Here’s what’s coming up on Texas Standard for Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023:
What a tropical storm warning means for Texas weather
The National Weather Service has issued a tropical storm warning for areas covering over 1 million people along Texas’ eastern coast. The storm is expected to move inland over South Texas by midday – bringing heavy downpours that could cause flash flooding, and high winds that could result in some structural damage. Gov. Greg Abbott has already ordered the deployment of state emergency response resources. But for some, the storm could also mean a much-needed break from heat and drought. Will much come of it?
Space City Weather meteorologist and managing editor Matt Lanza joins Texas Standard with the forecast.
Texas refuses to expand Medicaid. Community health centers and uninsured people suffer
Community health centers are a safety net for uninsured and under-insured people. In Texas, those health centers are being stretched further because the state hasn’t expanded Medicaid, leaving hundreds of thousands of adults with limited options for health care.
KERA’s Elena Rivera reports on what it would mean for these organizations and their communities if the state increased health care eligibility.
Houston ISD slashes autism services team, cutting “lifeline” for special ed teachers
When students in Houston ISD head back to school next Monday, they’ll find things will be much different. After years of schools failing state accountability standards, the Texas Education Agency took over the district.
In one of the latest changes, the district eliminated a team focused on autism services. Houston Public Media’s Dominic Anthony Walsh reports that teachers who serve students with autism are concerned:
The group working to connect and empower immigrant churches
It’s no secret that church attendance in the U.S. has been steadily declining for several decades. Reports on American religious demographics often focus on the decline of Christianity and the rise of the religiously unaffiliated.
However, immigrant churches with powerful messages and ecstatic worship services are providing spiritual and material support for communities that have resettled in the U.S. In Austin, an interdenominational group called the Diaspora Network connects and empowers immigrant churches. Texas Standard intern Patrick M. Davis reports.
What’s in the 4,000-page evidence file against Ken Paxton?
Last week, the Texas Senate published nearly 4,000 pages of documents submitted by the lawmakers who are prosecuting the impeachment case against suspended Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. The documents were submitted as further proof of Paxton’s alleged abuse of office. The Texas Senate trial that will ultimately determine whether Paxton is removed from office is set to begin on Sept. 5.
Texas Newsroom political reporter Sergio Martínez-Beltrán joins the Standard with an overview.
This week in Texas music history
On Aug. 23, 1977, the Drug Enforcement Agency raided a Nashville studio where Waylon Jennings was recording. They had a warrant on the suspicion that Waylon’s manager had mailed cocaine to the address – and how Waylon beat the rap became fodder for one of his signature songs.
Jason Miller with The Center for Texas Music History at Texas State University shares the story:
What extreme heat is doing to Austin streets
The Texas heatwave is literally cooking roads across the state. New asphalt gets soft and starts to deform, while old pavement bakes and cracks. KUT’s Nathan Bernier reports on how Austin streets are shriveling in slow motion.
Texas’ new ‘Tesla Tax’ charges EV drivers who don’t pay gas taxes
Beginning Sept. 1, electric vehicle owners in Texas will need to pay an annual fee to the state. It’s the result of Senate Bill 505, passed earlier this year, and it will cost EV drivers $200 a year, or $400 when they buy a new electric car. Supporters say EV drivers, who don’t pay state or federal gas taxes, should contribute their fair share to maintaining the state’s roads. Those who want to encourage drivers to buy EVs say the new fee will discourage some people.
Guidehouse Insights research analyst Sam Abuelsamid joins the Standard with more.
All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.
