Lawmakers Pre-File 1,000-Plus Bills

Texas lawmakers filed more than 1,000 bills in just over four hours Monday as pre-filing opened for the 2027 legislative session, less than a week after voters handed Democrats the governor’s office and the Texas House.

Early Democratic bills would repeal education savings accounts that help families pay private school tuition, expand Medicaid, and create a redistricting commission. Republicans filed proposals to ban crypto kiosks and keep certain minors off social media.

Two San Antonio Democrats filed companion bills to repeal a 2025 law requiring most sheriffs to seek immigration-enforcement agreements with ICE. Republican Sen. Charles Schwertner, who wrote that law, has said he’s open to more funding and legislation.

The session opens Jan. 12 and runs through May 31, with bills due by March 12. Republicans kept the Senate, but Democrat Lt. Gov.-elect Vikki Goodwin will preside over it and is eyeing THC regulation over a ban.

Supreme Court Clears Big Bend Wall

The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that the Trump administration can resume building border barriers and roads in Texas’ Big Bend region, lifting a federal judge’s order that froze construction while a lawsuit plays out.

In an unsigned order, the justices said U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone likely lacked authority to block the work, since the 1996 border law permits only constitutional challenges. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.

Federal attorneys argued a gap in the wall would funnel crossings and drug trafficking into Big Bend, where agents apprehended more than 89,000 people from 2021 to 2025. The halt was costing nearly $500,000 a day, a border official said.

The challengers, an environmental group, a river guide, and a Ruidosa church group, say Big Bend has the fewest apprehensions of any border sector. The Center for Biological Diversity warned that contractors can now “bulldoze pristine desert and dynamite canyon walls.”

Suspected Homicide on Galveston Cruise Ship

The FBI is investigating a suspected homicide aboard the MSC Seascape, a cruise ship authorities ordered back to the Port of Galveston on Monday after a reported incident involving a guest.

The victim was a woman, and the Galveston County medical examiner expects to perform an autopsy Tuesday. The FBI, working with the Coast Guard and port police, hasn’t said how she died. A man was taken into custody, but no charges have been announced.

Whether the FBI can take a cruise ship case depends on factors such as the victim’s nationality and the ship’s flag. The Seascape, flagged in Malta, can carry more than 5,800 passengers and about 1,600 crew.

MSC Cruises said it is “cooperating fully with the investigation and providing support to those impacted.” The ship, caught on surveillance camera leaving Galveston, has since resumed its seven-day Western Caribbean cruise.

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➤ Statewide: Nearly 80% of Texas school districts and charters, 945 of 1,183, earned an A for financial management in state ratings released Monday. The grades weigh 21 measures, including administrative spending and problems flagged by outside auditors. (More)

➤ Kerr County: The parents of 8-year-old Mary Grace Baker sued Camp Mystic Monday, the day a bankruptcy freeze on lawsuits lifted. They allege the camp knew its flood risk but failed to protect the 27 campers and counselors who died. (More)

➤ Austin: Federal investigators finished on-scene work in the Learjet crash that killed nine people, including an Austin couple and their children, 4 and 2, in Florida on Nov. 1. Pilots reported icing near 35,000 feet before the jet plunged. (More)

➤ Travis County: Tesla will wind down Cybertruck production at its Austin-area gigafactory around mid-2027 to make room for its two-seat Cybercab robotaxi, Elon Musk posted Friday. Estimated U.S. Cybertruck sales fell 48% last year to about 20,000. (More)

➤ Seguin: A Porter family of five, including children ages 13, 6, and 3, died over the weekend when their SUV veered off eastbound I-10 and plunged from an overpass onto FM 725. Officials said the road was wet. (More)

➤ San Antonio: Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones said DHS has agreed to an environmental review of a planned 1,500-person ICE detention center in an East Side warehouse, the core demand of the city’s October lawsuit. DHS didn’t comment. (More)

➤ Austin: Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas will teach a UT Austin undergraduate seminar on equality and freedom next spring, leading daily discussions on campus the first week of February. Only 17 of 65 applicants will get in. (More)

