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AUSTIN – The Austin American-Statesman reports that the person who purchased the winning ticket for the $83.5 million Lotto Texas jackpot in the Feb. 17 drawing came forward to collect her prize Tuesday but was sent away empty-handed because of the mushrooming controversy over the use of third-party vendors who broker ticket sales through smartphone apps. The person, who spoke with the American-Statesman on the condition that her name not be used because of privacy concern, said she did nothing illegal or wrong when she purchased $20 worth of tickets using a phone app she has used on and off to buy Lotto and scratch-off tickets. Still, her payment is being held up pending the outcome of an investigation by the Texas Rangers. “I’ve gone through frustration and being sad and stressed,” she said in an interview that included her lawyer, Randy Howry of Austin. “And now I’m just angry.”

Just days before the drawing that would change the winner’s life, lottery Executive Director Ryan Mindell and members of the lottery’s governing board were excoriated during a Texas Senate Finance Committee hearing because third-party operators, called courier companies, had bypassed the state’s prohibition of selling game tickets by telephone. Mindell at the time told the Senate panel that he had no authority over the companies, because they were legally making in-person purchases from licensed lottery retailers. Still, several committee members said the companies could be used by unscrupulous buyers who might be underage or otherwise ineligible to play the Texas Lottery. The members were especially upset that a courier company was used to make a bulk purchase totaling more than $25 million to buy up more than 99% of the possible number combinations to win a $95 million Lotto Texas jackpot in April 2023. Although the bulk purchase did not go through an app, Mindell was told that he should have suspected that the massive purchase of tickets could have involved a money launderer who was using the state-run lottery to legitimize profits from illicit enterprises.

MANDAN, N.D. (AP) — Environmental group Greenpeace must pay more than $660 million in damages for defamation and other claims brought by a pipeline company in connection with protests against the Dakota Access oil pipeline’s construction in North Dakota, a jury found Wednesday.

Dallas-based Energy Transfer and subsidiary Dakota Access had accused Netherlands-based Greenpeace International, Greenpeace USA and funding arm Greenpeace Fund Inc. of defamation, trespass, nuisance, civil conspiracy and other acts. Greenpeace USA was found liable for all counts, while the others were found liable for some. The damages owed will be spread out in different amounts over the three entities.

Greenpeace said earlier that a large award to the pipeline company would threaten to bankrupt the organization. Following the nine-person jury’s verdict, Greenpeace’s senior legal adviser said the group’s work “is never going to stop.”

“That’s the really important message today, and we’re just walking out and we’re going to get together and figure out what our next steps are,” Deepa Padmanabha told reporters outside the courthouse.

The organization later said it plans to appeal the decision.

“The fight against Big Oil is not over today,” Greenpeace International General Counsel Kristin Casper said. “We know that the law and the truth are on our side.”

She said the group will see Energy Transfer in court in July in Amsterdam in an anti-intimidation lawsuit filed there last month.

The damages total nearly $666.9 million. The jury found Greenpeace USA must pay the bulk of the damages, nearly $404 million, while Greenpeace Fund Inc. and Greenpeace International would each pay roughly $131 million.

Energy Transfer called Wednesday’s verdict a “win” for “Americans who understand the difference between the right to free speech and breaking the law.”

“While we are pleased that Greenpeace has been held accountable for their actions against us, this win is really for the people of Mandan and throughout North Dakota who had to live through the daily harassment and disruptions caused by the protesters who were funded and trained by Greenpeace,” the company said in a statement to The Associated Press.

The company previously said the state court lawsuit was about Greenpeace not following the law, not free speech.

In a statement, Energy Transfer attorney Trey Cox said, “This verdict clearly conveys that when this right to peacefully protest is abused in a lawless and exploitative manner, such actions will be held accountable.”

The case reaches back to protests in 2016 and 2017 against the Dakota Access Pipeline and its Missouri River crossing upstream of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s reservation. For years the tribe has opposed the line as a risk to its water supply.

The multistate pipeline transports about 5% of the United States’ daily oil production. It started transporting oil in mid-2017.

