Texas oil and gas paid about $27 billion in state and local taxes in FY2025 — roughly $74 million a day — funding schools and infrastructure even as firms trim staff. Production records and pipeline projects helped keep revenue flowing.

A Texas A&M professor says he was ordered to remove Plato passages and race/gender modules from an intro ethics syllabus under a new regents rule. Free-speech groups are protesting.

HISD’s plan to move on‑campus magnet and CTE classes into the Barbara Jordan Career Center set off heated meetings at Heights High and a delayed board vote. Parents warn bussing and program loss would hollow out neighborhood schools.

A federal suit from Texas AFT challenges state education probes into teachers' private social posts. The case may set a statewide limit on what educators can say online.

HISD expanded its cellphone rules this semester, lengthening confiscation windows and adding alternative‑campus placements for repeat violators.

Declining enrollment has opened a roughly $27M hole in Clear Creek ISD’s budget for 2026–27. Trustees are weighing consolidations, staff cuts and a possible tax vote.

Attorney General Ken Paxton secured a TRO against Samsung's ACR use in TVs, citing privacy concerns for Texans and potential Deceptive Trade Practices Act violations.

Governor Abbott ordered TWC and HHSC to probe potential misuse of child‑care dollars and tighten oversight. Agencies must file progress and final reports in late January and February.

Councilmember Edward Pollard asked ICE to stop masking up and to show ID, saying the tactics have eroded trust and made encounters less safe.

Houston oil companies are monitoring the potential impacts on energy markets following the arrest of Venezuela's former President Nicolás Maduro, with no immediate surge in oil prices observed.

Houston's community is divided over the U.S. capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, with expatriates celebrating and others protesting the action's legality and ethics.

Texas A&M approved hiring outside counsel to participate in the state AG's insulin pricing lawsuit, local reporting says. Regents chair Bob Albritton offered no comment.

A doctored campaign mailer and a stalled Texas labeling bill show how AI‑generated images are complicating politics ahead of the 2026 season.