On the Record

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CHRISTIAN: Railroad Commission Directs DOGE Task Force to Further Enhance Agency's Operational Efficiency

“Texas producers know better than anyone where government processes create unnecessary delays, and they’ve made their concerns clear. Government should be less focused on bureaucratic procedures, and more focused on delivering results,” said Texas oil & gas regulator Wayne Christian today, announced the next phase of the Texas Railroad Commission's "Delivering Oil and Gas Efficiently (DOGE) Task Force" following a year of stakeholder engagement, review and modernization efforts by the agency The initiative aims to streamline internal processes, strengthen communication and bolster the RRC’s responsive, pro-business approach.

06.18.2026
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McCaul: Funding Crucial Agencies at the Department of Homeland Security

Last week — after more than four months of Democrats' obstruction — Republicans proudly passed nearly $70 billion in funding for ICE and Customs and Border Protection. These agencies play crucial roles in defending our homeland during mass gatherings. ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations department, for example, received $108.5 million in this package to help combat child trafficking, which is all too common at large-scale sporting events.

06.16.2026
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Sens. Cruz, Budd, Moody Introduce Bill to Support Military Homeschool Families

U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), and Ashley Moody (R-Fla.) introduced the Continuity of Military Parents' Academic Schooling and State Standards (COMPASS) Act. This legislation allows military families to continue following the homeschooling laws of the servicemember’s legal home state during Permanent Change of Station (PCS) moves, rather than immediately shifting to the laws of the new duty station state, reducing the burdens on those families and enhancing homeschooling options.

06.16.2026
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Governor Abbott Issues Disaster Declaration For Texas Severe Weather

Governor Greg Abbott today announced that he issued a disaster declaration for 101 Texas counties as severe storms continue to threaten the state. Governor Abbott directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) to activate additional state emergency response resources and implement 24-hour operations at the Texas State Emergency Operations Center as storm risks persist. Last week, the Governor directed TDEM to activate state emergency response resources ahead of the flood threat.

06.16.2026
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RRC Begins Plugging on Coastal Orphaned Wells

The Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) will use its decades of experience to tackle a series of difficult and complex orphaned wells in the coastal waters of Baffin Bay. The six orphaned wells located in the Cayo del Grullo region of the bay, roughly 40 miles south of Corpus Christi, will be plugged by the Commission’s award-winning State Managed Plugging Program (SMP). As of June 10, 2026, SMP has plugged 1,688 wells in fiscal year 2026, adding to the more than 47,000 wells the SMP has plugged across the state since 1984.

06.16.2026
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Gov. Abbott Celebrates SpaceX's Dual Listing on Nasdaq – AND Nasdaq Texas

“Today marks a defining moment — SpaceX's listing on Nasdaq AND Nasdaq Texas cements the state's standing as a World-Class Hub for transformative companies. For SpaceX, for American innovation, and for Texas, the company's home state, this marquee dual listing is a powerful demonstration of what becomes possible when global liquidity and local alignment converge,” said Rachel Racz, Nasdaq's SVP & Head of Listings for Texas as part of its historic initial public offering trading under its stock symbol SPCX.

06.15.2026
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Pfluger: Funding Federal Law Enforcement to Keep Americans Safe

Through the Secure America Act, Republicans are delivering strong border security measures to keep communities safe through the remainder of President Trump's term. This bill invests $70 billion in the Border Patrol agents and ICE officers taking down cartels, stopping human traffickers, and keeping bad actors off America’s streets. The Democrats chose open borders, so Republicans are using reconciliation, the most powerful tool available to circumvent obstruction, to finish the job without them.

06.15.2026
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Babin: Secretary Wright Visits Port Houston

During our visit, we discussed how investments in critical infrastructure, including Project 11 and the expansion of the Houston Ship Channel, are increasing export capacity, improving safety, and ensuring our region remains the gateway through which American energy reaches the world. I have been proud to work alongside local leaders, industry partners, and federal agencies to secure the authorizations and funding necessary to advance this transformational project.

06.15.2026
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Land Commissioner Buckingham Celebrates the Heroic Women Who Have Served on Women Veterans Recognition Day

Texas Land Commissioner and Veterans Land Board (VLB) Chairwoman Dawn Buckingham, M.D., is delighted to recognize and praise all of the amazing women who have proudly served our country on Women Veterans Recognition Day, a day to acknowledge and commemorate the signing of the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act, allowing women the right to serve as regular members of the military.

06.15.2026
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​​​​​​​Gov. Abbott Announces $750 Million in Teacher Incentive Allotment Awards

"Texas is blessed with teachers who have educated and inspired students for generations. These funds ensure the best teachers are recognized for their efforts to improve the lives of their students," said Gov. Greg Abbott, noting that Teacher Incentive Allotment (TIA) funds have been awarded to over 65,000 Texas teachers across more than 800 school systems. Administered by the Texas Education Agency (TEA), total TIA awards now exceed $1.8 billion since inception.

