Reporting Texas • 4th April 2025

Texas is One Step Closer to Banning THC - Here’s What That Might Look Like - Reporting Texas

By Gracie KirschnerReporting TexasThe Texas Senate passed a statewide ban on March 19 on all forms of THC, the primary psychoactive compound found in cannabis or marijuana. Senate Bill 3 was named one of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s priority bills for this session and aims to crack down on the state’s booming consumable hemp market. 
This comes after Texas lawmakers legalized the commercialization of hemp in 2019 by passing legislation that allowed products with THC levels under 0.3% to be sold in Tex...

KXAN Austin • 31st March 2025

Matthew McConaughey and other stars push Senate to make Texas next film haven

AUSTIN (Nexstar) – Monday evening the Texas Senate Committee on Finance approved Senate Bill 22, which would increase the amount of money the state provides to attract film and television projects to Texas. The 11-0 vote sets the stage for the bill to be considered by the full Senate in the coming days.


The vote came hours after committee members heard testimony from special guest Matthew McConaughey in support of SB 22. The legislation would set aside $500 million every two years for the n...

Reporting Texas • 7th March 2025

'Not My President’s Day' protests take place at Texas State Capitol, across U.S - Reporting Texas

By Gracie KirschnerReporting TexasProtests have erupted across the United States since President Donald Trump took office this January. Austin is no stranger to these protests, and President’s Day was no exception. 
On a day meant to celebrate our nation’s leaders, thousands of protesters gathered at the Texas State Capitol to protest the Trump administration and Elon Musk’s influence on U.S. policy. This protest and others like it are part of the “No Kings on Presidents’ Day” or “Not my Preside...

KXAN Austin • 3rd March 2025

Texas Senate considers total THC ban — where they are so far

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — The Senate State Affairs Committee began its discussion on a bill that would ban all forms of THC, the primary psychoactive ingredient in marijuana on Monday.


Texas Senate Bill 3 was named one of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s priority bills for this session in January and aims to address concerns that unregulated THC products are being sold across the state. 

This comes after Texas lawmakers legalized the commercialization of hemp, including products with THC levels under 0.3%,...

KXAN Austin • 3rd February 2025

Bill filed after bail bond reform named priority for Texas Legislature

AUSTIN (KXAN)- Bail bond reform was named one of Gov. Greg Abbott’s emergency items for the 2025 legislative session, which he announced on Sunday at the State of the State address. 

“Activist judges simply have too much discretion to let repeat offenders out on bail only to see them harm more Texans,” Abbott said in his address.


Abbott claims that these judges have contributed to repeat offenders returning to the streets by frequently setting their bail at low amounts. By declaring this an...

KXAN Austin • 24th January 2025

Faith and food: How an east Austin woman is fighting food insecurity

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Jeannette Valdez Duran lived on the streets of north Austin between 2006 and 2009. Finding food to eat during those times was difficult and sometimes proved to be impossible.


Famished one night, she mustered up the courage to approach the night manager of a local convenience store and ask for the day’s leftovers. His kindness inspired Duran to change the trajectory of her life. Now, she’s using her good fortune to give back through her nonprofit Mobile Blessings from the Heart...

KXAN Austin • 23rd January 2025

Trump expands on Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s border policies

AUSTIN (NEXSTAR) – Only minutes after being sworn in as the 47th President of the United States, President Donald Trump praised Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s border security policies and promised Texas would have support from Washington now that he was in office.


“He was a very popular governor and now he’s an unbeatable governor because of [his] border policies,” Trump said of Abbott in remarks at the Capitol following his inauguration.


To back this up, the president signed 10 immigration-rela...

KXAN Austin • 11th December 2024

Texas’ abortion legislation could deplete women’s health care in the state, OB-GYNs say

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Abortion laws in Texas are stressing the state’s already overworked women’s health care workforce and depleting numbers of doctors entering and staying in the state, according to a study by Manatt Health.


More than 70% of practicing OB-GYNs in Texas feel the near-total ban is prohibiting them from providing high-quality, evidence-based care for patients and negatively impacting their ability to practice, according to the study released in October. 


In 2022, after the U.S....

KXAN Austin • 13th November 2024

Texas counties seek state EMS funding as costs rise

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Counties across Texas are using part of their budget to pay for their own fleet of ambulance services or they’re contracting them out.


These services require large portions of county budgets and, as costs for emergency services continue to rise, leaders are turning to the state for help.


Terri Langford, the health and human services reporter at The Texas Tribune, joined KXAN’s Will DuPree to discuss the reasons behind these rising costs and why there’s a growing need for th...

KXAN Austin • 23rd October 2024

University of Texas students receive settlement in Juul class action lawsuit

AUSTIN (KXAN)- Some Juul users are receiving hundreds, even thousands of dollars as part of a $300 million class action settlement. Juul and Altria, which owns 35% of Juul, were accused of misleading customers about the product’s addictiveness and health impacts. They were also charged with unlawfully marketing to minors.


Juul agreed to a settlement in 2022, but the Altria settlement, which was needed to kickstart the payouts, was not approved until earlier this year. As of March, more than 1...

