial trade agreement we have ever signed into law.” In its current form, the USMCA is set to expire on July 1, 2036. (Houston Public Media)

“Appeals court says undocumented migrants must get hearing” via The Texas Tribune‘s Uriel J. García – The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday ruled the federal government can’t hold undocumented immigrants for more than 90 days without a bond hearing, rejecting a Trump administration policy that requires immigration agents to hold immigrants until they are deported.

In a 2-1 ruling, the three-judge panel based in New Orleans said the federal government must explain at court hearings why it believes some undocumented immigrants don’t deserve to be released on bond.

Leslie H. Southwick, a George W. Bush appointee, wrote in the majority opinion, “Our only requirement is that a hearing must be held within 90 days of the commencement of detention and that at the hearing, the Government must articulate an individualized justification for further detention without bond.”

She added the government must prove the detained immigrant is a danger to the community and flight risk or “assert another justification why an unadmitted alien must be detained.” (TX TRIB)

“Delays in federal research funding hit Texas universities” via Houston Chronicle‘s James Osborne – A research fellow works in a lab at the National Institutes of Health, Tuesday, Jan 21, 2025, in Bethesda, Md. The Trump administration is delaying tens of millions of dollars in federal research grants to some of Texas’ biggest universities.

While many institutions said they hope to eventually receive approval for the money, the administration’s plans remain unclear amid a larger overhaul of the system by which grant applications are evaluated. Experts warn the holdup is leaving some universities to put research plans on hold.

“The problem is uncertainty. These universities are trying to plan,” said Dr. Sudip Parikh, CEO of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which represents scientists and researchers. “How many graduate students is the University of Texas or A&M going to accept? You base that on how much grant money you’re going to get.”

Texas A&M University in College Station saw direct grants from the National Science Foundation drop from $11.7 million over the first nine months of the 2025 fiscal year to $2.4 million over the same period this year, according to federal data compiled by the non-profit Grant Witness, which tracks federal research spending. (Houston Chronicle)

QUICK LINKS  

TX TRIB: “Healthcare costs push Texas businesses to breaking point” TX TRIB

AAS: “Proposed shift in Texas migrant child representation raises deportation concerns” AAS

WFAA: “Irving-based Caterpillar picks Texas for next focus of $100 million workforce investment” WFAA

EnergyNow.com: “Exxon Looks to Ditch New Jersey Incorporation for Texas Homecoming” EnergyNow.com

TX TRIB: “Bobby Pulido faces scrutiny over ex-bandmate in bid for Congress” TX TRIB

AAS: “Why both Ken Paxton and James Talarico should be nervous” AAS

Spectrum News: “Talarico targets Paxton over plea deal in Texas child sex abuse case” Spectrum News

WFAA: “Inside Texas Politics | Full Interview on GOP Midterm with Kendall Scudder, Texas Democratic Party” WFAA

HOU CHRON: “I’m a veteran. Closing Texas GOP primaries betrays conservative values | Opinion” HOU CHRON

TX TRIB: “Trump administration asks Texas for help providing legal services to immigrant kids facing deportation” TX TRIB

SAEN: “Housing, hotels or horses? A fight brews over Frost Bank Center land” SAEN

KXAN: “1 dead, 1 hurt in north Austin bar shooting” KXAN

MySA: “Texas businesses forced to close in Austin from I-35 expansion project so far” MySA

HOU CHRON: “Bullet hits child in Channelview backyard during July 4 celebration, HCSO says” HOU CHRON

HOU CHRON: “Child dies after he was found unresponsive in busy pool on July 4, HCSO says” HOU CHRON

Fortune: “How a third-generation Texas oilman transformed an organic farming company into a nuclear startup” Fortune

ABJ: “Texas buyer plans mix of uses after buying Route 128 office park” ABJ

EXTRA POINTS 

Recent Texas sports scores:
Tuesday 6/30
> MLB: Texas 4, Cleveland 2
> MLB: Houston 6, Minnesota 4
Wednesday 7/1
> WORLD CUP: USA 2, Bosnia 0
> MLB: Minnesota 8, Houston 3
> MLB: Cleveland 9, Texas 4 4
Thursday 7/2
> MLB: Texas 10, Detroit 4
> WNBA: Dallas 86, Connecticut 83
Friday 7/3
> MLB: Tampa 3, Houston 1
> WNBA: Minnesota 85, Dallas 77
Saturday 7/4
> MLB: Detroit 3, Texas 0
> MLB: Houston 10, Tampa 8
Sunday 7/5
> MLB: Detroit 6, Texas 3
> MLB: Houston 2, Tampa 0
> WNBA: Dallas 89, Toronto 767

Tonight’s Texas sports schedule:
> 5:45pm: MLB: Houston at Washington
> 7pm: WORLD CUP: USA vs. Belgium (Fox network)

Tomorrow’s Texas sports schedule:
> 5:45pm: MLB: Houston at Washington
> 7pm: Dallas at New York (ESPN)
> 7:05pm: Los Angeles Angels at Texas

TEXAS SPORTS HEADLINES / LINKS

HOUSTON ROCKETS: “Rockets add veteran guard Marcus Smart on a two-year deal’” HOU CHRON

HOUSTON ROCKETS: “Rockets keep forward Tari Eason on five-year, $81 million contract“ HOU CHRON

DALLAS STARS: “Dallas Stars have one choice with their top goal scorer. There is no going back” FWST

TEXAS FOOTBALL: “NFL draft: Texas QB Arch Manning could be No. 1. But these Longhorns may be top picks, too” AAS

TEXAS FOOTBALL: “Texas football lands 3 defensive players, including 4 stars ranked in their state’s top 10” AAS

TEXAS A&M FOOTBALL: “Texas A&M football’s 2027 recruiting class leaps in rank after dominant June?” AAS

UT RGV FOOTBALL: “UTRGV football sells out season tickets, announces themes for five home games in 2026’ MY RGV

TEXAS BASEBALL: “Texas baseball loses starter but hires MiLB coach, ex-Oregon coach to join Longhorns staff” AAS