Latest Contributions

• Settlement reached over private border wall, but experts say it won’t stop the environmental damage

  By Perla Trevizo and Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica June 4, 2022

  Federal authorities have reached a deal that gives builders of the privately funded fence control over where to inspect for damage and leeway over which issues they choose to repair. Full Story 

• Why 18-year-olds can buy AR-15s in Texas but not handguns

  By Kiah Collier and Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica May 26, 2022

  This week’s massacre in Uvalde highlights disparities in how federal laws regulate rifles and handguns. The shooter bought two rifles days after his 18th birthday. Full Story 

• Problems remain for We Build the Wall group after founder’s guilty plea

  By Jeremy Schwartz and Perla Trevizo, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica May 2, 2022

  Air Force veteran Brian Kolfage faces more than five years in prison after pleading guilty to defrauding donors to the private wall effort. Full Story 

• North Texas superintendent orders books removed from schools, targeting titles about transgender people

  By Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, and Mike Hixenbaugh, NBC News March 23, 2022

  The Granbury superintendent’s comments, made on a leaked recording, raise constitutional concerns, legal experts said. Full Story 

• A push to remove LGBTQ-themed books in a Texas county could signal rising partisanship on school boards

  By Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Feb. 7, 2022

  Hood County’s refusal to remove two books from the children’s section of the library sparked a yearslong political battle. Now school board races have taken on a deeply partisan tone, and elections serve as a purity test for far-right politics. Full Story 

• Trump won Hood County in a landslide. His supporters still hounded the elections administrator until she resigned.

  By Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Oct. 12, 2021

  Michele Carew, an elections administrator with 14 years of experience, has resigned after a monthslong campaign by Trump loyalists to oust her. “I’m leaving on my own accord,” she said. Full Story 

• “God’s will is being thwarted.” Even in solid Republican counties, hard-liners seek more partisan control of elections.

  By Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Oct. 1, 2021

  The political battle in one Texas county where Trump got 81% of the vote offers a rare view into the virulent distrust and unyielding pressure facing elections administrators. Full Story 

• “Power companies get exactly what they want”: How Texas repeatedly failed to protect its power grid against extreme weather

  By Jeremy Schwartz, Kiah Collier and Vianna Davila, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Feb. 22, 2021

  Texas regulators and lawmakers knew about the grid’s vulnerabilities for years, but time and again they furthered the interests of large electricity providers. Full Story 

• Donald Trump visiting Texas' Rio Grande Valley on Tuesday as his administration rushes to award more border wall contracts

  By Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Updated: Jan. 10, 2021

  The president's visit comes a week after Department of Homeland Security officials touted the “historic” completion of 450 miles of border fencing during his administration. Full Story 

• The Trump administration awarded border wall contracts to build on land it doesn't own in Texas

  By Perla Trevizo and Jeremy Schwartz, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica Dec. 23, 2020

  The government’s strategy of awarding contracts before acquiring titles to land in Texas has led to millions of dollars in costs for delays. Things could get even more complicated if President-elect Joe Biden stops border wall construction. Full Story