Economy
A New Documentary on Texas Labor History Offers a Much-Needed Infusion of Hope
Texas Farmers are Fed Up With Trump’s Trade War, but Most Stop Short of Blaming Him
The state’s dominant ag products, valued at $18 billion, are in the crosshairs of retaliatory tariffs. Still, most farmers here are hesitant to criticize Trump.
Russell Boening, a Texas farmer and rancher who’s also president of the Texas Farm Bureau, is starting to feel the effects of escalating trade conflicts betwe...Read More
Wage Wars
Activists have won citywide wage theft laws in El Paso and Houston. But local and state bureaucracies have ensured that the problem persists.
by Gus Bova @bova_gus June 13, 2018 For seven years, Paola Hernandez cleaned a city-run health clinic on Houston’s Northside for $8 to $9 an hour. It was a ro...Read More
Trump’s Trade Disputes with NAFTA Partners Imperil Texas Ag Exports
The president has levied tariffs on aluminum and steel from Canada and Mexico, and they’ve responded in kind. Texas farmers and ranchers worry the dust-up could endanger ag exports to the NAFTA partners.
Update: The Mexican government officially struck back at the United States on Tuesday afternoon by imposing 20 percent duties on imports of certain American po...Read More
Without State Aid, Advocates Worry Port Arthur Will Bleed Residents Long After Harvey
Flooding was so widespread in Port Arthur during Harvey that even shelters had to be evacuated.
Hurricane Harvey was destruction in three acts. The first occurred on August 25, when the storm crashed ashore north of Corpus Christi with 130 mph winds. For i...Read More
Austin Passes First Paid Sick Leave Policy in the South
After five raucous hours, the Austin City Council passed a policy providing paid sick leave to at least 87,000 Austinites. Council members say they hope other Texas cities will soon follow.
At nearly 1 a.m. on Thursday night, the Austin City Council passed a citywide, mandatory paid sick leave policy that will provide sick days to around 87,000 wor...Read More
Farmers and Ranchers Take a Hit from Harvey, but the Exact Toll is Unknown
The coastal counties devastated by Harvey are also home to an estimated 1.2 million cows, more than a quarter of the state’s total.
The coastal counties devastated by Harvey are also home to an estimated 1.2 million cows, more than a quarter of the state’s total....Read More
Fanning The Flames
The same conservation efforts that saved Texas from the Dust Bowl may have opened the door to a new man-made disaster.
Fanning the Flames The same conservation efforts that saved Texas from the Dust Bowl may have opened the door to a new man-made disaster. At just past 8 p.m. on...Read More
Introducing the Texas Observer’s Rural Reporting Project
Texas has the biggest rural population in the nation, yet many journalists treat much of the state as flyover country.
Trump’s election taught the nation many painful lessons. Among them: the traditional divide between town and country has become a chasm. People in blue, urban...Read More
The Rise and Fall of the ‘Freest Little City in Texas’
How a libertarian experiment in city government fell apart over taxes, debt and some very angry people.
The Rise and Fall of the “Freest Little City in Texas” How a libertarian experiment in city government fell apart over taxes, debt and some very ang...Read More