Current Articles for November 06, 2025

The Legislative Reference Library produces a weekly list of current journal articles for members of the legislative community. Each week, librarians select and abstract articles of interest to the legislature from the latest issues of over 300 journals, newsletters, state documents, and trade publications. Electronic copies of the Current Articles list are distributed to legislative offices each Thursday.

The Legislative Reference Library is located on the second floor of the State Capitol building in Room 2N.3. For more information, please call the Library at 512-463-1252.

• Turmoil in Texas: Can you say 'transgender'? By Beth McMurtrie. Chronicle of Higher Education, October 17, 2025, pp. 6-7.
  Discusses a memo from outgoing Texas Tech University System Chancellor Tedd L. Mitchell regarding compliance with state and federal laws recognizing "only two human sexes: male and female."
  Related information at: https://www.texastech.edu/downloads/9-25-25-memo-to-university-presidents-regarding-compliance.pdf?u ...
  
• The licensing racket: How we decide who is allowed to work & why it goes wrong (book excerpt). By Rebecca Haw Allensworth. Milken Institute Review, Fourth Quarter 2025, pp. 69-87.
  Discusses the need for full-scale reform of the professional and occupational licensing systems in the U.S. and the pressure on state legislatures to roll back licensing laws. Presents a theory of when to use licensing to regulate the market for professional services by considering other regulatory interventions such as premises licensing. Describes the challenges facing state occupational and regulatory boards.
  See: https://www.milkenreview.org/articles/book-excerpt-the-licensing-racket
  
• The shutdown artist. By Andy Kroll. New Yorker, October 27, 2025, pp. 30-39.
  Profiles Russel Vought, the director of the White House Office of Management and Budget under the Trump administration. Describes the massive influence held by the OMB, which is responsible for vetting executive orders, issuing workforce policies for federal employees, and reviewing agency regulations. Discusses Vought's roles in the ongoing government shutdown and in the significant cuts and layoffs implemented since Trump took office again in January 2025.
  See: https://research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=c29672c7-d05c-3fa9-a5a0-cf16c8a73236
  
• Most Americans think Trump is trying to exercise more power than previous presidents. By Andy Cerda and Steven Shepard. Pew Research Center, October 8, 2025, p. 1.
  Presents the results of a survey showing that around seven-in-ten Americans (69 percent) say President Donald Trump is trying to exert more power than his predecessors. Notes that most of those who say this describe Trump’s efforts as a bad thing for the country.
  See: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/10/08/most-americans-think-trump-is-trying-to-exercise- ...
  
• Powering the AI century: Why utilities must lead. By Michelle Fay, Hector Artze, and Meredith Bodkin. Public Utilities Fortnightly, September 2025, pp. 56-60.
  Discusses some of the ways artificial intelligence (AI) data centers are reshaping traditional electric utility planning cycles. Considers risks utilities face if they can’t adapt to these demands. Recommends actions for utility leaders.
  See: https://www.fortnightly.com/fortnightly/2025/09/powering-ai-century-why-utilities-must-lead
  
• Human rights crisis in ICE detention centers. By C.J. Ciaramella. Reason, November 2025, p. 10.
  Discusses multiple reports and lawsuits that have found credible human rights abuses are occurring in immigration detention centers in the U.S.
  See: https://reason.com/2025/08/15/the-human-rights-crisis-in-ice-detention-centers/
  
• Showdown over resources. By Shay Khan. San Antonio Business Journal, October 24-30, 2025, pp. 16-17.
  Describes a controversial housing development—Guajolote Ranch—being planned near San Antonio and the opposition to it from local residents and officials. Claims that the project encapsulates San Antonio's struggle to balance residential real estate expansion, affordable housing demands, Hill Country preservation, and water security.
  See: https://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/news/2025/10/23/guajolote-ranch-lennar-development-water.html
  
• Texas Comptroller to freeze new 'historically underutilized business' certifications. By Cameron Abrams. Texan, October 28, 2025, p. 1.
  Reports that the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts is moving to "freeze" the Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) program to ensure it remains in compliance with new state legislation and executive orders related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Notes that the program, which seeks to level the playing field in state purchasing for businesses owned by "economically disadvantaged persons," was developed via HB 2626 during the 73rd Legislature in 1993 and SB 178 during the 76th Legislature in 1999.
  See: https://thetexan.news/issues/texas-taxes-spending/texas-comptroller-to-freeze-new-historically-under ...
  
• Texas Democrats urge Abbott to declare emergency, unlock state funds for SNAP beneficiaries. By Cameron Abrams. Texan, October 30, 2025, p. 1.
  Reports on the efforts of Texas Democrats to convince Governor Greg Abbott to unlock state funds to help fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which has not delivered benefits this month due to the government shutdown. Notes that almost 3.5 million Texans are beneficiaries of the SNAP program, over 1 in 10, for a total of $614 million in monthly assistance.
  See: https://thetexan.news/issues/texas-taxes-spending/texas-democrats-urge-abbott-to-declare-emergency-u ...
  
