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TEXAS PRESS ASSOCIATION
STATE CAPITAL HIGHLIGHTS
A federal panel last week blocked implementation of the state’s revised congressional map, The Dallas Morning News reported. State officials quickly appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
If the ruling stands, candidates would run for Congress under the previous boundaries, forcing election officials to scramble and revert to the old map.
“The Court orders that the 2026 congressional election in Texas shall proceed under the map that the Texas Legislature enacted in 2021,” wrote U.S. District Judge Jeffrey V. Brown in the 160-page ruling.
Brown was appointed to his position by President Donald Trump and is a former Texas Supreme Court justice who has long backed conservative policies.
Brown said the map approved last summer by the GOP-controlled Legislature was racially gerrymandered. The threejudge panel split 2-1, with Senior U.S. District Judge David C. Guaderrama joining Brown. U.S. Circuit Judge Jerry E. Smith wrote a searing dissent.
The state is expected to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to temporarily pause the ruling and use the newly drawn map while it decides the merits of the case. The filing deadline for a place on the primary ballot is Dec. 8. — candidates have less than two weeks to decide what seats they plan to run for.
Judge blocks display of Ten Commandments at some schools A federal judge ruled that requiring the display of the Ten Commandments in Texas classrooms interferes with the religious freedoms of the 15 Texas families who sued, issuing a temporary injunction against 11 districts across the state, the Houston Chronicle reported.
The ruling has been appealed to the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which will hear arguments in both the Texas case and a similar case in Louisiana.
Meanwhile, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued Round Rock, Leander and Galveston school districts after board members voted against putting up the displays.
“These rogue ISD officials and board members blatantly disregarded the will of Texas voters who expect the legal and moral heritage of our state to be displayed in accordance with the law,” Paxton said in a statement.
Another lawsuit challenging the requirement to post the Ten Commandments temporarily blocked the move. A total of 25 school districts are affected by the rulings.
Dallas Fed: State’s economy is cooling The Texas economy is cooling, according to a recent analysis by researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
The analysis concludes that tariffs, inflation and uncertainty about the economy are taking a toll on the state’s businesses.
“Tariffs and the surrounding uncertainty continue to impact the Texas economy,” Luis Torres, a Dallas Fed economist who coauthored the analysis, said in accompanying comments.
He added that nearly half of all businesses surveyed are seeing costs go up because of tariffs, and more than a fourth are passing along those higher costs to their customers.
The survey found modest growth in the manufacturing sector while the services sector saw slight job losses.
Texas has the country’s second- largest state economy, with 9% of overall U.S. gross domestic product.
New state parks planned with $1 billion fund After voters in 2023 backed a $1 billion endowment to establish the Centennial Parks Conservation Fund, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is planning development of several new state parks. The largest is the Silver Lake Ranch acquisition from the Moody Foundation, which will be developed with money from the fund, according to the Austin American-Statesman.
Other new parks planned include: Bear Creek State Park, 1,720 acres in Uvalde County.
Post Oak Ridge State Park, 3,170 acres in Lampasas and Burnet counties.
Enchanted Rock State Natural Area expansion, 3,700 acres in Llano County.
“This fund allows Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to address the demand for more public lands in Texas while conserving natural and cultural resources for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations,” the Parks and Wildlife Department said on its website.
Paxton asks court to keep divorce records sealed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is asking a Collin County court to seal records in his ongoing divorce case, The Dallas Morning News reported. A hearing has been set for Dec. 19 on a lawsuit filed by several major media companies to make the records public.
“Allegations that might suggest abuse of marital assets, concealment of financial information, or personal conduct inconsistent with public responsibility are not merely private — they are of public consequence,” the plaintiffs’ filing reads.
In response, Paxton called the media companies’ efforts an “unprecedentedly broad and intrusive request.”
Paxton’s wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, filed for divorce in July, citing infidelity, according to Collin County court documents.
Ken Paxton is attempting to unseat U.S. Sen. John Cornyn in next March’s GOP primary.
Add a flu shot to Thanksgiving shopping list The Texas Department of State Health Services is encouraging everyone to add flu shots to their Thanksgiving shopping lists.
Flu vaccines are widely available at health clinics, doctors’ offices and pharmacies across the state.
“It is especially important for older adults, very young children, people with chronic health conditions and pregnant women to get protection from the flu,” said DSHS Commissioner Jennifer Shuford. “People in those higher risk groups are more likely to get seriously sick if they do get the flu, and some will inevitably need to be hospitalized and even die from their infections.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates the flu caused at least 600,000 hospitalizations in the country and tens of thousands of deaths last flu season.
Cooler weather, holiday gatherings and increased travel all increase the risk spreading the flu. Public health officials recommend everyone six months of age and older get vaccinated.
Gary Borders is a veteran award-winning Texas journalist. He published a number of community newspapers in Texas during a 30-year span, including in Longview, Fort Stockton, Nacogdoches, Lufkin and Cedar Park. Email: [email protected].
