Houston autonomous vehicle company plans to have no drivers on Texas Highways.

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports a Houston autonomous vehicle company plans to have no drivers in their self-driving trucks, making it one of the many businesses bringing the large, driverless vehicles to Texas highways. Bot Auto completed fully autonomous testing between Houston and San Antonio since last fall. The company plans to launch fully driverless operations for an initial four months. Bart Teeter, director of fleet and operational safety with Bot Auto, presented the company’s technology and trucks to local transportation and law enforcement agencies on Thursday at the Houston TranStar building. “One of the things that we’re very proud of is we’re a later entry into the market, and so we’ve been able to leverage the advances in A.I. that some of the companies that started before us didn’t have,” he said.

Teeter, who formerly worked at the Texas Highway Patrol, said safety is one of the reasons he advocates for these vehicles on Texas highways. Texas led the nation in fatal large truck crashes between 2018 and 2022, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Teeter believes that using these smart trucks to carry freight could help prevent further crashes caused by humans. “We like to brag, right? We’re Texans. Things are bigger in Texas. Well, the one thing I never really wanted to brag about was how big our crash problem is,” he said. Bot Auto spokesperson Jeremy Desel said the Voluntary Safety Self-Assessment — documents encouraged by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for companies that develop and launch automated driving systems — will be released in the next couple of weeks. Teeter said the trucks will operate fully autonomously, without a driver, by the end of summer. It will not haul hazardous materials. Bot Auto was founded in 2023. It operates a fleet of driverless trucks and partners with other businesses to provide autonomous freight transportation.

Senate bill would allow kids as young as 15 to be sent to adult Texas prisons

AUSTIN – KERA reports a Senate bill currently being considered would change a Texas law to allow 15-year old offenders to be sent to state prisons for adults. The age currently is 16. That change would apply to felons already in the state juvenile system who commit a second felony, like assaulting staff, or for “delinquent conduct.” Senate Bill 1727 and a companion House bill are intended to help protect staff from violent juveniles. Brett Merfish, Youth Justice Director for the Texas Appleseed organization, said the suggested law change gives children fewer chances than adults. Texas has a “three-strike” rule for adult felons. “It doesn’t’ allow for considering this child hit an officer while they’re being restrained, or, maybe they had an outburst because of a mental health condition,” she said. “And let’s say they did kick or hit an officer, but there was no injury and the intent wasn’t to hurt them. It doesn’t allow for any of that. It just says, ‘Okay — assault on a public servant, you’re out of here, you are going to the adult system.’ ”

As of May 1, there were 29 juvenile inmates in the Youth Offender Program within Texas prisons. The Texas Juvenile Justice Department oversees young criminal offender programs and detention centers, including five correctional facilities and three halfway houses. About 700 juveniles as young as age 10 were in TJJD custody as of last summer, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Of those, about 80 percent are Black or Latino. Amnisty Freelen’s son, Joshua Beasley, Jr., was 11 when he first entered the juvenile system for spray painting a Paris, Texas church with other boys. A month after he turned 16, he was transferred to the Wayne Scott Unit adult prison. Six months later, in March 2023, he wrapped a sheet around his neck and died in his cell. “In the adult system, Josh is the youngest person to die,” Freelen said. She said youths in detention and detention officers deserve protection. Recently, a Dallas County juvenile detention officer was severely injured by a female in custody who was younger than 15.

What Texas executives really think about tariffs

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports, “Chaos.” “Nonsense.” “Absolutely terrible.” In public, at least, many business leaders have been somewhat circumspect since President Donald Trump announced sweeping worldwide tariffs on April 2, or as he called it, “Liberation Day.” But Texas executives were a bit more candid in a series of recent surveys conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, which invited them to comment on the tariffs anonymously. “A lack of a plan and the arbitrary nature of the tariffs are killing business,” said one manufacturing executive in computer and electronic product manufacturing. The Dallas Fed surveys hundreds of executives in the manufacturing, service and retail sectors each month about business conditions, inviting them to elaborate with anonymous comments. Last month’s surveys, conducted April 15–23, included a series of special questions on the impact of Trump’s tariffs.

