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The latest East Texas news from The Texas Tribune.

Texas high school principal cleared of child abuse charges after paddling student

By Pooja Salhotra Oct. 26, 2023

The East Texas school leader was following school district policy — and state law — which allows for corporal punishment. Texas is one of 17 states that allows it, despite one Democrats efforts to ban the practice. Full Story

Credit: Tamir Kalifa for The Texas Tribune
These women want careers as truck drivers. They say they can’t get a job because of their gender.

By Pooja Salhotra Oct. 26, 2023

The Dallas-based trucking company, Stevens Transport, said they do not discriminate against women and the complaint is based on a “misunderstanding.” Full Story

Credit: Montinique Monroe
With 22 portable classrooms on one campus, a growing Texas school district is asking voters for $2 billion

By Pooja Salhotra Oct. 23, 2023

Conroe is one of the fastest growing school districts in the state. It and other districts say they need voters to OK bonds to keep up with the influx of students. Full Story

Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune
A shift in how we build commercial buildings could be a boon for East Texas

By Pooja Salhotra Oct. 19, 2023

Globally, mass timber construction projects are expected to reach more than 24,000 by 2034. So far, at least 134 mass timber projects are in progress or completed in Texas. The first such project was a six-story office building in downtown San Antonio. Full Story

Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune
In the shadow of James Byrd’s murder, city leaders can’t agree how to move this East Texas town forward

By Pooja Salhotra Sept. 28, 2023

Jasper’s second Black mayor wants to help residents pay their bills while a younger city council wants to invest in the city’s culture. Residents call their heated arguments at city council meetings “foolishness” and “embarrassing.” Full Story

Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune
Rural Texas may lose out on billions in broadband infrastructure funding due to federal regulations

By Jayme Lozano Carver July 27, 2023

Grant applicants are required to have a line of credit from a major bank and put up 25% of the project cost ahead of time. That will likely disqualify many small internet service providers in rural areas. Full Story

Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune
Swaths of East Texas without power amid a heat wave after severe storms

By Sneha Dey Updated: June 19, 2023

Some Texans may have to wait a week for their power to be restored during a period of extreme heat and humidity. Full Story

Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune
Texas will spend billions to connect the state with broadband. But is it clear which neighborhoods need help?

By Jayme Lozano Carver and Pooja Salhotra June 9, 2023

On the eve of a historic investment in connecting the Lone Star State, advocates worry maps that will help establish which communities get funding have bad information. Full Story

Credit: Jason Janik for The Texas Tribune
Watch: 25 years after James Byrd Jr. was killed for being Black, his loved ones question how much has changed in Texas

By Pooja Salhotra and Jinitzail Hernández June 7, 2023

The quiet East Texas town of Jasper came together immediately after the racist murder of James Byrd Jr. Now, Texas is leading the nation in incidents of white supremacist propaganda. Full Story

Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune
Texas towns need money, technical help and compromise to save their water systems

By Jayme Lozano Carver and Pooja Salhotra May 4, 2023

Water agencies have long resisted working together out of fear of losing their local powers. But an example from Florida could help save the Lone Star State’s water and infrastructure. Full Story

Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune
Everything you need to know about Texas’ beleaguered water systems

By Jayme Lozano Carver and Pooja Salhotra May 3, 2023

Texas has more than 7,000 water systems. A fraction of them self-reported that they lost 30 billion gallons of water due to broken pipes and leaks in 2021. Full Story

Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune
Texas’ water infrastructure is broken, jeopardizing quality and supply for a growing state

By Pooja Salhotra and Jayme Lozano Carver May 3, 2023

On a daily basis, water managers in cities across the state move from crisis to crisis hoping to keep the water flowing to residents. Full Story

Credit: Mark Felix/The Texas Tribune
With billions of dollars on the line, East Texans say a crucial state map incorrectly shows they already have broadband

By Pooja Salhotra March 29, 2023

East Texans worry they could miss out on federal dollars because a state map that will help determine where the money goes shows they already have access to broadband. Residents say their broadband is chronically unreliable. Full Story

Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune
“I love my babies. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy”: One mother’s struggle to survive in pro-life Texas

By Eleanor Klibanoff and Jinitzail Hernández March 9, 2023

Pregnancy forced Destiny Williams to quit her job. She almost died during childbirth. Now with a newborn in tow, she’s struggling to build a more stable life for her and her children. Full Story

Credit: Ilana Panich-Linsman for The Texas Tribune
Black and Hispanic Texans say they don’t trust the quality of their water

By Jayme Lozano Carver and Pooja Salhotra Feb. 16, 2023

A survey was commissioned by the nonprofit organization Texas Water Trade and included responses from households in both rural border communities and in urban areas across Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth. Full Story

Credit: Jennifer Whitney for The Texas Tribune
Company that wants to build oilfield dump in East Texas gave $53,750 in campaign donations to regulators

By Martha Pskowski, Inside Climate News Feb. 1, 2023

McBride Operating LLC and its owner, Joseph McBride, contributed to the political campaigns of the three commissioners on the Texas Railroad Commission now considering his request. Full Story

Credit: Dylan Baddour/Inside Climate News
After a hospital stopped delivering babies, Deep East Texas faces a growing maternity care crisis

By Eleanor Klibanoff Jan. 5, 2023

Women in Deep East Texas drive over an hour to give birth after the last obstetrics unit in the area closed in 2019. But if closing the unit was hard, reopening it is proving nearly impossible. Full Story

Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune
“It takes time to get stuff done”: New Texas congressman promises results, not rhetoric

By Pooja Salhotra Jan. 3, 2023

Nathaniel Moran, the former Smith County judge, has promised to be a staunch conservative who will pass legislation. That worries some of his constituents. Full Story

Credit: Shuran Huang for The Texas Tribune
Texans are dying on state highways every day — especially in rural “dead zones”

By Pooja Salhotra Dec. 21, 2022

Fatal crashes in rural areas accounted for 51% of Texas’ 4,489 traffic fatalities in 2021, even though only about 10% of the state’s population lives in a rural area, according to data from the state’s department of transportation. Full Story

Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune
A boil-water notice in Houston made national news. In rural Texas, it’s a way of life.

By Pooja Salhotra and Jayme Lozano Carver Dec. 7, 2022

Rural communities face compounding reasons they can’t improve their water infrastructure, including inflation and a lack of human resources. Full Story

Credit: Emil Lippe for The Texas Tribune