Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Thursday, April 17, 2025:
Texas House gives initial approval to bills on school funding and voucher-like program
The Texas House has given initial approval to two of the most closely watched bills of the legislative session – a $7.7 billion public school funding package and a hotly contested proposal to create a pathway for families to use state tax dollars to help send their kids to private schools.
The House vote on the latter, Senate Bill 2, marks a massive victory for top Texas Republicans, including Gov. Greg Abbott, who named the measure, labeled a school voucher program by critics, as a top priority for the state Legislature this session.
Mexico pledges water delivery to Texas farmers to fulfill treaty obligations
In 1944, the United States and Mexico signed a treaty where both countries agreed to deliver water to each other. Over the last eight decades that the treaty has been in effect, the U.S. has largely held up its end of the bargain. Mexico, on the other hand, has not – something that’s caused economic disruption, especially for farmers in South Texas.
The Texas Newsroom’s Lucio Vasquez has been following the story and joins the show to discuss.
New Texas natural area to open up in the future
Thousands of acres of Hill Country land have been set aside to create a new state natural area. Texas Public Radio’s Jack Morgan got a preview.
How tariffs on Chinese goods impact the tech sector
When the Trump administration paused most of its threatened tariffs last week, a few levies remained – Chinese goods entering the U.S. still face up to 245%. They’re a lot lower for many tech items, but still far above the rates levied during the Biden administration.
What impact have tariffs had on consumer prices so far? Our tech expert Omar Gallaga wrote for CNET about how accessories from one company have already been affected. He joins us to discuss.
Dishing on the barbecue at West Texas staple Raul’s
Jason and Simone Dominguez decided to move to Fort Davis and pick up where Jason’s great uncle Raul left off. Raul was an accomplished pitmaster in the region, having been written about in the Texas Observer as having the best barbecue in the state.
Daniel Vaughn, BBQ editor for Texas Monthly, joins us with the story.
New documentary looks at relationship between water and energy
“Water is life.” That’s one of the first lines of a new documentary airing on PBS stations across Texas. And that claim, that we need water to live, should come as a shock no one. But its basic truth and the facts built upon that are eye-opening.
The documentary, “Thirst for Power,” is based on a book by the same name by Michael Webber, who holds named chairs in the LBJ School of Public Affairs and the department of mechanical engineering at UT Austin. He joins us today.
What was the cybersecurity risk if critical database funding had been cut?
A critical database that tracks cybersecurity threats around the world was hours away from losing its federal funding this week, until experts raised the alarm, and the funding was restored.
The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures database tracks cybersecurity breaches and other threats, sharing information with governments and private cybersecurity researchers working to find and fix computer network vulnerabilities. So why was such a critical program at risk, and what could have happened if funding had dried up?
For answers, we turn to Francesca Lockhart, a cybersecurity program clinic lead at the Strauss Center for International Security and Law at UT Austin.
All this, plus Alexandra Hart with the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Raul Alonzo with the Talk of Texas.