Nearly 60% of the roughly 350 respondents from across the state said they expected higher tariffs to have a negative impact on their businesses this year; only 3.2% were expecting a positive impact. About 55% of those expecting a negative impact said they plan to pass at least some portion of the cost increases through to their customers. At the time of the most recent survey, Trump had announced a pause on many of the tariffs he had just proposed, after the “Liberation Day” proposals sent markets reeling and raised concerns about the potential for inflation and recession. But Trump was planning to proceed with tariffs on major trading partners including China, which was among the countries responding with retaliatory tariffs. “I cannot emphasize enough how absolutely terrible this is in the short term,” said another. “The daily changes in policy make it impossible to attract new business currently because we cannot quote it with accuracy.” An executive in professional services described the situation as “a self-inflicted pandemic all over again.”

Houston Mayor unveils $7 billion budget with no tax increase, fees or deficit

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports that Houston Mayor John Whitmire on Tuesday kept his promise to balance the city’s finances, unveiling a $7 billion budget with no tax increase or new fees for city residents. The city was facing a budget deficit of more than $330 million during Whitmire’s time in office. Whitmire credited department consolidations for eliminating part of the deficit. The city also saved money in a legal agreement that requires the city to invest millions more in streets and drainage — but not all at once. The budget proposal does not factor in potential state money as lawmakers convene in Austin for their legislative session. One contentious bill would give Houston millions more from the Harris County Toll Road Authority.

While the city used METRO dollars to help offset costs incurred as a result of a drainage lawsuit that led to the legal agreement, the city is not using any more METRO dollars to bolster the budget, nor did it get any additional revenue from Harris County, Whitmire’s staff said. “This day is one of the reasons I ran for mayor,” Whitmire said. Whitmire’s 2026 budget is $7 billion, which is 2.3% more than last year’s budget. While the city plans to operate with more money this coming fiscal year, around $74.5 million was cut from the city’s nearly $3 billion general fund, which is bolstered by property and sales taxes. The general fund cuts came from consolidations and Whitmire’s voluntary retirement plan, which was open to all retirement-eligible employees except for police and fire. Whitmire’s team estimated the city would save around $30 million from retirements alone.

‘A lot of fog’: Texas businesses struggle to plan amid tariff chaos

SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio Express-News reports that amid President Donald Trump’s chaotic trade war, this much is certain: Business is being put on hold. The question, business leaders say as they scrap profit forecasts for the rest of the year, is how deep a hole they’re sliding into. From San Antonio’s Cullen/Frost Bankers Inc. and Rush Enterprises Inc. to Tesla Inc. and Southwest Airlines, executives say there are just too many uncertainties to give investors much guidance. Though the next two or three months promise more of the same, most are hesitant to say what they anticipate beyond that.

“The runway is really short,” Rush Enterprises CEO Rusty Rush said during a recent call with investors. “There’s a lot of haze, a lot of fog … And that’s not just for me, that’s for our customers. I mean, we’re driven by what customers see, what they do, what affects them.” Right now, he said, customers aren’t buying new heavy trucks — the New Braunfels-based commercial vehicle dealer’s bread and butter. Companies aren’t growing or replacing their fleets, Rush said, just replacing vehicles as they break down. That’s happening less often as drivers are putting fewer miles on their rigs as business slows. As imports continue to drop, truckers also have less merchandise and other freight to pick up from ports to drop off at stores, distributors and manufacturers. The uncertainty is being seen this week on Wall Street, too. After breaking a nine-day winning streak Monday, its longest such run in more than 20 years, the S&P 500 fell another 0.8% Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.9% and the Nasdaq composite sank 0.9%.

Suspects in death of 16-year-old arrested

CROCKETT – Our news partners at KETK report that according to the Houston County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Crockett Police Department and Texas Rangers, they were able to arrest suspects in connection to the death of Michael Ortez on Tuesday. “Due to the sensitive nature of this case no further information will be released at this time,” the sheriff’s office said. “We ask that you respect the families privacy during this difficult situation and we will update the public in full at the end of the investigation.” (more…)

Crews recover the body of a 10-year-old girl lost in floods

BRENHAM (AP) — The body of a 10-year-old girl who was swept away in rapidly rising floodwaters has been recovered, Brenham Police Chief Mark Donovan said Tuesday.

