DONNA HOWARD

The bill, which Democrats have been pushing for years, has become a top priority after the overturn of Roe v. Wade. The Senate has already passed the bill, which would provide tax relief on the purchase of menstrual products, diapers and other child care necessities.

Texas’ abortion laws look likely to remain about where they were at the beginning of the legislative session, as key deadlines pass without any movement on abortion-related bills.

The proposal would remove sales tax on diapers, baby wipes and bottles; feminine hygiene products including tampons, sanitary pads and menstrual cups; maternity clothing; and products for pumping breast milk.

The leader of the state House also threw his support behind bills to crack down on how companies handle private data and to protect children from “addictive algorithms” by digital companies.

The Texas Democrat served as speaker of the Texas House of Representatives from 1972 to 1973.

The COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and burnout have pummeled teachers in the last few years. Lawmakers from both parties agree they should get a pay bump — but it won’t happen without some negotiation.

HHSC said it was initially told the plan was “not approvable.” Federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a statement Friday saying Texas’ plan to extend coverage to six months was not rejected but still under review.

In interviews, the two women expressed a sense of sorrow over the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to allow states to ban abortions, adding even more enormous obstacles to what was already an uphill battle to protect reproductive rights in Texas.

State House Rep. Donna Howard working to repeal tampon tax.

A group of young women have teamed up with a prestigious Houston law firm to get the state to stop charging sales tax on menstrual products, arguing they qualify as “wound care dressings.”

Long list of questionable purchases by state-funded organization called ‘an egregious misuse of tax dollars’ by lawmaker

The proposal comes almost two weeks after Gov. Greg Abbott’s comments that the state would “eliminate all rapists.”

The road to a Texas law that bans most abortions in the state began in a town called Waskom, population 1,600.

Abortion providers in Texas are asking the Supreme Court to prevent enforcement of a state law that would allow private citizens to sue anyone for helping a woman get an abortion after about six weeks of pregnancy.

The Texas House Democratic Caucus, which has said it plans to not identify lawmakers who test positive, has started additional precautionary measures, such as providing daily rapid tests.

In the latest episode of our podcast about the Texas Legislature, Evan Smith talks to state Rep. Donna Howard and state Sen. Kel Seliger about sniping and snark on the road to sine die.

Democratic lawmakers wanted to replace a defunded agency by creating a new office that would look at health inequities across the state. But after Republicans pulled it into ongoing debates about transgender rights and critical race theory, the bill died in the Senate.

“But I continued working.”For decades, health care workers have faced rampant violence in the workplace. Well over half of Texas' nurses reported being subject to workplace violence in their career, according to a 2016 state study. State lawmakers have for years heard examples of the violence nurses face. Some health care workers who experience violence may not want to blame or shame violent patients who are ill or affected by medication. Health care workers and experts have said hospitals can add more security guards or metal detectors and instill a culture of violence prevention to help deter workplace violence.