Cox had said Greenpeace carried out a scheme to stop the pipeline’s construction. During opening statements, he alleged Greenpeace paid outsiders to come into the area and protest, sent blockade supplies, organized or led protester trainings, and made untrue statements about the project to stop it.

Attorneys for the Greenpeace entities had said there was no evidence to the claims and that Greenpeace employees had little or no involvement in the protests and the organizations had nothing to do with Energy Transfer’s delays in construction or refinancing.

AUSTIN(AP) — Wildfires fueled by dry conditions and gusting winds burned in a few Southern states Thursday, forcing evacuations in Texas and prompting Florida officials to close part of a major highway with spring break in high gear.

A wildfire in Sam Houston National Forest near Houston prompted the evacuation of about 900 homes and closed schools. The National Weather Service issued elevated fire warnings around the nation’s fourth-largest city.

The fire, which started Wednesday, had burned about 3.1 square miles (8 square kilometers) and was only about 10% contained Thursday morning, the Texas A&M Forest Service said.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or property damage, but the Cleveland Independent School District, which has about 12,000 students, canceled classes as a precaution.

Firefighters and law enforcement “did an such unbelievable job yesterday in protecting homes, animals, livestock and people. We’ve lost basically nothing, which is hard to believe,” the county’s top elected official, Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough, said.

However, he said, expected wind gusts Thursday along with a drop in humidity could make the situation disastrous.

“We’re asking the people who evacuated last night to stay still away from their homes,” Keough said.

In the Florida Keys, a large brush fire that began Tuesday caused authorities to close one of the two roads leading in and out of the island chain, and intermittently shut down U.S. 1 so fire crews could move equipment.

Spring break is in full swing in Florida, and U.S. 1 is the major thoroughfare that connects the mainland to the islands. It is also a heavily traveled road for people who live on the mainland and work at many of the hotels and restaurants in Key Largo and beyond.

In Arkansas, crews responded to more than 50 fires Wednesday that were fueled by high winds.

The fires closed several highways, including a portion of Interstate 530 southeast of Little Rock due to heavy smoke.

Flames damaged structures in several cities, including Little Rock. The roof collapsed at St. Joseph’s, a 115-year-old building in North Little Rock that once served as an orphanage and is now the home of a nonprofit that provides urban farming resources.

The South has experienced recent cold and dry conditions, followed by gusting winds, that have fanned the flames.

Texas has seen fire hazards range from the far northern Panhandle, where ground vegetation froze and dried out, and push hundreds of miles east to the coast.

South Florida has seen every little rainfall over the past few weeks. The rainy season doesn’t start until sometime around mid-May. Another cold front with dry air is expected to push through South Florida on Thursday night, said meteorologist Donal Harrigan with the National Weather Service in Miami.
Red Flag warnings

The weather service issued Red Flag warnings for fire conditions in east Texas and South Florida and could extend them for several days.

Red flag warnings are issued by the National Weather Service when conditions are ripe for fires. In southeast Texas, weather service officials predicted wind gusts of 25 miles per hour (40 kilometers per hour), combined with humidity as low as 18%. That combination will continue to dry out vegetation.

FORT WORTH – The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that statewide and national child advocates are sounding the alarm on impacts to emergent bilingual students, one group among many who have been left with less academic support and resources after mass layoffs at the U.S. Department of Education. Almost half of staff at the federal department were recently cut as part of a broader effort by President Donald Trump’s administration to reduce staff across multiple federal agencies. The U.S. Department of Education cuts have resulted in the disbandment of the department’s Office of Language Acquisition, which provides support to English-learning, emergent bilingual students. This student population is among the fastest-growing in Texas with 20% of students statewide — about 1.2 million — identified as emergent bilingual, according to the Texas Education Agency. The apparent elimination of federal oversight for these students, advocates say, could prompt them to fall behind academically, disengage from school and face lower graduation rates.