Her body was found as forecasters warned that Tuesday could bring more heavy rains and flooding to the Houston area and the state’s coast.

Teams of people scoured the city of Brenham on Monday night, using drones with thermal imaging and dogs to try to find the girl. The water rescue operation was scaled back overnight when heavy thunderstorms moved through the area, but four swift water rescue teams resumed operations early Tuesday, the Brenham Fire Department said in a social media post.

The department was working with around a dozen supporting agencies to find the girl, who was last seen at about 4 p.m. Monday.

She was a student from Brenham Elementary School and support services will be available for students and staff, according to a Brenham Independent School District social media post.

“Our hearts are with the student’s family, and we ask our community to keep them in your thoughts and prayers during this incredibly difficult time,” the district said.

The next round of severe storms could bring as much as 6 inches (15 centimeters) of rain Tuesday to parts of southeastern Texas, according to the National Weather Service in Houston. Strong rip currents and flooding along Gulf-facing beaches, especially during high tides, was also in the forecast.

A large swath of Texas and parts of New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi were under flood watches early Tuesday.

Just last week, storms drenched much of southern Oklahoma and northern Texas, washing out roads and causing hundreds of flights to be canceled or delayed at major airports.

Travis County sues former real estate developer Nate Paul

AUSTIN – The Austin American-Statesman reports the Travis County attorney on Monday sued eight companies owned by the embattled former Austin real estate developer Nate Paul seeking to collect millions in unpaid property taxes. The lawsuits, filed against five limited liability companies and three limited partnerships, demand payment of about $2 million in delinquent property taxes, as well as about $300,000 in legal fees, according to a Monday news release from Travis County Tax Assessor Collector Celia Israel. “Nate Paul has shown a disregard for playing by the rules — that includes paying his property taxes,” Israel said in a statement. Israel said in the news release that repeated attempts to contact Paul regarding the unpaid taxes were unsuccessful.

“Our local taxing units depend on property taxes to plan and build infrastructure like roads and bridges, pay our teachers and public employees and do the critical work of government,” she said in a statement. The lawsuit comes less than a month after Paul was ordered by a federal judge to pay $1 million within two years in a long-running federal financial crimes case. Paul at that time was also sentenced to five years of supervised release, including four months of home confinement. Paul in 2023 was indicted in a dozen federal financial crimes cases. Federal investigators accused him of under-reporting his total liabilities and over-reporting his cash to financial institutions in the U.S. and Ireland, thus influencing mortgage lenders’ decisions to give to Paul to buy commercial properties.

Man sentenced to 10 years for meth trafficking

TEXARKANA – A Dallas man has been sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for drug trafficking violations in the Eastern District of Texas, announced Acting U.S. Attorney Abe McGlothin, Jr. Emmanuel Robles, 39, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine and was sentenced to 120 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Robert W. Schroeder III on May 5, 2025.

According to information presented in court, between 2019 and 2021, Robles conspired with others to bring methamphetamine to East Texas for distribution. During this time, Robles distributed more than 1.5 kilograms of actual methamphetamine. Robles admitted to providing controlled substances to another co-conspirator in July 2019; August 2019; September 2019; October 2019; December 2019; January 2020; February 2020; March 2020; and April 2020. (more…)

Chip Roy wants Congress to cut Medicaid expansion

WASHINGTON – The San Antonio Express-News reports U.S. Rep. Chip Roy is ramping up pressure on House Republicans to make the larger cuts to Medicaid that many within his party oppose. In a letter to members on Thursday, Roy and 19 other House Republicans, including U.S. Reps. Keith Self and Michael Cloud of Texas, called for pulling back on the expansion of Medicaid benefits to low-income working adults that Congress passed during the Obama administration and that have been adopted in nearly every state. “If the House budget reconciliation package does not include structural Medicaid reform… we will be setting up massive tax increases and benefit cuts in the future,” they wrote. Medicaid expansion covers adults who make up to 138% of the federal poverty rate, or about $21,600 in 2025. States that opt into the program contribute a small percentage of the costs, with the federal government picking up the rest.