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➤ The Dallas Mavericks named New Balance the team’s official footwear and apparel partner in a multiyear deal announced Sunday. The brand, which already sponsors forward Cooper Flagg, plans co-branded gear, community programs, and in-arena events. (More)

➤ Final state rankings from Dave Campbell’s Texas Football put North Crowley No. 1 in Class 6A heading into the playoffs, ahead of Allen and Katy. Stephenville, Idalou, and Shiner top their divisions, while Odessa Permian holds No. 25 in 6A. (See Rankings)

➤ Flower Mound’s girls won the Class 6A cross country state title Friday in Round Rock, their sixth in seven years. The Lady Jaguars beat runner-up The Woodlands by 57 points, a year after their five-year title run ended. (More)

Yesterday’s Results: NFL | NBA | NHL | NCAAM | NCAAW

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➤ A 2010 UC Davis study found that one natural compound can trigger the growth of brand-new mitochondria, the powerhouses your heart depends on. A human trial and a Japanese team backed it up. Since the compound can’t be patented, the research was quietly starved of funding, and most products use far less than the dose researchers tested. (Learn More)

➤ American Airlines expects to fly more than 8 million Thanksgiving travelers even as airfares nationwide run 22% above a year ago. The Fort Worth carrier plans 7,021 flights on Sunday, Nov. 29, its busiest day since the pandemic. (More)

➤ SpaceX is seeking a property tax break for a natural gas power plant and supercomputing center at Starbase, near Brownsville, whose first phase is estimated to cost $24 billion. The plant would run 35 gas turbines. City leaders will weigh it Dec. 9. (More)

➤ A $250,000 gift from FirstLight Federal Credit Union will fund a Veterans Walk at El Paso’s proposed downtown deck plaza. The credit union, founded in 1955 to serve Biggs Air Force Base, now serves Fort Bliss families. (See Plans)

➤ Bob Mills, founder of Bob Mills Furniture, has died at 79, his family announced. He opened his first store in Oklahoma City in 1971 and expanded to nine more, seven in Texas. The family says the business will carry on. (More)

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➤ Ye’s AT&T Stadium concert drew 83,132 fans on Nov. 7, a U.S. rap concert record. The rapper formerly known as Kanye West beat his own mark from a week earlier in Houston. Dallas native Erykah Badu joined him onstage. (More)

➤ A 1,200-foot tower proposed for Congress Avenue and West Fourth Street would become Texas’ tallest building, topping Austin’s own 1,025-foot Waterline by 175 feet. The hotel-and-condo project, called Project Bolo, still needs the city to rezone the site. (More)

➤ San Antonio Zoo is turning Silverback Peak, part of its gorilla habitat, into a 129-foot Christmas tree for Zoo Lights, which opens Nov. 14. The show runs daily through Jan. 3 with 13 holiday areas and is included with admission. (More)

➤ The “Hug Lady” of Fort Hood hugged more than 500,000 soldiers before and after their deployments, from 2003 until her death in 2015. Her daughter is collecting their stories for a book and has received more than 300 emails so far. (See Legacy)

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The following stories are featured exclusively on The Flyover Podcast—a daily show that gives you the most important headlines in under 15 minutes. 

➤ Could the carbs we’ve spent decades blaming for unhealthy aging actually wind your biological clock back by years? (Listen Now)

➤ Just as holiday lights start going up, more than 3.6 million ladders are being recalled after reports of falls causing skull fractures and brain injuries. (Hear Details)

➤ Ohio State has suspended a fraternity chapter after video from a weekend party appeared to show two people on fire. (Hear Story)

How many cruises have you been on?

1. None
2. 1 or 2
3. 3 to 9
4. 10 or more

Yesterday’s Results:

Have you ever been to Fredericksburg?

1. Yes: 85%
2. No: 9%
3. Not yet!: 5%
4. I live/am from there!: 1%

How many Texas counties are in the Mountain Time Zone?

Show me the answer

If you’re a fan of our Trivia section, you’ll love our new book, The Flyover Book of Trivia 2027, an illustrated collection of 100 of our favorite questions and answers. (Buy It Now)