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HAYS COUNTY – The Texas Department of Public Safety, working with federal agencies on a joint investigation into a Venezuelan gang, arrested more than 40 people and seized drugs after serving a search warrant on an undisclosed Hays County residence, the state agency and the FBI announced Wednesday.

A DPS and FBI news release said the warrant was executed after FBI agents “developed intelligence” earlier this week about a gathering of individuals tied to Tren de Aragua, a gang that started in Venezuelan prisons and has become a target of state and federal officials. DPS did not elaborate on how the dozens of detained people may be linked to the gang.

President Donald Trump’s administration has targeted the criminal organization as part of its broader vow to deport millions of immigrants. But relatives of Venezuelans who have been detained and deported elsewhere in the country say they are not gang members.

It was not clear what potential crimes authorities believe the individuals had committed to be taken into custody. State and federal prosecutors plan to review evidence obtained during the execution of the search warrant to determine potential criminal charges, according to DPS and the FBI.

DPS, the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Hays County Sheriff’s Office, which participated in the operation, did not immediately return requests for comment Wednesday.

It was not immediately clear where the dozens of people taken into custody are being held.

The San Antonio Police Department helped with an investigation leading up to the operation, but not with the execution of the search warrant, a department spokesperson said, declining to comment further because it is “part of a larger ongoing case.” The DPS release said several local, state and local law enforcement agencies have been investigating members and associates of the gang for more than a year.

This is a developing story.

Article originally published by The Texas Tribune. To read the originally published article, click here.

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports that Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee announced on Monday that he will file a lawsuit against Gov. Greg Abbott if he fails to set an election date for Texas’ 18th Congressional District. Menefee called the governor out during a press conference, urging the governor to set the special election for June to fill the congressional seat left vacated after the late Houston mayor and Congressman Sylvester Turner’s death. Per Texas law, Abbott has the sole authority to call a special election. He has done this in the past, most recently when the seat was left vacant after the death of late Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee last July. “The governor knows this, and in fact, in the four instances where a seat has become vacant since he’s become governor, he’s gotten to it straight away, sometimes in 16 days, sometimes in 18 days, and once in four days,” Menefee said. “He knows how important it is that people have representation in Congress.”

DALLAS – WFAA reports that one of the biggest healthcare providers in North Texas is no longer in Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas’ network, officials said. Contracts between Southwestern Health Resources – which includes Texas Health Resources and UT Southwestern – and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas expired April 1, according to a statement from the insurance company. North Texas-based Southwestern Health Resources has 31 hospitals, more than 7,000 providers and 650 outpatient facilities and clinics. Blue Cross Blue Shield officials in a statement said the company has “worked closely with SWHR to negotiate new contracts,” but an agreement to “protect the interests of our members and customers” hasn’t been reached yet.

Southwestern Health Resources officials in a statement said Blue Cross Blue Shield “remained unwilling to accept Southwestern Health Resources’ requests for equitable reimbursement to cover the rising costs of providing quality care.” “Our goal is to minimize any disruption to patient care and help guide patients affected by this transition to in-network providers,” the statement said. Starting Tuesday, April 1, Southwestern Health Resources hospitals, doctors and facilities were no longer in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas. The impacted Blue Cross plans include: ParPlan, Blue Choice PPO, Blue Essentials, Blue Advantage HMO, Medicaid, Blue Cross Medicare Advantage (PPO), and Blue Cross Medicare Advantage (HMO). Patients with MyBlue Health coverage will remain in-network for Southwestern doctors and hospitals, according to Blue Cross.

AUSTIN – The Houston Chronicle reports tat food stamp recipients could soon be barred from using their benefits to buy chips, sodas and other types of junk food under a bill that passed the Texas Senate. “This bill isn’t about limiting personal choice,” State Sen. Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston said. “But taxpayer dollars should not subsidize unhealthy eating habits that contribute to preventable health conditions and place additional strain on Texas’ health care system.” Middleton said the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is supposed to provide nutritious food that is essential to the health and well-being of Americans. Yet, he said about 20% of SNAP benefits are being spent on things like cookies, candy, chips and soda.

