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: Today's high will be 81, and the low will be 49. Temperatures drop on Tuesday, with lows in the mid-30s. Expect pleasantly cool and sunny weather through the rest of the week, with highs in the 60s. Weekend temperatures will be in the low 70s.
State Rep. Dustin Burrows confident he can become Texas House Speaker
Republican State Rep. Dustin Burrows said he has the votes to become the next speaker of the Texas House of Representatives. House Republicans, however, endorsed a different lawmaker, David Cook.
Burrows was born in Lubbock and was first elected to serve Texas House District 83 in 2014. Since then, the Republican has served on influential legislative committees and is the chairman of the powerful calendars committee.
Burrows was formerly chair of the Texas House GOP caucus but resigned in 2019 amid allegations he and then-House Speaker Dennis Bonnen planned to politically target fellow Republicans in the 2020 primaries.
Over the weekend, Burrows released a list of 76 fellow House lawmakers he said are committed to voting him into the job. Lawmakers won't formally decide on the next House speaker until the legislature begins its new session in January.
Bexar County officials will discuss criminal case backlog, new hospital projects, fireworks
Bexar County commissioners are expected to discuss the University Health budget at their 9 a.m. meeting on Tuesday.
They are expected to hear an update on the $3 billion county public health budget. Work continues on two identical county hospitals to serve the areas around Retama Park on the Northeast Side and around Palo Alto on the far South Side. Both should be open by 2027, if not a little sooner.
Commissioners will also hear from the district attorney on the progress made to reduce a backlog of cases involving high risk criminal suspects.
They will also consider a ban on the roadside sale of fireworks that are rockets with sticks or missiles with fins—they pose a fire risk to a region still enduring drought conditions.
Mexico's president plans to ask Donald Trump to modify deportation plans
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum says she will ask President-elect Donald Trump to deport non-Mexican nationals directly to their home countries.
Mexico has accepted migrants from countries like Cuba and Venezuela, which often refuse U.S. deportations, but this places a financial burden on Mexico, which recently repatriated 300 Venezuelans and offered them stipends to help them resettle.
Between 2022 and 2023, Mexico agreed to accept up to 30,000 migrants monthly from certain countries, but large-scale deportations pose challenges, particularly with an estimated 4 million undocumented Mexicans in the U.S.
Mexico is enhancing its consular services and strengthening the reception capacities in the country to support those who may be deported.
Family of Houston journalist held in Syria hopes for his freedom
The family of Austin Tice, a Houston journalist held for more than a dozen years in Syria, asked the Biden administration to secure his freedom in the wake of regime change in the country.
Tice was kidnapped while reporting near Damascus in August 2012.
Naomi Tice, his sister, said the family recently learned that he is "alive and well." Jonathan Tice-Zelaya, his brother, said the family recognized there’s a limited window for Biden to act.
“There are a couple of months left in this administration," he said, "and so our push is to encourage him to do whatever it takes, whatever is necessary to do this now and bring him home now.”
Vehicle safety inspections in Texas end on Jan. 1
The Texas Department of Public Safety's Tony De La Cerda explained the change: "Due to a recent change in law, starting in 2025, many Texans will no longer need to get a vehicle safety inspection. Instead, you'll pay a $7.50 inspection program replacement fee when you register your vehicle with the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles."
The change was made through a law passed during the last legislative session.
Emissions tests will still be required in some major counties. They'll go into effect in Bexar County in 2026.
More details can be found at DPS.Texas.Gov.
Valero Alamo Bowl lineup set for Dec. 28
San Antonio's Valero Alamo Bowl will host #17 BYU and #23 Colorado.
The Colorado Buffaloes are coached by former Dallas Cowboys pro football hall-of-famer Deion Sanders.
This is BYU's first Alamo Bowl and Colorado's fourth.
Kickoff is Dec. 28 at 6:30 p.m. at the Alamodome. It will be broadcast on ABC.
KTTZ's Brad Burt and Houston Public Media's Andrew Schneider contributed to this report.
