Your State

When ozone pollution skyrocketed in the tiny town of Boulder, Wyo., in 2008, it was relatively easy to identify the culprit as oil and gas drilling, the only major industry in the rural area. Today, a similar situation in San Antonio, Texas, will be more difficult to resolve. The city has violated federal ozone standards dozens of times since 2008, but with so much industrial activity in and around the city, local officials are waiting for the results of a state-funded study to pinpoint the source of the pollution.

Governor Rick Perry has always been one of the Affordable Care Act's most vocal opponents. He's called it a "monstrosity," a "stomach punch to the economy," and a "felony." But that hasn't stopped him from telling Texans to sign up for health coverage from the law. That's right — Rick Perry's administration is encouraging Texans to enroll in the ACA's health insurance exchanges.

On November 1, Texas families receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program assistance will have their benefits cut by an average of 7 percent — or $36 per month for a family of four. The cuts will strip $411 million worth of assistance in Texas and impact more than four million Texans. Over half of which are children.

Since its founding as the symbol of Texas independence, the Alamo was a political-free zone. The historic site where 200 Texans fended off — and ultimately died during — a siege by the Mexican army has been a place for universal remembrance, not political action. This all changed on Saturday when hundreds of gun rights activists charged the Alamo.

Slowly but surely, Texas is coming around on the issue of same-sex equality in marriage. Almost a majority of Texans now believe in the freedom to marry, and big companies like B&W Pantex in Amarillo are allowing same-sex benefits to their employees.

Republicans running for Texas lieutenant governor are practically tripping over themselves to oppose the 2001 law that affirms in-state college tuition rates to young undocumented immigrants living in Texas. However, the GOP front-runner for the state's top spot is more wary of alienating Latino voters and dismissing the Texas DREAM Act.

Texas State Rep. Gene Wu helped lead the fight in the House to restore $3 billion of the $5 billion education cut in 2011. He worked with his colleagues to pass a law that reduces traffic congestion from oil and gas production areas. He was able to get Texas pipeline safety regulations in line with federal standards, no small feat with Republicans controlling the Legislature.

The insider-trading lawsuit against Mark Cuban will continue after a federal judge turned down the billionaire Dallas Mavericks owner's attempt to dismiss the government's case as unproven. U.S. District Court Judge Sidney Fitzwater's ruling late Monday means that the case is likely to be decided by a jury of seven women and three men who heard Cuban testify for two days.

Dallas County DA Craig Watkins held a Twitter Town Hall on his participation in the voter ID lawsuit against the state of Texas. The new law will be in effect for the November Constitutional election and is expected to place an unnecessary burden on communities already less likely to make it to the polls, namely African Americans and Hispanics.

On the same spot where she graduated from high school, in front of 1,500 supporters from across the state, Senator Wendy Davis announced today that she will run for Governor of Texas.

To chants of "Wendy! Wendy!" Davis told the crowd in Haltom City:

"Every Texan has their own story about what Texas means to them. Our stories are as different and diverse as we are, but they have a common theme: Texas is a place where we aim high and take big risks. From the wildcatters

Rick Perry tried to mansplain away his wife's statements that seemed to support a woman's right to have an abortion. His wife claimed it was a "procedure" much like any surgery a man would elect to have.

Texas Attorney General — and probable GOP candidate to replace Rick Perry in 2014 — Greg Abbott, along with his team, may be too close for some people's comfort to a right-wing blogger named Robbie Cooper. Cooper is a guy who repeatedly calls black people "animals" and, quite blatantly, the ultimate racial epithet.