Articles

Legislators approved money to construct a new University of Texas System campus in Brownsville and a science building for the Edinburg campus on Tuesday as the merger of the Rio Grande Valley’s two universities progressed.

The funding comes under a bill separate from the main legislation joining UT-Pan American and UT-Brownsville, state Rep. Rene Oliveira, D-Brownsville, announced in a news release Tuesday. The $100 million for the Brownsville campus and $78.4 million for a science building at UTPA will be funded by tuition revenue bonds. Continue Reading »

Two competing bills creating a new university and establishing a medical school in the Rio Grande Valley will be heard today and Friday, according to schedules posted online. Continue Reading »

A bill that would require Texas legislators to submit to drug tests and pass the results to the State Ethics Commission was voted out of the Senate Committee on State Affairs on Thursday.

Senate Bill 612, by state Sen. Eddie Lucio, Jr., D-Brownsville, would require state legislators to be tested for drugs the day they take office. The results would be made public only if permission is given by the legislator, and a failed test would result in no consequences.
Continue Reading »

A Newsweek list of the 2,000 best high schools in the country published last week includes 11 in the Rio Grande Valley, with one district cracking the top 100. Continue Reading »

A bill that would provide free breakfast to children at Texas’ poorest schools is headed to Gov. Rick Perry‘s desk after the House passed the measure 73-58 Thursday.

Senate Bill 376, by state Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr., D-Brownsville, would require all schools and school districts where more than 80 percent of students are already eligible for free or reduced-price meals through the federal School Breakfast Program to offer a free breakfast to all students. Continue Reading »

An amendment to legislation that would create a regional university along with a South Texas medical school gained approval Wednesday from the Senate Committee on Higher Education. Continue Reading »

A bill that would allow the temporary closure of Boca Chica Beach for possible rocket launches now moves on to the full Texas Senate for a vote. Continue Reading »

Nearly a year after a public hearing concerning the possible SpaceX project at Boca Chica Beach the topic again attracted more than 500 attendees as Federal Aviation Administration officials shared the results of the agency’s draft environmental impact statement. Continue Reading »

A Texas Senate committee passed out a substitute bill today that dictates the first two years of a proposed medical school be placed in Hidalgo County. Continue Reading »