The Latest Breaking News from Robert Nichols

Whether it’s supporting a rape exception for abortion or opposing school choice, Nichols has gone his own way on certain GOP priorities.

Both chambers have said school safety is a priority this session after a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at a Uvalde elementary school last year.

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.

Senate Bill 11, which aims to get hundreds of districts without adequate safety protocols to adopt one, would also beef up truancy laws.

The bill, introduced months after the Uvalde school shooting, also allocates more funds to the state’s school safety allotment, which is money given to districts to improve campus security.

Senators in the finance committee asked questions Monday about the pros and cons of basing the amount of money that schools get per student on enrollment instead of attendance. Districts say the change could mean millions in additional funding.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — With Tennessee’s so-called trigger law already on the books, the state enacted its abortion ban almost immediately after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in June.

With lingering skepticism about Texas Central’s ability to build a high-speed rail line, landowners along the route want the company to be more forthcoming about the project’s status.

In some battleground state legislative races, Republicans have been making overtures to those who believe the ban as too extreme. They have said they are open to revising the ban to include the exceptions — and even voiced confidence that the Legislature will do so when it reconvenes in January.

Other anti-abortion groups and Republicans said they will continue to support state Sen. Robert Nichols after his comments at The Texas Tribune Festival.

Texas lawmakers on both sides of the aisle talked schools, abortion and guns in advance of next year’s session in a range of panels at The Texas Tribune Festival.