The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - August 3, 2026

Episode Date: August 3, 2026

The Texan’s Daily Rundown brings you a quick recap of the latest stories in Texas politics so you can stay informed with news you can trust.Want more resources? Visit The Texan for complete access to our in-depth articles, newsletters, videos, podcasts, and more.Enjoy what you hear? Be sure to follow us and leave a review!

Well, howdy folks, today is Monday, August 3rd, and you're listening to The Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texan senior editor Rob Lauchess, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, the first female Republican to represent Texas in the U.S. House of Representatives and the first female mayor of Fort Worth, Kay Granger, passed away on Sunday, with Texans from both sides of the aisle mourning her loss and lauding her legacy. Granger, who served in Congress for nearly three decades, passed away at 83 years old in Fort Worth while battling Alzheimer's disease. She had announced her retirement in 2023, wrapping up her term in January 2025, citing health challenges that were steadily progressing and thus impacting her ability to travel to work in Washington, D.C. Granger's successor, U.S. Representative Craig Goldman, responded to Granger's death in a post on social media.

on Sunday, saying, quote, Texas has lost a legend, and I am deeply saddened by this news. Next, newly sworn in Texas comptroller of public accounts, Don Huffeins, declined his salary and promised to facilitate property tax relief through local government audits when he took the oath of office over the weekend. Immediately after he assumed the comptroller's office on Saturday, August 1st, Huffeins issued a statement that reiterated his campaign pledges, quote, to root out wasteful spending, safeguard tax dollars, and deliver property tax relief to Texans. Huffeins, a former state senator, is this year's Republican nominee for the position. Last month, Governor Greg Abbott appointed him to fill the role until the general election in November.

The Saturday press release included a statement of support from Abbott, marking a new period of cooperation between the former rivals. Huffines unsuccessfully challenged Abbott in the Republican primary for governor in 2022. Huffines won the Republican nomination for Comptroller in March, defeating former state senator Kelly Hancock, who was the acting head of the agency at the time. Hancock had Abbott's endorsement, while Huffines was endorsed by President Donald Trump. Huffines faces Democratic state senator Sarah Eckhart in the November general election for comptroller. In other news, Texas lawmakers were,

were up in arms after a recent Texas Senate Interim Committee hearing covering the controversial proposal for 765 kilovolt transmission lines to be built across the state. Both lawmakers and members of the public criticized the proposal at the hearing last Wednesday, with state senators Lois Colchorst and Phil King expressing skepticism of the development, and the public highlighting concerns about private property rights and the expedited protest filing process for landowners. 165 kilovolt lines, part of the state's strategic transmission expansion plan, or Step, are intended to connect power generators in East Texas to users in West Texas, who often suffer from unreliable electricity supply. However, the new transmission lines must be built across the

width of the state, around or through private property. Step is part of the broader Permian Basin reliability plan. Much of the debate over the project revolved around the costs and benefits of building out the 765 kilovolts lines as opposed to lower voltage 345 kilowolt lines, of which there would need to be even more in order to carry the same amount of power. Last but not least, a recent survey bolsters the claim that immigrants on work visas are draining away from the North Texas real estate market. However, both economic and political factors may be at play, according to market research and a leading agent who works with people from India who move to the United States for jobs. The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas found in its latest Bej book, an anecdotal survey of

businesses and economists that's published eight times a year, that Texas home sales activity lagged during the last few months, quote, particularly in outlying areas and those reliant on recent immigrant buyers. The survey follows reports that immigrants with H-1B visas who make up an outsized portion of first-time home buyers in the northern excerpts of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex are leaving the market. Netin Gupta, a real estate agent who caters to Indian clients relocating to North Texas, said, quote, there is definitely a slowdown right now. According to Gupta, a 10-year veteran of the Collin County real estate market, the slowdown has a twofold cause. uncertainty over immigration rules, and economic obstacles for home buyers, such as higher interest rates.

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