KXAN Austin • 23rd October 2024

University of Texas students receive settlement in Juul class action lawsuit

AUSTIN (KXAN)- Some Juul users are receiving hundreds, even thousands of dollars as part of a $300 million class action settlement. Juul and Altria, which owns 35% of Juul, were accused of misleading customers about the product’s addictiveness and health impacts. They were also charged with unlawfully marketing to minors.


Juul agreed to a settlement in 2022, but the Altria settlement, which was needed to kickstart the payouts, was not approved until earlier this year. As of March, more than 1...

KXAN Austin • 23rd October 2024

University of Texas students receive settlement in Juul class action lawsuit

AUSTIN (KXAN)- Some Juul users are receiving hundreds, even thousands of dollars as part of a $300 million class action settlement. Juul and Altria, which owns 35% of Juul, were accused of misleading customers about the product’s addictiveness and health impacts. They were also charged with unlawfully marketing to minors.


Juul agreed to a settlement in 2022, but the Altria settlement, which was needed to kickstart the payouts, was not approved until earlier this year. As of March, more than 1...

KXAN Austin • 1st October 2024

Insight: Austin counselor gives tips on how to tell kids about dangers of swatting

AUSTIN (KXAN)- The beginning of the school year in Central Texas has been accompanied by an influx of reported safety threats. Just last week, San Marcos High School went into lockdown after police looked into a swatting incident there.


Swatting occurs when someone reports a fake crime to cause a large police response. Now, local law enforcement are urging parents to talk to their children about the severity of inciting a swatting incident. 

Megan Butler, a licensed professional counselor...

KXAN Austin • 29th September 2024

Texas mom who lost son ‘not backing down’ in fight for fentanyl education

AUSTIN (Nexstar) – Fentanyl poisonings continue to kill thousands of people across Texas. But the latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show an encouraging sign. The numbers show a slight decrease in deaths in Texas, mirroring a nationwide decline that started showing up earlier this year.


Part of the credit for the decline can be attributed to increased awareness of the dangers of the drug, DEA officials say.

Last year, Texas took a new step towards fentanyl...

KXAN Austin • 24th September 2024

Hays County, DOJ reach agreement on ADA-compliant polling places

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The U.S. Justice Department reached an agreement with Hays County to ensure access to polling places for voters with disabilities this November.


This agreement follows an investigation into Hays County’s compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act where investigators surveyed the 14 polling places the county used during last year’s election. 


During this investigation, the DOJ found the county’s polling places had barriers to access for voters with disabilities. So...

KXAN Austin • 17th September 2024

Insight: Expert explains UT automatic admissions drop for Texas students

AUSTIN (KXAN)- The University of Texas Austin announced Monday it will drop the percentage of Texas high school students automatically admitted to the university from 6% to 5%. The school said in a statement that the change is necessary in order to meet the state’s requirement that 75% of the Texas residents in each freshman class are admitted based on high school class rank. This change is expected to impact admissions for Fall 2026. 


Dale Price, the Founder and CEO of Access College America...

KXAN Austin • 17th September 2024

Insight: Expert explains UT automatic admissions drop for Texas students

AUSTIN (KXAN)- The University of Texas Austin announced Monday it will drop the percentage of Texas high school students automatically admitted to the university from 6% to 5%. The school said in a statement that the change is necessary in order to meet the state’s requirement that 75% of the Texas residents in each freshman class are admitted based on high school class rank. This change is expected to impact admissions for Fall 2026. 


Dale Price, the Founder and CEO of Access College America...

FOX 5 Atlanta • 31st July 2024

U.S. Marine talks about 2006 Iraq injury, recovery and nonprofit that helps injured veterans

ATLANTA - Andrew "Andy" Robinson has always been a fighter. He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps ready to face any challenges that came with the job. His attitude did not waver when he was deployed to Iraq not once, but twice. "I went to Iraq twice, once in 2004 and then another time in 2006. It's war, so you don't really know what to expect or what it's like. But it wasn't extremely scary. At that point, you're a trained professional and this is your line of work. So going to do that is somethi...

FOX 5 Atlanta • 3rd July 2024

Singer Rachel Hale releases new song titled 'Just Breathe (Daddy's Song)

ATLANTA - Singer-songwriter Rachel Hale has many talents. Born in Prescott, Arkansas, a small town with only 3,500 people, music opportunities were limited. Despite that, she had always dreamed of becoming a singer. But, she didn’t expect her journey to begin on "American Idol."  After trying out for the show at age 16, the judges told her to come back when she had grown in her abilities. At age 20, her dreams came true. She was one of the top 20 female finalists in "American Idol: Season 12." H...

FOX 5 Atlanta • 11th June 2024

Beware of the BORG! Doctor talks about drinking trend on college campuses

ATLANTA - BORG, also known as "blackout rage gallon," is becoming a popular drinking trend among Gen-Z on college campuses. This term refers to a concoction made in a gallon jug filled with liquor (such as vodka), water, and a flavored electrolyte enhancer. These drinks are typically consumed during day parties, also known as "darties." The drink can be extremely dangerous, according to health experts.  "Because it’s all in one jug or container, people tend to drink a lot more than they normally...