News

Gov. Rick Perry will declare protection of residents in state schools for the disabled a legislative emergency today, a move that follows reports of widespread abuse and neglect and a broad federal investigation into conditions at the facilities. Legislation to overhaul security at the 12 state schools, expected to be filed today, would...

A new report from Houston’s Baker Institute declares that NASA should give up for now any ambitions of rocketing humans to the moon and focus instead on delivering payoffs in energy and the environment — especially for climate change. Arguing that the space agency has an opportunity to prove “its relevance in the post-Cold War world,”...

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has endorsed Rick Perry for re-election, calling him the "true conservative" in a primary election showdown with fellow Republican Kay Bailey Hutchison. Palin, who electrified the GOP base as the party's vice presidential nominee last year, has strong support among the party's social conservatives. Her endorsement...

Despite soaring unemployment and the worst economic crisis in decades, 18 states cut their welfare rolls last year, and nationally the number of people receiving cash assistance remained at or near the lowest in more than 40 years. The trends, based on an analysis of new state data collected by The New York Times, raise questions about how well...

More than a decade after the discovery of human embryonic stem cells, Texas scientists are poised to finally ramp up research involving the cutting-edge but controversial science. With President Barack Obama expected to lift federal restrictions on the field as early as this week, scientists in the Texas Medical Center and around the state...

Dallas and other cities have long held the transportation spotlight in North Texas. But Denton County has grand ambitions of its own. Eight years after county leaders first envisioned a multimillion-dollar rail line from Denton into Dallas, the concept is nearing reality. Stakes and spray paint mark the 21-mile train line's path, which...

Whatever impulse pushed Steven Donald Anderson to fly to Houston — and whatever he hoped to do with his young “friend” once he got here — the one thing he left behind in Minnesota was caution. The time had come to take a leap of faith, or at least a calculated risk, after what police say was months of communication with a 12-year-old...

Public records show that most elected officials who have been stopped on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in recent years refused a blood or breath sample. The Austin American-Statesman reported Sunday that it found cases involving more than a dozen elected officials – including representatives, senators, judges and commissioners –...

At first glance, Reps. Dan Branch and Roberto Alonzo, recently chosen to lead the Dallas-area delegation to the Legislature, have some of the best jobs around. The 27-member group is the most diverse in Austin and potentially the most powerful, and its influence could even improve under new House Speaker Joe Straus. But Dallas lawmakers...

The Obama administration seems to be open to a movement known as “progressive federalism,” in which governors and activist state attorneys general have been trying to lead the way on environmental initiatives, consumer protection and other issues, several constitutional experts say. A recent decision by President Obama that could open the...