Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Monday, April 1, 2024:
Are Texas courts no longer hotspots for ‘venue shopping?’
Several banking and business groups are suing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) over its attempt to cap credit card late fees.
The groups filed their suit in the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Texas, but the CFPB said that district had nothing to do with the case. Now it appears that a Trump judicial appointee – Judge Mark Pittman – agrees with the CFPB’s complaint the groups were “venue shopping.”
Associated Press reporter Ken Sweet joins the Standard with more.
The U.S. military is going to Gaza, hoping to deliver food from a football-field-sized floating dock
US Army and Navy vessels are en route to Gaza. They hope to deliver up to 2 million meals a day to people who face the risk of famine. The relief effort was mobilized quickly, and U.S. military officials say they’re still working out the details.
Steve Walsh of the American Homefront Project was at a base in Virginia as the troops departed.
Behind the scenes of Houston ISD teacher evaluation rollout
The Houston Federation of Teachers is again calling for Houston ISD to not use a new performance evaluation system to remove educators or campus leaders.
The renewed call from the local union comes after revelations by Houston Public Media last week. Dominic Anthony Walsh reports on records the station obtained and the reaction from the teachers’ union:
From small startups to fossil fuel giants, Texans are rethinking the future of energy
Texas is an energy-producing state: oil and gas are synonymous with the state, and Texas is also a leader in wind and solar.
But even more new ways to generate energy are taking hold in Texas: hydrogen, geothermal and even small-scale nuclear reactors.
Texas Tribune reporter Emily Foxhall recently published a three-part series on the future of energy in Texas and joins the Standard with a look today.
Two decades later, photographer James Evans revisits his book ‘Big Bend Pictures’
After years in the region, photographer James Evans published “Big Bend Pictures” in 2003. The large collection of black and white photos captured the vastness of far west Texas and the grit of the people that call it home.
Now, over 20 years later, Evans has released a new edition of the book. Marfa Public Radio’s Mitch Borden sat down with Evans in his Marathon studio and brings us more.
This week in Texas music history: Bubble Puppy plays ‘American Bandstand’
Jason Mellard with The Center for Texas Music History at Texas State University shares another musical anniversary with the Standard.
Dallas is already planning for expected economic impacts of the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup
Arlington’s AT&T Stadium is slated to host nine FIFA World Cup matches in 2026. Expected to draw thousands of international fans, the contest will have a huge impact on the Texas economy.
Dallas Morning News business reporter Irving Mejia-Hilario joins the show with more.
Corpus Christi grapples with community debate over ocean desalination
Texas is predicted to need a lot more water in coming years. Brackish aquifers are already being tapped with inland desalination. But ocean desalination is a whole lot more expensive and complicated.
Texas Public Radio’s David Martin Davies reports Corpus Christi could be the first Texas city to try it, although there’s already some pushback.
All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.
