The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - September 25, 2025

Starting point is 00:00:00 Howdy, folks, today is Thursday, September 25th, and you're listening to The Texans Daily Rundown. I'm the Texans Assistant editor Rob Lauchess, and here is the rundown of today's news in Texas politics. First up, in the month since President Donald Trump entered office in January, issues at the border have largely gone quiet as U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced another month, of historically low illegal crossing apprehensions. The August update from CBP details how agents at the southern border apprehended just over 6,300 individuals in August, including zero parole releases. The press release also details that there were around 25,200 encounters in total nationwide that month.

Starting point is 00:00:53 CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott stated in a press release, quote, we are proving every day that tough, consistent enforcement works. He continued, quote, border crossings are at record lows, mass catch and release is over, and our agents are delivering results for the American people. During the peak under the Biden administration, encounters reached levels of over 370,000, including over 10,000 parole releases during August 24. Next, the Harris County Commissioner's Court approved the final piece of the county's budget and property tax rate Wednesday after another contentious

Starting point is 00:01:33 meeting, wherein county judge Lena Hidalgo continued to rail against providing raises for law enforcement and clashed with fellow Democrats on the commissioner's court. The $2.7 billion general fund budget includes pay raises for patrol officers to match higher salaries offered by the Houston Police Department, as well as increases for other county employees and elected officials. Commissioners also approved the no new revenue tax rate, which will produce $90 million more in revenue next year compared to fiscal year 2025 due to new or improved properties being added to the tax rolls. To meet a projected budget deficit earlier this year, Office of Management and Budget Executive Director Daniel Ramos asked all county departments to find cost savings of 10%. While some departments were able to significantly cut spending, funding for multiple offices will increase, including for the district attorney's office by $25 million.

Starting point is 00:02:35 The public defender's office budget will increase by 23%, and funding for court-appointed attorneys will jump from $5.6 million to $15.6 million. Commissioners Adrian Garcia, Tom Ramsey, and Leslie Brioz voted for the budget and tax rate, but Hidalgo and Commissioner Rodney Ellis voted against it. In other news, the Dallas City Council approved its $5.2 billion operating and capital budget for fiscal year 26 last week. The operating budget of $1.9 billion is about $60 million, or 3% higher than it was last year. The budget is based on a slight tax rate reduction of 0.59 cents, which lowers the property tax rate on Dallas residents from a little over 70 cents to a little under 70 cents per $100 in valuation. The average residential homestead with a home value of $305,000 will realize a small reduction

Starting point is 00:03:36 in their property tax bill of $15.46. Dallas mayor Eric Johnson expressed his disappointment that while the budget, quote, includes a small property tax rate reduction, it does not go far enough to offset rising property values or combat waste. Last but not least, Fort Worth Independent School District announced it will implement seven resource campuses in the 2026-27 school year in an effort to restructure its most at-risk schools. At the September 23rd board meeting, Superintendent Dr. Karen Molinar said the schools of focus will be Western Hills Elementary, Western Hills Primary, Clifford Davis Elementary, William James Middle, Morningside Middle, and Wedgwood Middle. Eastern Hills Elementary will be consolidated with West Handley Elementary into one campus.

Starting point is 00:04:29 All campuses have received unacceptable Texas Education Agency accountability ratings for three or more consecutive years. To be a TEA approved resource campus, schools must already have a targeted improvement plan and implement the accelerating campus excellence turnaround plan. All principals, assistant principals, and teachers must apply or reapply and have at least two years of teaching experience. Thanks for listening. To support the Texan, please be sure to visit the texan. News and subscribe to get full access to all of our articles, newsletters, and podcasts. Thank you.

The Texan Podcast - Daily Rundown - September 25, 2025

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