“One of the things that a lot of people don’t understand is that while immigration may have partly something to do with this, we are a Latino state in many ways. We are a legal immigration hub in many ways. We have a lot of children here that are American citizens, that are still bi-language learners,” said Bob Sanborn, president and CEO of Children at Risk, during a virtual press conference on Wednesday, March 19. “This decision effectively eliminates federal leadership, educator support and resources designed to help emergent bilingual kids succeed in school,” he added. According to Children at Risk, a Texas research and advocacy nonprofit focused on improving children’s quality of life, Texas’ emergent bilingual student population grew by 49% from 2013 to 2023. The Texas state director of Emgage, a group of organizations dedicated to politically empowering Muslim American communities, shared a story of an emergent bilingual student who received support through middle and high school and graduated speaking fluent English. He is now working full-time and attending college to obtain his bachelor’s degree. Jida Nabulsi, the state director, said many emergent bilingual students don’t realize they have the same opportunities as this student to open doors for themselves.

AUSTIN – The Texas Senate on Wednesday passed a state ban on all forms of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, advancing a priority of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to crack down on the state’s booming consumable hemp market six years after lawmakers inadvertently permitted its rise.

Senate Bill 3 — which Patrick called among his “top five” bills over his 17 years in the Legislature — would outlaw products with any amount of THC, ranging from gummies and beverages to vapes and flower buds, which are currently sold at more than 8,300 locations around the state. Current Texas law allows hemp-derived products that contain less than 0.3% of THC.

“Kids are getting poisoned today,” Patrick said in the Senate chamber as the vote neared.

He used similar language Wednesday morning. “This is a poison in our public, and we as a Legislature — our No. 1 responsibility is life and death issues,” Patrick said at a morning news conference, alongside members of law enforcement and advocates for families who saw loved ones develop behavioral health problems after consuming supposedly-legal THC products. “We’re going to ban your stores before we leave here, for good.”

The vote was 24 to 7.

“I believe this bill goes too far, in that it would put out of business the consumable hemp industry in Texas,” state Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D-Austin said during debate of the bill, arguing that concerns related to sale of low-THC products should be addressed through stronger regulations.

The Texas House has yet to consider its hemp proposal, House Bill 28, which would impose stricter oversight and licensing requirements for the hemp industry rather than ban THC altogether. If the House passes its proposal, the two chambers would have to reconcile their differences before the legislation could become law.

State Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, the lead author of SB 3, said that the Senate and the House were “philosophically aligned” and that there was time to work out any policy differences.

“We’re all on the same page,” Patrick said, adding that he had spoken about the issue with House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, and Gov. Greg Abbott. “We’re going to protect the people of Texas from THC.”

Patrick also had a message aimed directly at retailers: “You might want to voluntarily close your doors, because the investigations are going to continue, and I’m sure the lawsuits are about to come,” he said on Wednesday. “You know what you’re doing.”

The hemp industry lobbied fiercely against a total prohibition on THC, urging lawmakers to instead impose “thoughtful regulations,” such as restricting THC sales to Texans 21 and older, requiring tamper-proof packaging and barring sales within a certain distance of schools.

Mark Bordas, executive director of the Texas Hemp Business Council, said that lawmakers were conflating consumable hemp, which, by legal definition, has a low concentration of THC, with higher potency marijuana.

Certain bad actors are “operating in the black market, in the shadows,” he said, arguing that the state needed greater oversight of the industry as a whole to block those manufacturers and retailers — rather than a total prohibition.

“We have a common enemy. We know who’s doing wrong,” Bordas said. “We’d both like to eliminate them, but the problem is, the lieutenant governor and Senator Perry are going to eliminate the entire business — including over 7,000 licensed dispensaries.”

The industry also highlighted roughly 50,000 jobs and billions in tax revenue that would be lost if lawmakers quashed the hemp market entirely. And critics argued that instead of addressing public health concerns, a ban would push consumers into an unregulated black market, easing access to more potent products.

“Bans don’t work,” Bordas said, a point that was echoed on the Senate floor by state Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio. “All it’s going to do is encourage the bad actors to fill the vacuum.”

Still, he said that the industry believed “cooler heads will prevail” in the House.

