Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Friday, May 5, 2023. Check back later today for updated story links and audio.
Learning about the victims of the Cleveland, Texas, mass shooting
When a gunman massacred four adults and a child Friday night at a home outside of Houston, he shattered the worlds of four tight-knit Honduran families trying to build lives in the United States. The now-concluded manhunt for the suspect has been widely covered, but what about the people that were killed? Jhair Romero reported on them for the Houston Chronicle and joins us with their stories.
There are some bills that would help LGBTQ Texans – but will they make it?
With just a few weeks left in this legislative session, Texas lawmakers have yet to consider hundreds of bills – including some advocates say would have a positive effect on the state’s LGBTQ residents. A few are inching forward and have bipartisan support, but will they make it to the governor’s desk? The Texas Newsroom’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán reports.
Texas was there with cheap housing. Is it losing its edge?
For years, Texas has consistently ranked among the cheapest states to purchase a home, something that makes it attractive for newcomers. But according to the Dallas Federal Reserve, the state is losing its “cheap housing edge.” Texas Standard producer/reporter Sean Saldana reviewed the numbers and joins us with more.
Some families are using extreme couponing to weather inflation
The latest Consumer Price Index found inflation in at-home food prices may be finally slowing down a bit. But shoppers are still feeling the pinch of grocery store prices. One San Antonio-based organization is helping Texans save money through couponing. For the Texas Standard, Marissa Greene explores their approach to savvy shopping.
Cloud seeding has never been proven, but drought-stricken Mexico is ready to try
Mexico’s agriculture ministry is trying its hand at cloud seeding, an experimental technique to induce precipitation that may or may not work. For more, we’re joined by Myriam Vidal Valero, who recently investigated the project for the journal Nature.
Texas regulators paint bleaker-than-usual picture of electric grid ahead of summer heat
The Public Utility Commission of Texas has released its assessment of the power grid going into the summer. Regulators say that, under some scenarios, there won’t be sufficient “on demand power” to meet all energy needs, as KUT’s Mose Buchele explains.
Colonias and the American Dream are one and the same for residents
Today, colonias are considered substandard housing developments along the border, known for extreme poverty and a lack of basic infrastructure. But for many residents, these unofficial neighborhoods made the dream of home ownership a reality. Texas Public Radio’s Carolina Cuellar shares more.
The gang delivers another custom poem. Get in touch with your own topic suggestions!
Texas Tribune political reporter James Barragán stops by with a recap of the week that was.
All this, plus the Texas Newsroom’s state roundup and Wells Dunbar with the Talk of Texas.
