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TEXAS PRESS ASSOCIATION
STATE CAPITAL HIGHLIGHTS
U.S. Sen. John Cornyn last week reversed his opposition to changing the Senate’s filibuster rules, writing in an op-ed that legislation in that chamber should pass with a simple majority, the San Antonio Express-News reported.
Cornyn said the change should be made to advance the SAVE America Act, legislation pushed by President Donald Trump that would require a birth certificate or passport to register to vote.
“After careful consideration, I support whatever changes to Senate rules that may prove necessary for us to get the SAVE America Act and homeland security funding past the Democrats’ obstruction, through the Senate, and on the president’s desk for his signature,” Cornyn wrote.
Cornyn has long opposed ending the filibuster, which requires a 60-vote majority to end debate on the Senate floor. The practice dates to the early 1800s.
Cornyn is in a tough runoff race with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. That election is set for May 26.
MIDDLETON, ROY GO ON OFFENSE AHEAD OF AG RUNOFF State Sen. Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston, and U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Austin, are taking the gloves off as they also head to a runoff in the GOP primary for Texas attorney general, The Dallas Morning News reported. Middleton finished first in the March 3 primary but fell short of a majority. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton didn’t seek reelection to the state attorney general post, opting instead to run against U.S. Sen. John Cornyn.
“Chip Roy is on the ropes,” Middleton said. “We’ve got all the momentum.”
Roy, a four-term congressman, criticized what he called Middleton’s lack of legal experience.
“I wouldn’t hire Mayes Middleton into the office of the attorney general, except at a very basic level, because he has no discernible legal skills,” Roy said. Both are framing themselves as Trump allies.
On the Democratic side, state Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas, faces former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski in a runoff. Johnson received 48.1% of the vote to 26.4% for Jaworski in the March 3 primary.
TRUMP TAPS EMERGENCY OIL RESERVES FROM TEXAS SITES The Trump administration pledged 172 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve last week, with the oil coming from sites along the Gulf Coast, the Houston Chronicle reported. Prices for West Texas Intermediate crude oil have been hovering just below $100 per barrel since the U.S. and Israel launched strikes against the theocratic regime in Iran.
Iranian officials have responded by essentially shutting down oil transported through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran controls.
“The market is seriously unbalanced, and that will continue until the Strait is reopened and upstream and downstream operations return to normal,” said Jim Burkhard, vice president, S&P Global Energy crude oil markets. “It will not happen quickly.”
The national oil reserves are held in dozens of manmade underground salt caverns in Texas and Louisiana.
STATE BAN ON SMOKABLE CANNABIS TAKES EFFECT MARCH 31
Smokable cannabis products must be gone from Texas store shelves by March 31, the Texas Standard reported. The new rules were formulated by the Texas Department of State Health Services after the Legislature couldn’t agree on whether to regulate THC products or ban them entirely.
Annual fees charged to retailers are set to rise to $5,000 per year for each retail location and $10,000 per year for each manufacturing facility — 33 and 40 times higher, respectively, than current levies. More than 9,100 retail locations in the state are registered to sell consumable hemp products.
Cannabis advocates say the higher fees and ban on cannabis flowers and smokable extracts will send users to the underground market.
“Our concern is some of these measures are so draconian that you are going to drive people out of the business and then folks’ access to the products,” said Mark Bordas, head of the Texas Hemp Business Council. “Invariably, we’re going to have to bring forth a (lawsuit]), and the state has to defend what it’s done, and that’s taxpayer money, and it’s a waste.”
WATER WOES IN CORPUS COULD PROMPT STATE ACTION A looming water crisis in Corpus Christi has prompted Gov. Greg Abbott to warn the city’s leadership the state may intervene to ensure the city’s residents and businesses have access to water, The Texas Tribune reported. The city’s water supply could be outpaced by demand as soon as June 2027, according to one model.
“Corpus Christi is a victim not because of lack of water. They’re a victim because of a lack of ability to make a decision,” Abbott said at a press conference.
The city currently has $1 billion in water projects underway to increase supply, but many of them won’t come online until later this year or next year.
The city’s water woes stem from low reservoir levels, a long-lasting drought and rising demand driven by an industrial boom, especially in petrochemical and energy projects near the bay. A large seawater desalination plant proposal was turned down by the City Council last year after it faced fierce criticism because of its cost and potential harm to the marine ecosystem.
Corpus Christi Mayor Paulette M. Guajardo has called for a special emergency meeting to vote again on the plant proposal.
BIG BEND PROJECTS REMOVED FROM ‘SMART WALL’ PLAN
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has updated its “Smart Wall” map to remove two planned projects in the Big Bend area, including one slated for Big Bend National Park, according to the Texas Standard. The plan has drawn considerable opposition from park lovers, including a newly formed group, No Big Bend Wall.
“While this shift from potential ‘physical wall’ to ‘detection technology’ is a signal that the public pressure is working, lack of transparency means we don’t know if this is a real policy shift or a tactical one designed to lower our guard,” the group said.
CBP did not publicly announce the change and did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Borders is a veteran award-winning Texas journalist. He published community newspapers in Texas during a 30year span, including in Longview, Fort Stockton, Nacogdoches, Lufkin and Cedar Park. Email: gborders@ texaspress.com.