Thousands of cannabis retailers have popped up across the state since 2019, when the Republican-controlled Legislature approved the sale of consumable hemp. That law, which was passed one year after hemp was legalized nationwide, was intended to boost Texas agriculture by allowing the commercialization of hemp containing trace amounts of non-intoxicating delta-9 THC, the psychoactive element in marijuana.

What followed was an explosion of consumable hemp products, which are barred from containing more than a 0.3% concentration of THC.

Products with a higher concentration are classified as marijuana, which remains outlawed in Texas aside from limited medical uses. Still, hemp-derived products look, taste and sometimes have intoxicating effects similar to their more potent counterparts.

Perry, who led the 2019 bill to legalize hemp, said that lawmakers had not meant to usher in such a large market. On Wednesday, he accused the hemp industry of exploiting a loophole in the 2019 law and making their products easily accessible to young people.

“This is changing people’s lives in short order, because it’s been marketed as something that is safe and legal, and it’s anything but,” Perry said. “This is not the pot of yesterday. This is stuff that will change lives forever.”

Supporters of the ban said high-potency products are already being sold at retailers, despite purporting to be under the legal limit. Steve Dye, chief of the Allen police department in north Texas, said that undercover investigations in his city had found and tested products with up to a 78% THC concentration.

“Most people think that if you walk into a store and you’re able to buy something from a retail establishment, it must be legal and it must be safe,” he said on Wednesday. “With these THC consumables, neither is true. Intentional mislabeling on many products have led to accidental overdoses and increased addiction.”

State and federal law currently place inconsistent testing requirements and no age limits on Texas’ hemp industry.

SB 3 would continue to allow the non-intoxicating, non-psychoactive cannabidiol known as CBD, while placing firmer restrictions on those products — including barring sales and marketing to those under 21 and requiring “tamper-evident, child-resistant, and resealable” product packaging.

Some patients and doctors say the THC in cannabis can be used effectively to combat pain, depression, anxiety, appetite problems and nausea. Under the state’s Compassionate Use Program, lawmakers have allowed some Texans to use medical marijuana to treat conditions including epilepsy, seizures, autism, cancer and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Some veterans groups told the Senate committee that advanced SB 3 this month that they prefer using the more affordable and accessible THC products sold at everyday retailers like smoke shops and gas station convenience stores. Others said that it would be expensive to properly regulate the industry, and warned that unlike under Texas’ Compassionate Use Program, Texans reaching for retail products did not have the benefit of medical supervision and oversight.

At the same time, the hemp industry has “overwhelming advantages” over the state program, according to Jervonne Singletary, senior director of government relations at Goodblend, one of three medical marijuana providers in the state. Patients have to jump through so many hoops to place and receive orders that some may opt to simply pick up THC products at a nearby retail outlet, she said.

On Wednesday, Patrick vowed to “expand” the Compassionate Use Program and continue investing in mental health care across the state.

SB 1505, also led by Perry, would allow medical marijuana providers to operate satellite storage facilities designed to make it easier for patients to fill their prescriptions, and it would double the cap on licensed medical marijuana dispensers from three to six.

“This is not a political or partisan issue,” Patrick said. “This is about saving lives.”

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

AUSTIN – A woman and her lawyer met with Texas Lottery Commission administrators and lawyers for an exchange: her winning lottery ticket for the $83.5 million it was supposed to be worth.

But her lawyer, Randy Howry, said lottery commission officials told her she wouldn’t be receiving the eight-figure payout until a series of investigations into her win and others were complete. Those investigations — one by Attorney General Ken Paxton and the other by the Texas Rangers, a division of the Department of Public Safety — were launched because the woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, bought the ticket through an online app run by a courier.

“She played by all the rules in play at the time,” Howry said of her client, who chose to buy tickets from a courier because of safety concerns. “She should be paid her winnings, but she’s being caught up because the politicians are now involved.”

Lawmakers have scrutinized the state’s lottery commission repeatedly throughout the current Legislative Session over the growing use of couriers — third-party services that enable online purchasing of lottery tickets — and expressed concerns the practice could enable unfair or illegal activity. The move to ban couriers in Texas has the woman who bought her 10 tickets through Jackpocket, the nation’s largest courier, “caught in the crossfire,” Howry said.