• 'We're not Houston': Fort Worth mayor speaks out on school district state takeover. By Meridith Dyer. Texan, October 29, 2025, p. 1.
  Interviews Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker regarding the Texas Education Agency (TEA)’s announcement of the state takeover of Fort Worth Independent School District (ISD). Notes that while the mayor voiced support for the takeover and for TEA Commission Mike Morath, the Fort Worth ISD board of trustees has expressed its disappointment in the decision and urged TEA to reconsider.
  See: https://thetexan.news/issues/education/we-re-not-houston-fort-worth-mayor-speaks-out-on-school-distr ...
  
• Modernizing county corrections: Five game-changing technologies. By Abigail Belangeri. Texas County Progress, November 2025, pp. 38-39.
  Stresses the strategic imperative of improving technology in Texas jails. Highlights five technological innovations helping county jails grapple with challenges like rising inmate populations and limited staffing, including the implementation of: Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tracking systems; Electronic Medical Records (EMR) systems and telehealth services; advanced surveillance systems including body-worn cameras and facility-based cameras enhanced by AI analytics; automated intake and risk assessment systems; and cloud-based, mobile-enabled Jail Management System (JMS) platforms.
  See: https://dashboard.mazsystems.com/webreader/87075?page=38
  
• How the bathroom bill weaponizes transphobia against public institutions. By Kit O'Connell. Texas Observer, October 2, 2025, p. 1.
  Examines the background and potential effects of Texas' recently passed "bathroom bill"—SB 8 (89th Legislature, 2nd Called Session), which requires trans people to use the facilities that correspond to their assigned sex at birth.
  See: https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-bathroom-bill-weaponizes-transphobia/
  
• Balancing act: Weather, irrigation, and meeting the state's agriculture needs. By Tian Su. Tierra Grande, Fall 2025, p. 1.
  Discusses irrigation as the single largest water use in Texas agriculture and notes the agriculture industry accounts for the majority of Texas water consumption in the state. Analyzes drought severity and irrigation source trends from 2010-2022 and water use efficiency in irrigation systems.
  See: https://trerc.tamu.edu/article/balancing-act-weather-irrigation-and-meeting-the-states-agriculture-n ...
  
• Texas water planning: Preparing for future droughts. By Lynn D. Krebs and Charles E. Gilliland. Tierra Grande, Fall 2025, p. 1.
  Provides a brief history of water planning in Texas and describes the major tools of water planning in the state: the creation of regional water planning groups in SB 1, 75th Legislature; the publication of the State Water Plan by the Texas Water Development Board, illustrating water supply and demand; and funding of water infrastructure through the State Water Implementation Fund for Texas (SWIFT) and the Texas Water Fund (TWF). Highlights the Legislature's recent involvement in water planning and financing in SB 28, SB 30, and SJR 75, 88th Legislature, R.S.; and HJR 7, 89th Legislature, R.S., currently Proposition 4 on the November constitutional amendments ballot.
  See: https://trerc.tamu.edu/article/texas-water-planning-preparing-for-future-droughts/
  
• Water rules run deep. By Rusty Adams. Tierra Grande, Fall 2025, p. 1.
  Details the role of groundwater supplies in Texas' water needs and the relationship between groundwater and private property rights. Addresses the ownership of groundwater, the rule of capture, and groundwater regulation via groundwater conservation districts.
  See: https://trerc.tamu.edu/article/water-rules-run-deep/
  
• Why do health-insurance costs keep rising? By Alana Semuels. Time, November 10, 2025, p. 12.
  Highlights the ever-increasing cost of health insurance in America, using a Dallas tech worker with a family of four as a case study and noting that the cost of his employer-provided coverage rose more than six percent. Cites surveys showing that costs are expected to rise by between six and eight percent, the highest increase in a decade. Explains how the cost of ending subsidies for Affordable Care Act premiums led to the ongoing government shutdown.
  See: https://time.com/7327333/health-insurance-costs-increasing-2026/
  
• A perfect storm of rising costs threatens America's housing market. By Alanna McCargo. Urban Institute, September 2025, pp. 1-16.
  Examines Harris County's housing market as a case study for the country. Describes homeownership financial vulnerabilities to disasters through lack of flood insurance, property insurance costs, and shrinking claim payouts. Provides policy recommendations.
  See: https://www.urban.org/sites/default/files/2025-09/Final_A_Perfect_Storm_of_Rising_Costs_Threatens_Am ...
  
• No conviction required: How conduct-based immigration grounds endanger noncitizen youth in Texas. By Manuela "Mimi" Alcocer. Voice for the Defense, October 2025, pp. 20-22.
  Explores the dangers of conduct-based grounds of inadmissibility and deportability for noncitizen youth in Texas. Outlines key Immigration and Nationality Act provisions; practical strategies for defenders; and emerging state and federal legislative threats, including the TXGANG database and the recently enacted Laken Riley Act.
  Related information at: https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5