https://www.texastribune.org/about/staff/karen-brooks-harper/The latest news by Karen Brooks Harper.enThu, 04 Jan 2024 12:43:13 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2024/01/04/texas-eddie-bernice-johnson-lawsuit/The family of the recently retired congresswoman says Johnson contracted an infection at Baylor Scott & White’s rehabilitation facility that led to her death.Karen Brooks HarperThu, 04 Jan 2024 12:43:13 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2024/01/04/texas-eddie-bernice-johnson-lawsuit/Former congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, who died on Dec. 31, 2023, introduces Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O'Rourke at a town hall over the shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde and gun reform in Dallas on June 1, 2022.Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson introduces Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O'Rourke at a town hall over the shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde and gun reform in Dallas on June 1, 2022.Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/12/04/texas-dfps-lawsuit/U.S. District Judge Janis Jack on Monday considers whether state’s foster care agency has made progress caring for most vulnerable children or should be held in contempt for the third time in an ongoing 2011 lawsuit.Karen Brooks HarperMon, 04 Dec 2023 18:53:55 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2023/12/04/texas-dfps-lawsuit/Heart Galleries, portraits of adoptable children, on display at the Child Protective Services office at Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in Austin on Nov. 14, 2019.Heart Galleries, portraits of adoptable children, on display at the Child Protective Services office at Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in Austin on Nov. 14, 2019.Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/30/texas-attorney-general-pfizer-lawsuit/Experts argue other assertions made in the lawsuit filing are completely unsubstantiated, such as one claiming that vaccinated people were more likely to die from COVID-19, which Texas health data disputes.Karen Brooks HarperThu, 30 Nov 2023 17:04:01 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/30/texas-attorney-general-pfizer-lawsuit/Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton holds a press conference at the Houston Recovery Center on October 26, 2021.State Attorney General Ken Paxton holds a press conference at the Houston Recovery Center on October 26, 2021.Mark Felix for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/20/texas-2023-population-growth-demographics/According to new Texas Demographic Center figures, the Austin region continues to grow at the fastest rate, but Fort Worth was the city that attracted the most new residents between 2020 and 2023.Karen Brooks Harper and Ayden RunnelsMon, 20 Nov 2023 17:44:47 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/20/texas-2023-population-growth-demographics/Fort Worth saw more new residents than any other Texas city between 2020 and 2023. But the Austin region is still the fastest-growing metropolitan area in Texas.Downtown Fort Worth.Leslie Boorhem-Stephenson for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/07/texas-proposition-4-property-tax-cut/The $18 billion property tax-cut package is aimed squarely at lowering school district property taxes, which make up the lion’s share of a Texas landowner’s property tax bill.Joshua Fechter and Karen Brooks HarperTue, 07 Nov 2023 21:13:28 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/07/texas-proposition-4-property-tax-cut/The Mueller neighborhood in East Austin on Oct. 7, 2023.The Mueller neighborhood in East Austin on Oct. 7, 2023.John Jordan/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/07/texas-constitutional-amendment-election-results/Voters approved a massive property tax cut and several other measures, but refused to raise the mandatory retirement age for judges.Karen Brooks HarperTue, 07 Nov 2023 20:02:32 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/07/texas-constitutional-amendment-election-results/Texas voters decided on 14 constitutional amendments on the ballot, including propositions that lower property taxes and increase funding for certain infrastructure projects.The Texas Capitol at sunrise on Tuesday, June 6, in Austin, Texas.Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/06/texas-foster-kids-cwop/A report from Department of Family and Protective Services watchdogs paints a picture of a roughshod safety-net system that is unprepared to protect its youthful charges from predators and unable to keep them from endangering themselves.Karen Brooks HarperMon, 06 Nov 2023 16:56:31 -0600https://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/06/texas-foster-kids-cwop/The Child Protective Services office at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in Austin on Nov. 14, 2019.Heart Galleries, portraits of adoptable children, on display at the Child Protective Services office at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services in Austin on Nov. 14, 2019.Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/02/texas-budget-surplus-border-education/If bills now being considered pass, lawmakers will be left with $3.3 billion to take care of unforeseen costs over the next two years. Some experts worry that Texas can’t sustain its massive spending on the border and public education.Karen Brooks HarperThu, 02 Nov 2023 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/11/02/texas-budget-surplus-border-education/State lawmakers are considering bills that would add another $2.7 billion in spending to the current two-year budget, with more than half devoted to building more walls at the Texas-Mexico border.A section of the border wall in Mission on Oct. 6, 2021.Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/31/texas-legislature-covid-vaccine-mandates-ban-bill/The legislation, which Republican lawmakers have been trying to pass since 2021, offers no exceptions for doctors’ offices, clinics or other health facilities.Karen Brooks HarperTue, 31 Oct 2023 16:36:09 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/31/texas-legislature-covid-vaccine-mandates-ban-bill/Protesters rallied against Houston Methodist Hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate outside the Baytown facility on June 7, 2021. The state Legislature has passed a bill that prohibits private businesses from requiring their employees to be vaccinated for COVID-19.Protesters ralled against Houston Methodist Hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate outside the Baytown facility on June 7, 2021. Several employees who chose not to inoculate themselves worked their last shift Monday and will face job termination, a policy criticized by the protesters as unfair and unauthorized.Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/25/texas-legislature-covid-vaccine-mandates/Violations could bring a $50,000 fine under an amendment adopted Wednesday. The bill’s sponsor said the ban would be the strongest in the nation.Karen Brooks HarperWed, 25 Oct 2023 15:25:14 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/25/texas-legislature-covid-vaccine-mandates/A man carries a sign protesting Houston Methodist Hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate on June 7, 2021.A man carries a sign protesting Houston Methodist Hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate outside Houston Methodist Hospital in Baytown on June 7, 2021. Employees who chose not to inoculate themselves by the hospital's Monday deadline faced suspension without pay and job termination, a policy criticized by the protesters as unfair and unauthorized.Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/20/texas-house-senate-voucher-costs/The Senate’s Republican bill would let state leaders grow the program by taking money from other agencies without the Legislature’s approval. The House bill would bar the practice.Karen Brooks HarperFri, 20 Oct 2023 16:25:39 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/20/texas-house-senate-voucher-costs/Nimitz Middle School students take part in a class activity Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.Nimitz Middle School students take part in a class activity Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023 in Odessa.Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/13/texas-vaccine-mandates-hospitals/The bill offers no exceptions for doctors’ offices, clinics or other health facilities. Senators agreed to let those entities require unvaccinated employees to wear personal protective gear or take other “reasonable” measures to manage the spread.Karen Brooks HarperFri, 13 Oct 2023 18:29:47 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/13/texas-vaccine-mandates-hospitals/Medical personnel ralled against Houston Methodist Hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate outside the Baytown facility on June 7, 2021. Several employees who chose not to inoculate themselves worked their last shift Monday and will face job termination, a policy criticized by the protesters as unfair and unauthorized.Medical personnel ralled against Houston Methodist Hospital's COVID-19 vaccine mandate outside the Baytown facility on June 7, 2021. Several employees who chose not to inoculate themselves worked their last shift Monday and will face job termination, a policy criticized by the protesters as unfair and unauthorized.Pu Ying Huang for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/10/texas-businesses-covid-vaccines-legislature/A Senate panel on Tuesday advanced such a measure. The debate centered largely around the safety of the vaccine and whether doctors’ offices and health care facilities should be exempt.Karen Brooks HarperTue, 10 Oct 2023 16:16:08 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/10/texas-businesses-covid-vaccines-legislature/Arlington Firefighter Samuel Rochin, right, administers a COVID-19 vaccine to health care worker Vannia Atao at the Esports Stadium in Arlington on Jan. 05, 