After the $83.5 million Lotto Texas jackpot was won in February, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick publicly cast doubt on the legitimacy of the win and announced he would be opening an investigation into the lottery’s dealings with couriers. The investigations by Paxton and the Texas Rangers followed shortly afterward.

The commission confirmed in a statement to the Tribune that the payout is going through both internal and external review processes.

“The claim is being reviewed under the Commission’s claim validation requirements and is the subject of external investigation,” a spokesperson with the lottery commission said.

Also under investigation is a 2023 lottery win in which several entities bought 99% of the game’s possible combinations with the help of retailers and a lottery courier business. That win, its legality which Patrick and other lawmakers question, also has cast doubt on the commission as a whole.

Most major lottery jackpot winners choose to remain anonymous and state law provides protections for them, but Howry said his client feels she is being “lumped in” with potentially illegal players needlessly. While there has yet to be any litigation filed regarding the jackpot, Howry said his client is considering it if the payout is withheld longer.

“The longer it takes for the lottery commission to be responsive to us, the more likely it is that that litigation will be filed,” Howry said.

Couriers have been active and unregulated in Texas for years until late February, when the lottery commission announced it would move to ban the use of couriers entirely. While lawmakers have cast doubts on the legitimacy of the business, proponents of the services say they provide convenience and may actually be a safer way of playing the lottery than buying tickets in public.

Howry’s client is part of a growing number of Texans who had been using Jackpocket and other couriers to buy tickets. Jackpocket alone has sold over $550 million in tickets since it entered the state in 2018, according to the company. Jackpocket has since suspended its activities in Texas following the lottery commission’s announcement, but other couriers are still selling tickets through their apps.

Howry said the refusal to pay out the jackpot to his client is not being applied equally, as others are still claiming prizes won through courier services. He pointed out that the 2023 win was paid out at the time without issue.

“If there was a concern that the couriers were not a safe way to play this game, why didn’t you stop it back then?” Howry said. Why did you make this decision two years later, when this person, who did play by the rules, won the lottery?”

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

AUSTIN – The Texas Senate on Wednesday advanced the chamber’s signature bill aimed at reining in the state’s high housing costs: allowing smaller homes on smaller lots.

Senate Bill 15 — a top priority for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who leads the Senate — would reduce the amount of land cities require single-family homes in new subdivisions to sit on. The idea is to reduce the final cost of new homes by allowing homebuilders to construct smaller homes on smaller lots. The bill cleared the Senate by a 28-3 vote.

“The crisis can be summarized in one stat: the average age of a homebuyer in Texas is 54,” said state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a Houston Republican who authored the bill. “That’s a classification … that’s not going to be able to be sustained to help first-time homebuyers.”

The bill is part of a slate of proposals aimed at addressing the state’s high home prices and rents by allowing more homes to be built. Texas needs about 320,000 more homes than it has, according to one estimate. That shortage helped drive up home prices and rents, housing advocates and experts argue, because the state hasn’t built enough homes to meet demand amid the state’s economic boom.

State lawmakers are eyeing ways to relax local rules that say what kinds of homes can be built and where — which critics say get in the way of allowing more homes to be built. Legislators are considering proposals intended to make it easier to build accessory dwelling units — otherwise known as ADUs, casitas or mother-in-law suites — in the backyards of single-family homes. Other proposals would allow developers to put homes in places that now only allow offices, shopping malls, warehouses and houses of worship.

SB 15 would prevent cities from requiring homes in new subdivisions to sit on more than 1,400 square feet. The most common lot-size requirements in major cities sit between 5,000 and 7,500 square feet, a Texas Tribune analysis found. The idea behind reducing those requirements would be to give homebuilders the flexibility to build smaller homes and thus reduce the overall cost of the home. The bill would only apply in new subdivisions, not in existing neighborhoods, that sit on at least five acres of land.

