Tag Archives: Denton

Lawsuit over San Marcos marijuana decriminalization ordinance tossed

Posted on July 30, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

For now. A Hays County judge dismissed a lawsuit filed against the City of San Marcos in response to a proposition decriminalizing low-level marijuana possession. Judge Sherri Tibbe dropped Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s suit against San Marcos on Monday. … Continue reading →

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Paxton lawsuit to nullify marijuana ordinances tossed

Posted on June 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Good. A state district judge in Travis County has dismissed a lawsuit by Texas Attorney General Paxton that sought to nullify voter-approved ordinances in Austin and a few other cities that effectively decriminalize possessing small amounts of marijuana. In a … Continue reading →

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Paxton sues five cities over marijuana decriminalization ordinances

Posted on February 2, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Seemed likely something like this would happen eventually. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing five cities — Austin, San Marcos, Killeen, Elgin and Denton — to block their ordinances decriminalizing low-level marijuana possession. In 2022, voters in the five … Continue reading →

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The Texas Freedom to Read Project

Posted on January 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Good stuff. A group of Texas parents has a mission: Let their kids follow their curiosity in school libraries. The Texas Freedom to Read Project launched in December to counter the statewide surge in book challenges and removals in public … Continue reading →

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More on the Denton experience with marijuana decriminalization

Posted on March 20, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

A long story from the Dallas Observer. Nick Stevens stood before the Denton City Council looking equally frustrated and determined. The activist had helped to lead the grassroots charge to decriminalize marijuana in the North Texas college town. Now he … Continue reading →

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The Denton experience with marijuana decriminalization

Posted on February 24, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It’s been a challenge. Four months after a majority of voters approved Proposition B, Denton’s misdemeanor marijuana decriminalization ordinance continues to be a difficult issue for city staff to implement completely, according to City Manager Sara Hensley on Tuesday. Hensley, … Continue reading →

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More on the post-marijuana decriminalization referendum conflict

Posted on December 23, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib takes a long look. The fight in several Texas cities to decriminalize marijuana has entered a new phase, as some city leaders have rebuffed voter-approved rules that largely end criminal enforcement against having small amounts of the substance. … Continue reading →

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Election 2022 miscellania: Marijuana, Austin Mayor, CRT

Posted on November 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Three items of interest for you. First up, several local initiatives to decriminalize marijuana were successful on Tuesday. By the end of Election Day, five Texas cities have voted to decriminalize low-level marijuana possession. After Austin voters overwhelmingly approved the … Continue reading →

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Investigating abortions is Houston’s “lowest priority”

Posted on September 3, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

So says Mayor Turner, and I’m glad to hear it. Mayor Sylvester Turner said Thursday that investigating abortions under the state’s near-total ban is the city’s “lowest priority” when it comes to crime. Turner said the city would continue to … Continue reading →

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Dallas passes its ordinance to protect abortion access

Posted on August 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good job. Dallas City councilmembers almost unanimously passed the “Grace Act,” an ordinance aimed at deprioritizing investigations into abortions by local police departments. […] This new resolution prevents city resources from being used to create records for a person seeking … Continue reading →

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Multiple cities sue streaming services over franchise fees

Posted on August 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This has been coming for awhile, it seems. A lawsuit filed Thursday by 25 Texas cities claims that Disney, Hulu and Netflix have for years stiffed the cities out of dollars the streaming giants are required to pay under state … Continue reading →

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Dallas joins the abortion decriminalization queue

Posted on August 2, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them. The Dallas City Council could consider a resolution in August aimed at blunting the impact of the Texas Legislature’s trigger law that will go into effect following the Supreme Court’s decision that overturned Roe vs. Wade. Dallas’ … Continue reading →

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Austin aims for pot decriminalization

Posted on January 16, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see how this goes. I suspect the measure will pass, but I’m not sure it will be allowed to take effect. As greater numbers of Texas voters sour on harsh punishment for marijuana offenses, Austin voters will likely decide … Continue reading →

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We’ll be paying for the freeze for a long time

Posted on June 30, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

What’s more, we have done nothing to prevent the same thing from happening again. Publicly funded state agencies needing to keep the lights and heat on during the freeze racked up huge bills. In February 2020, the Texas Department of … Continue reading →

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Mayors to Abbott: Don’t mess with our cities

Posted on July 21, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

Good luck getting through. Less than 24 hours after Gov. Greg Abbott blasted local government restrictions like tree ordinances as a threat to the “Texas brand,” city government leaders statewide are seeking a meeting with the Republican leader. “We would … Continue reading →

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Senate whinefest about ballot propositions

Posted on August 19, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Spare me. Members of a state Senate committee called Monday for changes in Texas law to prevent cities from thwarting or blocking citizen petition drives, a key issue for conservative and tea party groups in Houston and other cities in … Continue reading →

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Houston’s anti-pollution ordinance killed by Supreme Court