“They don’t just lack nutritional value, they are bad for you,” Middleton said during a debate over the bill late Monday. The bill passed 22-8 in the Texas Senate on Monday night and now goes to the Texas House. If it passes without any changes there, it would go to Gov. Greg Abbott who can let it become law. State Sen. Borris Miles, D-Houston, said he supports the goal but worries Middleton’s bill will put more burdens on retailers that accept SNAP benefits and potentially lead to more dropping out of the program. Miles said while everyone may want to have healthy food, there are people in urban and rural areas who don’t have access to the type Middleton wants them to eat. He said food deserts that already exist in poor urban areas could grow because of Senate Bill 379. “There are some unintended consequences to this bill that we may not be thinking of,” said Miles, who voted against the measure. “Something to eat is better than nothing to eat.” State Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, voted in favor of the bill but also pushed back, saying if the Legislature is really concerned about Texans getting proper nutrition, it should double the value of food stamps for things like fresh produce so benefits could buy more of the health products and give retailers incentive to stock more of it.

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports that for years, Texas politicians have fretted: What will it take for companies to build more natural gas power plants for the state’s strained power grid? As it turns out, for a growing number of developers, even the Texas government handing out taxpayer-backed loans is not sufficient. Four companies have pulled their projects from consideration from the $5 billion Texas Energy Fund, citing various financial and logistical challenges. Another project was denied loans last fall after one company listed on the application accused the other sponsoring company of fraud. In total, nearly a third of new project capacity advanced to the fund’s due diligence review process has left the program.

State lawmakers created the Texas Energy Fund in 2023 and set aside the bulk of the money to give companies low-interest loans towards building new gas-fired generation for the Electric Reliability Council of Texas power grid. The fund was advertised to voters, who approved the program as a constitutional amendment, as a way to bolster the grid after the February 2021 winter freeze caused statewide outages and killed hundreds. Then, last year, ERCOT forecasted an unprecedented increase in electricity demand in the near future as the state’s population and economy grow. Policymakers became even more adamant that Texas needs much more gas-fired power generation for use when wind or solar power isn’t available, even though natural gas is a fossil fuel contributing to climate change. At first, the Texas Energy Fund seemed popular. So many companies applied for loans that state lawmakers — at the urging of Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick — are considering appropriating another $5 billion to the program in the ongoing legislative session, so that it totals $10 billion.

LUBBOCK — The Texas House gave initial approval Tuesday to a set of bills aimed at mitigating wildfire risks and improving the state’s response to emergencies.

The bills, filed by Ken King, R-Canadian, cover separate issues. However, both were filed in response to the devastating wildfires last year that engulfed the Texas Panhandle. More than 1 million acres burned, 15,000 head of cattle and three people died.

House Bill 13 would create the Texas Interoperability Council, which would be tasked with creating and coordinating the implementation of a statewide plan for the use of emergency communication. The council would set up a network that connects all first responders and state agencies. They would also administer a grant program to help local governments purchase the equipment and construct the infrastructure needed to connect to that system.

The Interoperability Council is one of the recommendations from the report by the House Investigative Committee, which King led last April. The initial cost is expected to be about $500 million.

“My goal is to ensure every first responder that puts their life on the line to battle these fires and other disasters have the tools to communicate effectively with those around them,” King said.

King’s second bill, House Bill 143, addresses one of the common causes for wildfires in the Texas Panhandle: unmaintained electrical lines for oilfield equipment. The House committee that investigated the wildfires last year concluded that unmaintained lines started at least two of the fires. This includes the Smokehouse Creek Fire, which became the largest fire in Texas history and ignited after a decayed power pole snapped and landed in dry grass, according to the report.

King’s bill would require the Texas Railroad Commission, which oversees the oil and gas industry, and the Public Utility Commission to notify electric utilities when the RRC identifies electrical hazards during inspection. The Panhandle lawmaker said the agencies developed a Memorandum of Understanding — a non-binding agreement — that allows them to work together.

State Rep. Caroline Fairly, R-Amarillo, spoke in favor of the bill. Both lawmakers live in the Panhandle, where state data shows power lines have caused roughly 60% of wildfires since 2006.

“I’m thankful to the Texas House that we realize how important it is that we pass legislation that affects and protects rural areas from wildfires,” Fairly said.

The House will take up the bills one more time before passing them to the Senate for consideration.

The Legislature is also considering House Bill 2063 to create a database of firefighting equipment that is readily-available, and Senate Bill 34. That is a sweeping priority bill by state Sen. Kevin Sparks, R-Midland, that also includes increased funding for rural volunteer fire departments.

Article originally published by The Texas Tribune. To read the originally published article, click here.

DALLAS (AP) – Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone, whose 1991 film “JFK” portrayed President John F. Kennedy’s assassination as the work of a shadowy government conspiracy, called Tuesday for a new congressional investigation of the killing during a hearing that aired conspiracy theories about it.