This is TPR's roundup of the latest headlines and news developments. It provides a succinct and clear summary of the stories TPR is following.
Today's weather: The week continues to be sunny and warm in San Antonio, with an expected high of 94 and a low of 74. Thursday and Friday will see slightly cooler temperatures as a cold front moves through the area, briefly bringing highs in the 80s and lows in the 60s. The weekend will warm back up into the 90s. But the fall's cooling trend has begun. Next Wednesday will see highs in the 80s again.
The tropics: The National Hurricane Center is tracking Hurricane Helene west of Cuba. It is moving into the Gulf of Mexico but poses no threat to Texas. Helene was expected intensify into a major hurricane before striking the Florida Panhandle by Thursday evening. The Atlantic hurricane season ends on Nov. 30.
Election 2024: In Texas, early voting starts on Monday, Oct. 21. If you’re one of the thousands of people who’ve recently moved to the state, make sure to register by Oct. 7. Learn more here.
Voter discussion: Join Texas Public Radio tonight at our downtown San Antonio headquarters for a young voter discussion moderated by TPR's Joey Palacios. This session will create a space for voters to talk freely and share their thoughts, ideas, aspirations, experience and knowledge, while our news team will listen and learn from them. Learn more here.
Study: Gerrymandering may benefit GOP in Texas and in Congress
A new study shows partisan gerrymandering is giving Republicans a 16 seat advantage in Congress and five extra seats right out of Texas.
The Brennan Center for Justice compared what the make-up of Congress would be if the 2022 Freedom to Vote Act was passed. It had strong anti-gerrymandering standards. The bill was killed in the Senate due to the filibuster.
Brennan Center’s redistrict expert Michael Li says without gerrymandering polling shows Democrats would win a House majority in 2024. But, he said, "it looks like instead the House is a true tossup.”
Li said Texas is one of the worst states for congressional gerrymandering. He added that Democrats also gerrymander but the seven extra Democratic seats in those maps are less than a third of the 23 extra Republican seats.
New voucher program to help with oak wilt losses
San Antonio will launch a new voucher program in 2026 to help homeowners who have lost their oak trees due to oak wilt.
Oak wilt is a disease that only impacts oak trees and means almost certain death for trees it infects. It’s most concentrated in the northwest part of San Antonio.
The vouchers will offer homeowners $800 to buy non-oak trees from selected nurseries.
Voucher recipients could use the voucher to go toward one purchase of a large tree or to buy several smaller ones.
More layoffs at USAA
The San Antonio-based financial services company USAA announced another round of layoffs.
The Express-News reported the layoffs may have affected workers in compliance & consumer lending departments, and at USAA Federal Savings Bank.
The company did not confirm the number of employees it will cut.
USAA laid off more than 200 employees in April.
City plans policy to recoup fees on nuisance properties
The City of San Antonio may soon implement a new policy that will seek to recoup fees from the owners of nuisance properties that will go toward the city’s Relocation Assistance Fund.
These worst of the worst nuisance properties are on the city’s Dangerous Assessment Response Team, or DART, list.
District 5 Councilmember Teri Castillo authored the policy proposal. She said residents in her district want the fees to get bad actors to come into compliance.
City staff said they have only helped one individual living in a DART property be relocated in the past five years.
But Castillo said the point of the fees going to the relocation fund would be to have the money there in case many residents were forced out of a DART property because it did not come into compliance.
Bexar County opens new drive-thru flu shot clinics
Bexar County and University Health are preparing for the flu season with a series of free drive-thru flu shot clinics.
The first is Saturday, Sept. 28, from 8 a.m. to noon at Freeman Coliseum.
Registration is required for each family member getting a vaccine. Find out more at UniversityHealth.com/events.
Future events below:
- Oct. 12, 8 a.m. to noon, Southwest ISD, 11914 Dragon Lane
- Oct. 26, 8 a.m. to noon, Gustafson Stadium, 7001 Culebra
- Nov. 9, 8 a.m. to noon, Dub Farris Athletic Complex, 8400 N Loop 1604 W
More songs by Latino voices nominated for National Recording Registry
Congressman Joaquin Castro has released his nominations of songs and albums by Latino voices for the National Recording Registry at the Library of Congress.
The National Recording Registry is designed to preserve sounds and recordings with cultural, historic, or aesthetic significance to life in the United States.
Castro submits a list of nominations annually. This year's list included an album from Tejano music queen Selena, along with works from Shakira, Elvis Crespo and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
The Library of Congress will continue to collect public nominations for 2025 online through Oct. 1. Learn more here.
