Montgomery County directs citizen board to review, and potentially remove, library books

The county north of Houston adopted the guidelines amid a growing number of book bans in school districts and a new state law that supporters claim protects children from inappropriate material.
U.S. Rep. Troy Nehls target of investigation by House ethics committee
It did not specify the focus of the investigation, but Nehls said it was related to his campaign’s finances.
Texas lawmakers and agency leaders experiment, ponder policies for an AI future

Agencies like the Texas Department of Transportation are using the technology to react to crashes and prepare invoices. More uses and regulations are coming.
Legal experts say it’s rare to pursue jail time in securities fraud cases like Paxton’s

In 2015, Attorney General Ken Paxton was indicted on three securities fraud felony charges. Experts in securities fraud say those charges are rarely pursued.
Ken Paxton agrees to community service to avoid trial, conviction in securities fraud case

Paxton, who will not have to enter a plea under the terms of the agreement, faced the prospect of decades in prison if he had been convicted of fraud.
U.S. Supreme Court takes up Texas case challenging abortion pill access

The nation’s highest court will consider a ruling from an Amarillo federal judge who revoked FDA approval of the abortion drug mifepristone. It’s the first major abortion-related case since the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022.
In Texas, ex-oil and gas workers champion geothermal energy as a replacement for fossil-fueled power plants

Texas has become an early hot spot for geothermal energy exploration as scores of former oil industry workers and executives are taking their knowledge to a new energy source.
Feds arrest five men accused of smuggling illegally purchased guns to cartels in Mexico
The men were charged with two criminal offenses, including straw purchasing of firearms, created by the 2022 bipartisan gun safety bill authored by Sen. John Cornyn.
Gun rights YouTuber Brandon Herrera gains momentum in race against U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales

Gonzales is taking heat from the right for his vote in support of the bipartisan gun safety bill passed after the Uvalde school shooting.
Texas energy companies are betting hydrogen can become a cleaner fuel for transportation

Supporters say developing hydrogen as a fuel is critical to slowing climate change. Critics are concerned that producing it with fossil fuels will prop up the oil and gas industry.