The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - October 30, 2024

Episode Date: October 30, 2024

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Howdy folks, today is Wednesday, October 30. And you're listening to the Texans daily rundown. I'm the Texans assistant editor Rob Lausches. And here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris held a rally in Houston on Friday, a campaign finale centered on one thing, abortion. Twelve days before the general election and at the tail end of early voting's first week, Harris' campaign chose to make their closing statement to Texans wholly about Democrats' favorite wedge issue. They centered the Houston rally on reproductive freedom and trusting Texas women, almost entirely steering clear of all other policies. The event was held at Shell Energy Stadium, which nearly reached its full capacity of 22,039 within two hours of the official start. The stadium's jumbotrons flashed phrases such as trust women and vote for reproductive freedom throughout the event. Next, Texas is suing an El Paso-based doctor for allegedly prescribing gender-modifying hormone therapies to children as young as 12 years old.

The lawsuit was filed in the 422nd District Court of Kauffman County on Wednesday. The Office of the Attorney General alleges that Dr. Hector M. Granados of Pediatric Endocrinology Associates in El Paso has been, quote, providing puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones to children for the purpose of transitioning their biological sex or affirming their belief that their gender identity or sex is inconsistent with their biological sex. Granados allegedly misled pharmacies, insurance providers, and possibly patients through falsified medical records, prescriptions, and billing records, quote, to conceal that his treatments and prescriptions were for the purposes of

transitioning a child's biological sex. In court documents, Texas asserts that Granados prescribed such illegal treatments as recently as August 19, 2024, with patients filling those prescriptions as recently as October 12, 2024. In other news, one top race to watch this year is in House District 112, where incumbent Representative Angie Chen Button takes on a formidable challenger in Democrat Avery Bishop. The district, which stretches across portions of Dallas County in the northern suburbs of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, has become a battleground rated R53 percent, according to the Texans' Texas Partisan Index. Button has faced

numerous challenges for her seat over the years. Back in 2022, HD 112 was also highlighted as a hotly contested race, but the district was redrawn before the election, shifting it from D 52% to R 55%. She also narrowly escaped defeat in 2020, edging out a victory by a margin of just 222 votes. Also, officials with the beleaguered Houston Independent School District are asking voters to approve the largest school bond in state history to rejuvenate a public school district that neglected facility maintenance and student achievement for years. But the proposal from HISD's state-appointed board has fostered a rare coalition of political groups who are unified in opposing the massive bond. The $4.4 billion bond proposal consists of two components. Proposition A asks for $4 billion to rebuild 22 elementary and middle schools and renovate or expand another 16 schools. Eight schools would be moved to co-locate with another

school, placing certain elementary schools and middle schools on adjacent campuses. The funds would also cover safety and security infrastructure for the schools. Proposition B calls for nearly $500,000 for technology infrastructure, equipment, and systems, including those needed for instruction. According to the Texas Bond Review Board, HISD's debt obligation as of 2023 was $2.9 billion. Last but not least, Rockwall Independent School District is asking voters to approve a tax rate increase and a bond package totaling over $848 million. Proposition A is a voter approval tax ratification election that would set the tax rate at over $1.14 per $100 in valuation, a 17% increase, or $16 million, in the maintenance and operations tax revenue for the district. The current tax rate is just under $1.02. If approved, the average Rockwall ISD homeowner

will pay an additional $877 in taxes per year. Rockwall ISD claims that the tax rate increase will be used to raise salaries for its teachers and staff and provide revenue for unfunded mandates by the state. According to the district, its salaries are among the lowest in the area, quote, making it difficult to fill our educator positions. Proposition B is the largest of the bond propositions at $787 million for building two elementary schools and carrying out facility renovations and upgrades. Thanks for listening. To support The Texan, please be sure to visit thetexan.news and subscribe to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts.