Current Articles for October 31, 2024

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.

• Emergency doctors grapple with abortion bans. By Stacy Weiner. Association of American Medical Colleges, October 22, 2024, pp. 1-6.
  Discusses the ramifications of restrictions on emergency abortions in states with abortion bans. Cites specific instances of Texas residents experiencing life-threatening pregnancy complications. Provides physician opinions on the effect of the restrictions.
  See: https://www.aamc.org/news/emergency-doctors-grapple-abortion-bans
  
• Preparing for artificial intelligence and other challenges to election administration: Results from tabletop exercises in five states during the 2024 election. By Dean Jackson, Matthew Weil, and William T. Adler. Bipartisan Policy Center, October 2024, pp. 1-22.
  Discusses potential artificial intelligence (AI)-related security threats to election administration at a time when election workers are already facing harassment and threats. Reports on the results of exercises across five states — Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, and Pennsylvania — in the spring and summer of 2024 to better understand the possible evolution of AI-driven election integrity threats. Outlines recommendations for election officials and other stakeholders to better prepare for and mitigate security crises.
  See: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/download/?file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Preparing-for-Artificial-Int ...
  
• The state of state election policy in 2024. By Theo Menon, William T. Adler, and Julianne Lempert. Bipartisan Policy Center, September 26, 2024, pp. 1-12.
  Analyzes states' adoption of twelve foundational election administration policies designed to balance voter accessibility and election security since the 2020 presidential election and describes how adoption of these policies changed since 2022. Includes Texas.
  See: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/report/the-state-of-state-election-policy-in-2024/
  
• HB 1605 creates state-approved list of instructional materials. Classroom Teacher (Texas Classroom Teachers Association), Fall 2024, pp. 3-4.
  Summarizes HB 1605, 88th Legislature, R.S., and how it affects teachers.
  See: https://issuu.com/texascta/docs/tcta2024survivalguide/3
  
• Restorative justice and victim-offender mediation: The nation's slow move towards restorative justice and Texas' efforts. By Chelsey Narvey. Crime Victims' Institute, October 2024, pp. 1-7.
  Defines "restorative justice," noting that unlike retributive justice, which prioritizes punishment and deterrence, restorative justice tries to address the underlying causes of crime and harm — thereby emphasizing accountability, restoration, and the repair of social relationships. Explores the multifaceted landscape of restorative justice, delving into its foundational principles; practical applications; empirical evidence; history within the country; and specific implementation within the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ).
  See: https://dev.cjcenter.org/_files/cvi/Narvey%20CVI%20Report%20-%20final%20(updated%20board).pdf_172849 ...
  
• Filling up space. Economist, October 19th-25th, 2024, pp. 16-18.
  Discusses the company Starlink, including its relationship to SpaceX. Considers the future and the profitability of the company.
  See: https://www.economist.com/briefing/2024/10/17/the-rockets-are-nifty-but-it-is-satellites-that-make-s ...
  
• Sending humans to the moon: Team of rivals. Economist, October 19th-25th, 2024, pp. 66-68.
  Provides an update of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) plans to return to the moon. Includes information about NASA’s contracts with SpaceX.
  See: https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/10/17/spacex-is-nasas-biggest-lunar-rival
  
• The coming viral storms: Markets to the rescue? By James H. Rosen, et al. Milken Institute Review, Fourth Quarter 2024, pp. 43-51.
  Discusses possible future viral events in public health and the need for oral antiviral therapies before vaccines are available. Explains that the challenge to increase antivirals is not a scientific challenge as much as a financial one. Proposes a futures market in antivirals to facilitate trades in financial instruments from bundling antiviral therapies in development.
  See: https://www.milkenreview.org/articles/the-coming-viral-storms?IssueID=55
  
• How can states make school voucher systems more accountable, accessible, and transparent? By Joshua Cowen and Ryan D. Nowak. National Education Policy Center, October 2024, pp. 1-29.
  Examines the use of funds in current and emerging voucher programs in other states. Provides policy design recommendations on creating voucher programs that are accountable, accessible, and transparent.
  See: https://nepc.colorado.edu/libraries/pdf.js/web/viewer.html?file=https://nepc.colorado.edu/sites/defa ...
  
• Americans' views of 2024 election news. By Elisa Shearer, et al. Pew Research Center, October 10, 2024, pp. 1-46.
  Reports on a survey on American news consumption about the 2024 U.S. presidential election. Notes that many respondents reported having a hard time distinguishing fact from fiction. Traces how Americans' attention toward election news has changed throughout the campaign, and with what kind of election news they are engaging.
  See: https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2024/10/PJ_2024.10.10_2024-election-news_rep ...
  
• Learning by doing. By Kathleen Vail. Phi Delta Kappan, October 2024, pp. 20-23.
  Discusses youth apprenticeships. Includes a brief history, features of work-based learning models, and advantages and challenges of youth apprenticeships.
  See: https://kappanonline.org/learning-by-doing/
  
• The rise and stall of standards-based reform. By Louis Volante, Don A. Klinger, and Christopher DeLuca. Phi Delta Kappan, October 2024, pp. 42-46.
  Argues there is a need to change educational standards and assessments in light of increased emphasis on interdisciplinary skills and the rapid innovation of artificial intelligence (AI).
  See: https://kappanonline.org/the-rise-and-stall-of-standards-based-reform/
  
• Home distilling ban struck down. By Jacob Grier. Reason, November 2024, pp. 10-11.
  Discusses the opinion issued by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in Hobby Distillers Association v. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. Questions whether or not this opinion will lead to an increase in home distillers.
  See: https://reason.com/2024/10/07/home-distilling-ban-struck-down/
  Related information at: https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.txnd.384014/gov.uscourts.txnd.384014.49.0_2.pdf
  
• Texit, stage right. By Brian Doherty. Reason, November 2024, pp. 64-69.
  Discusses the Texas Nationalist Movement (TNM) and their support for Texas to secede from the United States. Provides some historical context and legal precedent. Considers the pros and cons of secession from a libertarian viewpoint.
  See: https://reason.com/2024/10/13/texit-stage-right/
  
• No more needles. By Stephani Sutherland. Scientific American, November 2024, pp. 34-41.
  Explores the development and potential widespread use of vaccines delivered via a nasal spray. Includes an illustration of why this type of administration of vaccines may be more effective than injections.
  See: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=180028118&site=ehost-live
  
• Restoring the public's faith: Character education and the Supreme Court. By Benjamin Rigney. St. Mary's Journal on Legal Malpractice & Ethics, Fall 2024, pp. 296-324.
  Argues that the introduction of "character education" in law schools could eventually reverse rapidly declining public trust in the U.S. Supreme Court. Observes that while legislative gridlock and a lack of official oversight prevent Americans from holding Supreme Court Justices accountable for their perceived ethical lapses in the present, character education strategies could produce new generations of Supreme Court Justices with a more thorough understanding of ethics.
  See: https://commons.stmarytx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1173&context=lmej
  
• Initial GOP early vote turnout in Texas substantially higher than 2020 levels. By Brad Johnson. Texan, October 24, 2024, pp. 1-2.
  Discusses internal data models from Ross Hunt of Hunt Research showing the Republican turnout in 2024 early voting to be ten percent higher than 2020.
  See: https://thetexan.news/elections/2024/initial-gop-early-vote-turnout-in-texas-substantially-higher-th ...
  
• For Ken Paxton, it's election-fraud season all over again. By Christopher Hooks. Texas Monthly, November 2024, pp. 33-34, 36, 38.
  Discusses claims by Attorney General Ken Paxton that noncitizens are preparing to vote in the upcoming election. Notes actions taken by the attorney general's office to prevent alleged election fraud, including suits against county governments and raids on suspected ballot-harvesting operations.
  See: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=180312600&site=ehost-live
  See: https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/ken-paxton-voter-registration-fraud/
  
• Texas is taking back the State Highway 288 tollway — at a steep price. By Josephine Lee. Texas Observer, October 9, 2024, pp. 1-4.
  Discusses the state's upcoming buyback of the State Highway 288 tollway, one of the state's most expensive privately built toll roads. Discusses the effects of the transaction, including the fact that Texas taxpayers and drivers will pay for the tollway in higher taxes and tolls.
  See: https://www.texasobserver.org/texas-tollway-288-steep-price/