Texas enacts 820 new laws with wide ranging impacts
New state laws take effect, covering a $250 billion two year budget, the Born Alive Act requiring care for newborns, raising tobacco age to 21, defunding abortion providers, ending the Driver Responsibility Program, reforms for female inmates, free speech on campus, telemarketing fraud bans, arbitration for medical bills, lemonade stand protections, pumping breast milk, post disaster handgun carry, floodplain disclosures, and harsher penalties for package theft.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Texas
Texas moves to curb cyber flashing with Bumble support
Texas teams with Bumble to criminalize sharing intimate images to harm former partners. State Rep Morgan Meyer notes app users faced no recourse before the measure. Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd pushed for a legal fix amid complaints about unsolicited nude images.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Austin
Texas
Bumble
Morgan Meyer
Meyer
Whitney Wolfe Herd
Debate over brass knuckles rules in Texas law
Baytown police say brass knuckles are rarely seen and often found during arrests for other charges. Texas lawmakers have removed knuckles from prohibited weapons, part of a broader weapon ban overhaul shaping officer training and public safety practices.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Baytown
Steve Dorris
Goose Creek adopts gun policy exception for locked vehicles
Goose Creek ISD outlines that district employees with Texas handgun licenses may store unloaded firearms in locked vehicles in district parking areas without policy violations. Barbers Hill ISD also expects HB 1143 to have no impact, with Police Chief Kenny Widner saying it will be business as usual.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Goose Creek
Texas
Barbers Hill Isd
Kenny Widner
Barbers Hill
Baytown faith groups react to shooting with security plans
Religious centers in Baytown discuss security policies after a shooting. Large churches often keep security on site during services for traffic and crime prevention. K Nesseth Israel Synagogue confirms armed security at services, a long standing practice. The Muslim Center of Baytown has signs prohibiting guns on property, but did not answer about new laws.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
K’nesseth Israel Synagogue
Baytown
Drive by shooting prompts hunt for two suspects in Chambers County
Chambers County Sheriff Brian Hawthorne reports a drive by shooting in a Baytown area, around 9 50 p m last Sunday. A residence on Texana Drive was hit multiple times while two males, seeking two young adults, left in a possibly silver Ford Mustang with Louisiana plates. Officers recovered 25 shell casings with no injuries reported. Call 409 267 2500 or Crime Stoppers at 844 860 8477 with tips.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Chambers County
Brian Hawthorne
Texana Drive
Baytown
Ward
Hawthorne
Louisiana
Laws Relaxed And Expanded Across Boating, Education and Health
New rules require kill switches on boats under 26 feet and mandate they be installed on new vessels. Digital licenses replace paper for hunting and fishing. Campuses must issue hazing incident information and expand allowed expressive activities outdoors. Rape kit timelines set 14 day collection and 90 day testing. unsolved cases preserved for 40 years. Donor sexual material without consent becomes assault. Tobacco and vaping age raised to 21 for everyone but active duty military. Alcohol deliveries to off premise sites permitted. Some cough syrups now require 18 plus buyers.
Texas Law Updates Expand Rights and Tighten Rules
The state eliminates Driving The Driver Responsibility Program and raises traffic fines by twenty dollars. Brass knuckles no longer prohibited for license holders during disasters. Landlords cannot ban legal weapon possession. Women and children receive clarified breastfeeding protections including pumping. New trauma screening for female inmates and postpartum mood screening planned. Prohibitions grow against fake caller IDs, fake images in videos to influence elections, and unwanted explicit texts.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Texas Department of Criminal Justice
Senate
Odessa shooting leaves multiple dead and injured fifty
Odessa Police Chief Michael Gerke reports at least five killed and 21 injured by gunfire in West Texas. Three officers among the wounded as a U S Postal Service vehicle was hijacked in the chaotic afternoon, with a suspect still sought.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Odessa
Michael Gerke
West Texas
Gerke
U.S. Postal Service
Lee College faculty clash over one year contracts change
Faculty at Lee College oppose a policy shift to one year contracts for probationary and non-tenured staff, arguing it reduces academic freedom and weakens governance. They criticize lack of transparency and fear loss of division chairs and multi year job protections while President Brown defends the trend in community colleges and asserts no full time instructor will lose their job.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Guillory
Brown
Jerry Hamby
English and Humanities Division
Hamby
Dennis Brown
Lee College
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
Texas Community Colleges
Gulf Coast Consortium
San
Jacinto College
Houston Community College
Also Mentioned on This Page
East
Overton
Glarice Silber
The
Associated Press
Texas Commission On Law Enforcement
Dorris
BY Matt Hollis
Matt.hollis
Baytownsun.com
School and College
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