Roy’s push to return Medicaid to a program solely for low-income children, pregnant women, seniors and people with disabilities comes as Republicans are searching for ways to slash $1.5 trillion from the federal budget. House GOP members are divided over Medicaid expansion and other benefits for low-income families. U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, the San Antonio Republican whose district includes much of the border, who leads the GOP’s Congressional Hispanic Conference, has warned members that they face political fallout in cutting programs that are “helping hard working Americans.” Gonzales did not respond to a request for comment Friday. The House Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees Medicaid, has already delayed a hearing on the $780 billion in spending cuts they have been directed to come up with by House Leadership. Ending the federal match for Medicaid expansion would save the government $626 billion over the next decade, according to analysis by the health research non-profit KFF. And unless states decided to make up the loss, an estimated 20 millions Americans would lose their healthcare coverage. Texas is one of ten states that chose not to expand Medicaid to low-income Americans. But for Republicans representing states that did expand coverage, cutting federal funding has so far proven a difficult sell.

Texas lawmakers want more rules for home insurers

AUSTIN – The Houston Chronicle reports that in response to the state’s growing home insurance crisis, Texas lawmakers are considering proposals that would require insurers to get approval for rate hikes over a certain threshold. “Texans spoke very clearly of their concerns about rising property and casualty rates,” said state Sen. Charles Schwertner, a Georgetown Republican who authored a Senate bill that would require the state to approve rate hikes that exceed 10%. He said the threshold offered some leniency for insurers, which don’t currently need pre-approval for any increases, without providing them “complete carte blanche.” Consumer advocates have warned that insurers could game the system Schwertner is envisioning. Many providers already file multiple rate changes per year, which they could continue to do under the proposed legislation — even if cumulatively those rates exceed 10%.

And prior to 2023 — when rates spiked by 21% statewide, as insurers responded to skyrocketing losses driven by extreme weather — few rate increases exceeded 10%, according to a Hearst analysis of major insurer’s rate filings. Douglas Heller, the director of insurance at the Consumer Federation of America, a national nonprofit, called Schwertner’s proposal a “Pyrrhic victory,” saying 10% was too high. “It’s a fix that doesn’t fix,” he said. Schwertner’s proposal is one of several to have gained traction this session after lawmakers vowed to respond to rising premiums and worsening storms. Communities along the Gulf Coast have been especially hard hit, but the costs are being borne far inland too. Last week, the full House supported a proposal by state Rep. Tom Oliverson, a Republican, to create a statewide grant program to help homeowners fortify their homes against natural disasters.

Gas prices inch up, but will later drop

TEXAS – The nation’s average price of gasoline has risen for the first time in nearly a month, climbing 2.0 cents compared to a week ago and stands at $3.12 per gallon, according to GasBuddy® data compiled from more than 12 million individual price reports covering over 150,000 gas stations across the country. The national average is down 12.0 cents from a month ago and is 49.6 cents per gallon lower than a year ago. The national average price of diesel has increased 0.2 cents in the last week and stands at $3.501 per gallon.

“Last week was another mixed bag at the pump for many Americans, but there may be some promising short-term news from OPEC+, which has agreed to increase oil production starting in June,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “Here in the U.S., slightly more than half of the states saw gas prices rise, while many others saw modest declines. We continued to see price cycling in states prone to such movements, including much of the Great Lakes region, as well as in Maryland, Florida, and parts of Texas. However, the most notable development is OPEC+’s decision to raise production next month, as oil prices hover near their lowest levels since the pandemic. While gasoline inventories have been tightening due to ongoing refinery maintenance — which has limited how much gas prices have fallen in response to lower oil — refinery output is expected to rise soon. As maintenance wraps up, we could see an increase in gasoline supply and a national average that may soon dip below $3 per gallon.”