06.12.2026
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Texas Land Commissioner Buckingham Offers USDA Access to GLO State Lands to Combat New World Screwworm

 Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, M.D., sent a letter to United States Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and Texas Governor Greg Abbott offering access to appropriate General Land Office (GLO) managed lands to support the State and United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) response to the active, escalating threat of the New World Screwworm. Currently, there are five active cases of the New World Screwworm in Texas.

06.12.2026
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Wayne Christian Backs Abbott's Data Center Measures to Protect Texans, Grid Reliability   

Oil and gas regulator Commissioner Wayne Christian today backed Gov. Greg Abbott's directive to the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) requiring data centers to bear the full cost of the electricity infrastructure needed to serve them. "Our job is to protect prosperity, safeguard taxpayers and ensure the infrastructure that powers our economy remains strong and reliable.”

06.12.2026
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Donalds Introduces the Tax Dollar Accountability Act

Any government entity that accepts federal funding must grant the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency complete access to its internal financial records that pertain to federal dollars. This includes detailed budgets, expenditure reports, vendor contracts, and grant distributions. Local and state officials will be legally required to hand over these documents at the conclusion of every fiscal year to verify that federal taxpayer dollars are being managed properly. 

06.12.2026
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Sens. Cruz, Hickenlooper Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Strengthen Military Data Capabilities in Space

U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.) introduced the Nodes, Enterprise Workloads, and Hybrid Operations, Resilience, Integration, Zero-Trust, Orbital Networks (NEW HORIZON) Act. This legislation establishes a Department of War pilot program to evaluate commercially available orbital data center and space-based cloud computing services for national security missions.

06.11.2026
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​​​​​​​Governor Abbott Directs PUC And ERCOT To Shield Texans From Data Center Infrastructure Costs

Governor Greg Abbott directed the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) to take immediate steps to protect residential ratepayers from the costs of data center expansion. Governor Abbott also pledged to work with the Legislature next session to codify these protections and ensure data centers add to Texas’ electric capacity rather than merely increasing demand.

06.11.2026
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Texas Education Freedom Accounts Pass 100,000-Student Milestone

Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock today announced that Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) have reached a major milestone, with more than 102,000 students awarded accounts for the 2026-27 school year. The latest batch of waitlisted students — more than 4,100 — were awarded accounts this week. All the newly awarded students qualified for Tier 2 application priority, meaning they had family incomes at or below 200% of the federal poverty level ($66,000 per year for a family of four).

06.11.2026
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Governor Abbott Announces $166 Million In Energy Assistance Funds

Governor Greg Abbott today announced $166 million in energy assistance funds to help low-income Texans maintain safe and affordable housing. Award funds, administered by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA), are set to begin January 1, 2027. The grant awards may be used to provide income-eligible households with utility bill payment assistance; energy-efficient heating, cooling, or refrigeration equipment; and consumer counseling and case management to help them achieve self-sufficiency.

06.10.2026
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Minnesota's Fraud Is Even Worse Than We Thought

We thought we'd read everything on the Minnesota fraud scandals in which billions of dollars were looted from federal social programs and 110 Individuals have been indicted.  But yesterday, the House Oversight committee released its report titled "The Cost of Doing Nothing," detailing how a trio of power-hungry pols - Governor Tim Walz, state AG Keith Ellison and Rep. Ilan Omar - repeatedly failed to act.   The testimony from nearly 30 whistleblower state employees and participants in the programs is damming.

06.10.2026
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Wayne Christian Hails Federal Decision Ending Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Endangered Species Act Protections

Oil and gas regulator Wayne Christian today applauded the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (FWS) decision to revoke the Endangered Species Act listing of the dunes sagebrush lizard, a move that aims to resolve litigation pursued by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on behalf of the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) and marks what Christian called a significant victory against federal regulatory overreach affecting American energy production.

06.10.2026
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Governor Abbott, Secretary Rollins Update Texans On Screwworm Response At Kerrville Lab

Governor Greg Abbott today joined U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and federal and state partners at the Knipling-Bushland U.S. Livestock Insects Research Laboratory for a briefing and update on Texas’ ongoing response to the New World screwworm threat. During his remarks, Governor Abbott highlighted the coordinated state and federal effort underway to prevent the spread of the New World screwworm in Texas. USDA is deploying sterile flies across the infected areas and working to establish a new sterile fly production facility in Edinburg. 

06.09.2026
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06.29.2026

TEXAS INSIDER ON YOUTUBE

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06.25.2026
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06.24.2026
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