For some city officials as well as neighborhood activists who oppose new housing, the idea of state lawmakers weighing in on what kinds of homes cities allow and where is an undue incursion on local authority. Other states like California, Oregon, Montana and Florida have passed laws aimed at curtailing local rules in order to add more homes and reduce housing costs. Few parts of Texas have gone untouched by higher housing costs in recent years, proponents note — providing ample pretext for state lawmakers to intervene.

In Texas, the GOP-led Legislature has pushed for more than a decade to sap authority to make laws from local officials in the state’s urban areas, often Democrats. Democratic House lawmakers led the charge in 2023 to kill legislation that would’ve addressed some local zoning rules when it comes to housing.

Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, expressed concern that Bettencourt’s bill would take zoning powers away from cities that have an interest in regulating land uses like military facilities and industrial parks. But Bettencourt said the legislation relates solely to density, leaving local leaders free to reserve land for residential and commercial use.

Georgetown Republican Sen. Charles Schwertner said he worried that the density rules would unfairly limit city officials’ ability to shape growth.

“I still feel this might be a step too far, although I am willing to vote for it today,” he said.

Some Democrats in the Legislature have shown openness to relaxing city zoning rules at the state level. Two Democratic senators, Roland Gutierrez and Royce West, signed on to Senate Bill 15 as co-authors. (The bill also has nine Republican co-authors.)

The bill now moves to the Texas House of Representatives, where similar legislation died last session. Lawmakers in that chamber, too, have shown an appetite for changes to allow more homes to be built. Making it easier for builders to obtain permits and more difficult for neighboring property owners to oppose new housing are among House Speaker Dustin Burrows’ top priorities.

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

AUSTIN — Sen. Ted Cruz is entering deeper into the fight over school vouchers in the state Legislature, unveiling a six-figure ad buy Thursday praising state House members who support the effort.

Though school vouchers are an issue debated on the state level, Cruz has long been a vocal supporter from his federal perch. He gave targeted endorsements for candidates who support voucher legislation last primary cycle, when school vouchers were the principal cleavage among Republicans. He has urged his fellow Republicans in the Legislature to support vouchers for multiple sessions.

Cruz also led legislation in Congress to expand college savings plans to include public, private, religious, and home-school educational expenses, saying “school choice is the civil rights issue of the 21st century.” The bill mirrors legislation in the state House and Senate, which would create education savings accounts that can be used for private and parochial education.

“Every parent knows choices matter,” Cruz says in the ads. “For too long, Texas parents haven’t had the freedom to choose the right school for their kids. This has to change. School system bureaucrats have fought us every step of the way. But the courage and determination of a few Texas legislators means there’s new hope for our kids.”

Vouchers are Gov. Greg Abbott’s top legislative priority this session, and he has drawn the support of several other national actors. President Donald Trump and Elon Musk have called on Republicans in the Legislature to pass school voucher bills. Trump last month said on social media that he would be “watching them closely.”

During last year’s Republican primary, Abbott’s formidable campaign operation targeted 21 Republicans who joined Democrats in opposing school voucher legislation in 2023. Fifteen Republicans were ousted during last year’s primaries.

Abbott has since expressed confidence that voucher legislation will pass with the current Republican majority.

The Republicans who opposed voucher legislation were largely from rural areas and asserted the legislation would weaken funding for public education. Abbott denies that the program would come at the expense of already existing public school funding.

“Texas provided OVER $6 BILLION last session in new public education funding,” Abbott posted on social media. “Anyone who claims that Texas has not increased funding for our public schools since 2019 is a liar.”

Cruz’s ads name 14 House Republicans: Speaker Dustin Burrows, Brent Money of Greenville, Joanne Shofner of Nacogdoches, Trey Wharton of Huntsville, Janis Holt of Silsbee, Matt Morgan of Richmond, A.J. Louderback of Victoria, Alan Schoolcraft of McQueeney, Wes Virdell of Brady, Helen Kerwin of Glen Rose, Shelley Luther of Tom Bean, Don McLaughlin of Uvalde, Marc LaHood of San Antonio and Andy Hopper of Decatur.

Burrows will also honor Cruz on the House floor on Thursday for his advocacy of school vouchers.

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