Elon Musk’s lawyer drops out of Texas attorney general race

AUSTIN – Politico reports that a lawyer for Elon Musk is dropping out of the race for Texas attorney general. John Bash, also a former federal prosecutor, said Wednesday that he had a family health scare that caused him to reconsider his plan to run for the post being vacated by Ken Paxton. “We’ve been deeply moved by the encouragement and support we’ve received over the past several weeks,” Bash said in a social media post announcing his decision. “I launched this campaign because I believe Texas must continue to lead the national fight to protect our prosperity, safety, and constitutional freedoms.” Attorney general is a high-profile job in Texas. Paxton is vacating the seat to run in a Republican Senate primary against Sen. John Cornyn, a former attorney general. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott also previously served as the state’s top lawyer. Bash applauded the other candidate in the race, state Sen. Mayes Middleton. “I will be rooting for the next AG to represent our great State with distinction and to continue the impactful work of General @KenPaxtonTX,” he wrote. Bash recently represented Musk in a defamation case in Texas.

Greg Abbott calls for automatic denial of bonds

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports that Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday demanded state legislators approve a constitutional amendment that — if passed by voters — would require courts to automatically deny bail to people accused of murder and other violent crimes in the state. Surrounded by crime victim families at Crime Stoppers of Houston, Abbott called on lawmakers to start a process that could put even more stringent requirements on judges and magistrates, who decide if a person can go free in between their arrest and trial. “Judges have far too much discretion to set easy bail on dangerous criminals,” Abbott said. The state constitution, which requires that bail be set in most criminal cases, has created a “broken” system, Abbott said.

Abbott’s called-for reform was quickly called unconstitutional by groups already skeptical of other bail-related bills moving through the legislature. The Texas Senate passed a bill in February, known as SJR 5, that proposes an amendment to the Constitution that would give judges discretion to deny bail to people accused of violent crimes and some sex-related offenses. The current bill requires judges to find evidence that a defendant won’t appear in court and is a danger. In his remarks, Abbott indicated the legislation should make the denial automatic – “unless there’s clear and convincing evidence that the defendant will appear in court and not endanger the community.” The burden should be on repeat violent criminals “to prove that they are not a danger to the community,” Abbott said. Judges who don’t deny bail should be required to explain their decisions in writing and prosecutors should be able to appeal bail decisions to a higher courts, he said

Paxton leads Cornyn in internal polling

HOUSTON – The Houston Chronicle reports that new internal polls by both major parties show U.S. Sen. John Cornyn is in big trouble as he faces the toughest GOP primary opponent of his political career in 2026. A Republican poll obtained exclusively by the Houston Chronicle show Cornyn is down against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton among likely GOP primary voters by 17 percentage points. A Democratic poll shows him down more than 20 percentage points. The numbers have some Republicans worried that Cornyn is in a race he can’t win, and instead could force a primary fight that costs millions of dollars and ends up bruising the eventual GOP nominee ahead of the general election. And they come as other key Republicans are weighing whether to join the race. U.S. Rep. Wesley Hunt of Houston, in particular, has emerged as a possible contender.

State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, said it’s time for someone to have a serious talk with Cornyn about whether he really wants to go through with another campaign that could quickly turn negative and costly. “If I was an incumbent senator with these types of polling numbers, I probably wouldn’t run because you can’t win,” Bettencourt said. Cornyn has said he’s not afraid of a primary against Paxton or anyone else. His campaign issued a similar statement Wednesday touting his easy primary victories over the decades and said he is “110% committed to running a vigorous reelection campaign.” So far, his campaign has heavily targeted Paxton, using social media to call the third-term Republican “a fraud” and alluding to Paxton having an affair that was confirmed during his impeachment trial in the Texas Senate. The new polling follows another survey earlier this spring, by Fabrizio, Lee & Associates, a firm used by the Trump campaign, that found Paxton up more than 20 percentage points in a head-to-head battle with Cornyn. Paxton said during a recent radio interview just over a week ago on KSEV-AM 700 in Houston that he later commissioned other polls that showed entering the race with a big advantage over Cornyn with likely GOP primary voters.

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