Late last month, the University of Texas at Austin denied the Beto O’Rourke campaign’s request to pass out flyers on campus. If Senate Bill 18 becomes law, the university would have had to grant permission.
Catherine Marfin
Catherine Marfin was a 2019 reporting fellow at The Texas Tribune. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in journalism and public relations. Before coming to the Tribune, she interned at the Houston Chronicle, the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and the Austin American-Statesman. She previously served as managing editor for The Daily Texan, UT-Austin's student-run campus newspaper.
Posted in
Courts
Court decisions have weakened Texas’ open-government laws. Advocates hope that’s addressed this year.
Lawmakers in the House and Senate have filed bills that aim to address a pair of 2015 court decisions seen as threats to open government.
Posted in
Environment
Shelter-in-place order lifted in Deer Park after benzene levels decline
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality said that at the maximum levels detected, the benzene levels could cause headaches and nausea, but no long-term effects. State Rep. Briscoe Cain has called for an investigation into the incident.
![Evelyn Fulbright attended the Women's [In]Justice Day rally March 8 on the south steps of the Capitol.](https://i0.wp.com/texastribune-donor-migration.newspackstaging.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/05_Women_Prisons_March_MG-1-scaled.jpg?fit=1200%2C800&quality=89&ssl=1)
Posted in
Criminal Justice
As number of imprisoned Texas women grows, lawmakers hope to add “dignity” to their time behind bars
Multiple bills filed this session aim to address deficiencies in women’s prisons.
Posted in
Texas Legislature 2019
Built with rehabilitation in mind, Texas state jails are now viewed by lawmakers as a “complete failure”
State jails were created to help low-level drug offenders get treatment. But they offer few rehabilitative services, and their inmates are more likely to reoffend.
Posted in
Economy
Brewers and distributors reach truce in hopes of allowing take-home beer sales at breweries
The two beer industry groups struck a deal this week that could end a years-long political fight.