Texas Standard for March 16, 2022

By Texas StandardMarch 16, 2022 8:45 am,

Other states copy Texas abortion law

Idaho is the first state in the U.S. to enact a law outlining abortion restrictions similar to the ones here in Texas. Like Texas, Idaho is allowing regular citizens to sue anyone who “aids” or “abets” a woman who gets an abortion around six weeks of pregnancy. Other state legislatures across the country are also introducing similar bills. Seema Mohapatra is the Murray Visiting Professor of Law at Southern Methodist University. She joins us today.

Increased wildfire danger

Dry weather conditions and high winds have a large swath of the state under increased risk for wildfires. Wildfire fighting resources in the state have already responded to several, large fires this week. We’re joined by Wes Moorehead is Associate Director of Forest Resource Protection and Fire Chief at Texas A&M Forest Service.

Because of a mistake, I-35 expansion in Austin could level twice as many homes as predicted

The Texas Department of Transportation wants to expand I-35 through the heart of central Austin. Two competing plans are up for consideration. Widening I-35 would mean wiping out homes and businesses next to the highway. As part of the two plans, TxDOT put out estimates of how many properties it would seize through eminent domain. But as KUT’s Nathan Bernier reports, the number of households bulldozed could be twice as high as what TxDOT first estimated — and it’s all because the state agency missed an affordable housing complex.

El Paso, Narcan and overdoses

Opioid deaths are on the rise in El Paso, in part because of the increased presence of the deadly synthetic fentanyl. Records show at least 97 people died of an opioid overdose in El Paso County last year. But even though El Paso police are often the first on the scene when someone overdoses, a vast majority of officers are not supplied with the drug kits that could save a life. Why? René Kladzyk looked into this for El Paso Matters and joins us today.

The Sounds of Texas: Gretchen Stoeltje on ‘Shouting Down Midnight’

A new documentary tells the story of a handful of women for whom life took a turn after protests at the Texas Capitol against abortion restrictions in 2013. “Shouting Down Midnight” had its world premiere at SXSW. Director Gretchen Stoeltje told Texas Standard why now was the right time to complete the project.

Foodies in Arlington come into their own

Some people browse social media to find unique places to eat. An Arlington woman capitalized on that by starting a small Facebook group that features her city’s diverse food scene. Six years later, the group has taken off and now hosts a farmer’s market and several events to keep local restaurants in business. KERA’s Kailey Broussard spent some time getting to know the Arlington Foodies.

PolitiFact: Economic gains wiped out?

During President Biden’s State of the Union address last week, Texas Senator Ted Cruz took to Twitter to tweet criticism that he called “The Real State of the Union.” In it, Cruz said “In just one year, Joe Biden and the Democrats’ reckless policies have wiped out three years of wage gains for Americans.” Is that a fact? We’re joined by Nusaiba Mizan with Politifact Texas, based at the Austin American-Statesman.

All this and Texas News Roundup, plus Shelly Brisbin with the Talk of Texas.

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