Posted on May 1, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Alas. In passing two ordinances designed to regulate air pollution, the city of Houston overstepped its authority and illegally subverted state law, the Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday. The ruling is a victory for a coalition of industrial facilities whose … Continue reading →

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David Porter not running for re-election to RRC

Posted on December 14, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Another open seat. Texas Railroad Commission Chairman David Porter will not be running for re-election after all. Thursday’s surprise announcement from Porter, who was first elected in 2010, unleashed a flood of interest from Republicans pondering bids for his seat. … Continue reading →

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Bill to ban anti-fracking ordinances likely to go forward

Posted on April 16, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Disappointing. Despite vociferous opposition from local elected officials, environmentalists and citizens, many Democrats in the Texas Legislature are supporting controversial legislation that would strip local governments of the power to regulate or ban fracking. House Bill 40, by Rep. Drew … Continue reading →

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Somewhat watered down fracking bill advances in House

Posted on April 1, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

By “fracking bill”, I mean a bill to limit how cities can regulate fracking, because that’s how things are these days. In a 10-1 vote, the House Committee on Energy Resources approved an updated version of House Bill 40, among … Continue reading →

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Local control deathwatch: Environment

Posted on March 18, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Unsurprisingly, the Denton fracking ban has provoked a strong reaction. As policy dilemmas go, the one triggered when Denton voters decided last fall to ban hydraulic fracturing in their city looked like a whopper: The oil and gas industry versus … Continue reading →

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New frontiers in residency requirements

Posted on February 4, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Michael Quinn Sullivan lives exactly where he says he lives, no more and no less. Empower Texans President Michael Quinn Sullivan and the Texas Ethics Commission are scheduled to tangle in state district court in Denton County for the first … Continue reading →

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Texas Progressive Alliance taps Denton’s “fracktivists” Texans of the Year

Posted on January 1, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From the Inbox: In one of the organization’s more closely contested votes, the Texas Progressive Alliance — the state’s consortium of liberal blogs and bloggers — named Frack Free Denton and its diverse group of activists 2014’s Texan of the … Continue reading →

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A Denton fracking overview

Posted on December 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib has a long piece on the Denton fracking fight, also published in Politico to help non-Texans understand what this was about. It’s a good read that goes over all the main points if you need a refresher on … Continue reading →

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Everyone wants to get in on the fracking fight

Posted on December 7, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Come on in. National environmental groups joined forces with grassroots activists in Denton on Thursday, seeking to defend in court the first municipal fracking ban adopted in Texas. The Denton Drilling Awareness Group, a citizens group that fought to put … Continue reading →

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Other towns consider fracking bans

Posted on December 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

If Denton can do it… A Texas hamlet shaken by its first recorded earthquake last year and hundreds since then is among communities now taking steps to challenge the oil and gas industry’s traditional supremacy over the right to frack. … Continue reading →

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Whining about the fracking ban

Posted on December 4, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

These guys just can’t believe they lost. Did college students tilt the outcome of Denton’s vote to ban hydraulic fracturing? That question has stirred debate since the city – home to the University of North Texas and Texas Woman’s University … Continue reading →

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Denton responds to fracking ban lawsuit

Posted on December 3, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Game on. One day before its first-in-Texas ban on hydraulic fracturing is set to take effect, Denton called the oil and gas extraction technique a “public nuisance” that the North Texas town has the right to regulate. “Those activities have … Continue reading →

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A look at how Democratic legislative challengers did against the spread

Posted on December 2, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s been long enough since the election that I feel like I can go back and look at some numbers. Not a whole lot of good out there, but we’ll try to learn what we can. To start off, here … Continue reading →

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First impressions of the 2014 results

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

My initial thoughts, for what they are worth. – Let me begin by saying that for all the criticism I had of the UT/Texas Trib’s polling and the skepticism of Internet-sample methodology, they were fairly accurate in the end. In … Continue reading →

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Denton fracking ban passes

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Let the freakout – or perhaps I should say “frack-out” – begin. Nearly 59 percent of voters in Denton, which sits on the edge of gas-rich Barnett Shale, approved a measure banning hydraulic fracturing, or fracking — the method of … Continue reading →

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Denton fracking ban update

Posted on November 4, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

One more look at what is surely the most contentious issue on the ballot anywhere in the state. With Denton preparing to vote Tuesday on banning hydraulic fracturing within city limits, tension has mounted as rival groups work to undermine … Continue reading →

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More on the Denton fracking referendum

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I think everyone agrees the Denton anti-fracking referendum will wind up in court if it passes. It’s just a question of how wired the courts will be for the plaintiffs. Voters will decide whether the city will become the state’s … Continue reading →

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Fracking ban on the ballot in Denton

Posted on July 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

This has the potential to be even bigger than the HERO repeal referendum. Voters will decide whether this North Texas college town will become the state’s first city to ban hydraulic fracturing. After a public hearing Tuesday night that stretched … Continue reading →

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