2021.Arlington Fire Fighter Samuel Rochin, right, administers a COVID-19 vaccine to healthcare worker Vannia Atao at the Esports Stadium in Arlington on Jan. 05, 2021.Ben Torres for The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/05/texas-hegar-recession-surplus/The updated comptroller’s report raises the amount of revenue available to the state over the 2024-25 cycle to $194.6 billion.Karen Brooks HarperThu, 05 Oct 2023 18:51:14 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/05/texas-hegar-recession-surplus/Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar discusses the biennial revenue estimate with audience members at Texas Tribune’s Studio 919 in Austin on Jan. 9, 2023Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar discusses the biennial revenue estimate with audience members at Texas Tribune’s Studio 919 in Austin on Jan. 9, 2023.Pu Ying Huang/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/05/texas-updated-covid-shot/Doses aren’t arriving at providers’ offices at uniform, predictable intervals. Shipments are largely dependent on individual providers’ ability to work out the logistics of ordering, stocking, training and paperwork.Karen Brooks HarperThu, 05 Oct 2023 15:56:28 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/05/texas-updated-covid-shot/Linda Murphy pulls up doses of the Pfizer vaccine into syringes at a clinic organized by the Travis County Mobile Vaccine Collaborative at Rodriguez Elementary School on July 28, 2021.Linda Murphy pulls up doses of the Pfizer vaccine into syringes at a clinic organized by the Travis County Mobile Vaccine Collaborative at Rodriguez Elementary School on July 28, 2021.Sophie Park/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/09/27/texas-teens-drug-treatment/Phoenix House is the latest casualty in an escalating funding crisis for Texas treatment centers as the state struggles with startling increases in overdose deaths, particularly among young people.Karen Brooks Harper and Stephen SimpsonWed, 27 Sep 2023 12:04:59 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/09/27/texas-teens-drug-treatment/The Phoenix House in Dallas.The Phoenix House in Dallas.Phoenix House websitehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/09/22/texas-budget-revenue-glenn-hegar/Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar says the state has collected more from insurance premiums that he had previously predicted. He suggested lawmakers invest more in teacher pay raises.Karen Brooks HarperFri, 22 Sep 2023 12:58:50 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/09/22/texas-budget-revenue-glenn-hegar/Alexandra Suich Bass speaks with Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar about the challenges and opportunities for the world's ninth-largest economy at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin on Sept. 22, 2023.Alexandra Suich Bass speaks one on one with Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar about the challenges and opportunities for the world's ninth-largest economy at The Texas Tribune Festival in Austin on Sept. 22, 2023.Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/09/16/ken-paxton-impeachment-trial-opposing-sides/Finally freed of a gag order, the opposing sides pulled no punches after the attorney general was acquitted.Karen Brooks Harper and Robert DownenSat, 16 Sep 2023 16:52:58 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/09/16/ken-paxton-impeachment-trial-opposing-sides/Tony Buzbee, the lead lawyer for Attorney General Ken Paxton, speaks to reporters after Paxton was acquitted on all 16 articles of impeachment at the Texas Capitol on Sept. 16, 2023.Ken Paxton’s defense attorney Tony Buzbee answers a question from Texas Tribune reporter Karen Brooks during a press conference following the Senate’s vote to acquit Attorney General Ken Paxton of 16 articles of impeachment on Sept. 16, 2023.Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribunehttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/09/13/texas-syphilis-newborns-treatment/Syphilis rates in Texas continue to climb, alarming healthcare workers who see the highest increases among pregnant people and newborns. A shortage of treatment is complicating efforts to combat it.Karen Brooks Harper and Jayme Lozano CarverWed, 13 Sep 2023 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/09/13/texas-syphilis-newborns-treatment/An HIV/STI testing and treatment van in Philadelphia, PA, on Dec. 14, 2022.An HIV/STI testing and treatment van in Philadelphia, PA, on Dec. 14, 2022.Photo by Cory Clark/NurPhotohttps://www.texastribune.org/2023/08/29/texas-laws-canada-drugs/Texas joins a handful of states turn to the north for cheaper drugs. But feds have been slow to approve requests, three years after giving initial OK.Karen Brooks HarperTue, 29 Aug 2023 05:00:00 -0500https://www.texastribune.org/2023/08/29/texas-laws-canada-drugs/Prescription drugs on shelves at ScriptCo on Apr. 13, 2022.Prescription drugs on shelves at ScriptCo on Apr. 13, 2022.Lauren Witte/The Texas Tribune