Gains seen in all subjects on STAAR tests

Texas high school students showed improvement in every subject in this spring’s end-of-course STAAR exams, the Texas Education Agency reported.

The results include assessments in Algebra I, English I, English II, biology and U.S. history. The biggest improvement was in biology, with 71% of students meeting expectations, up 9%.

“These results reflect the hard work of Texas students, educators and families and demonstrate that focused instruction and high expectations continue to produce positive outcomes for students across our state,” said Commissioner Mike Morath. “These results may also be reflective of the legislature’s ban of cell phone use in classrooms, so that students are better able to stay focused on their schoolwork while at school.”

Parents and families can access their child’s individual STAAR EOC results through their school district’s family portal or by visiting TexasAssessment.gov and using the unique access code provided by their child’s school.

STAAR results for students in grades 3-8 will be available this week.       

Schools will begin phasing out STAAR end-of-year testing beginning in the 2027-2028 school year.

Experts warn charter school boom could bust

The pace of growth of charter schools in Texas slowed this past school year, with experts warning that the enrollment drops facing traditional school districts could begin to affect charters, The Texas Tribune reported. With declining birth rates, the growth of vouchers, and increased immigration enforcement, experts say the growth of charter schools may soon reverse.

“They’re headed to a cliff, for sure,” said Bob Templeton, a senior consultant with an Austin-based public policy firm called STRIVE. “And I don’t know if it’s going to be next year, but it could definitely be within five years.”

Texas public schools this past year experienced their first non-pandemic enrollment decline in nearly 40 years, with 76,000 fewer students. The drop was primarily among Hispanic students in traditional neighborhood campuses. Charter schools still increased enrollment, but at a lower rate. They now educate roughly 446,000 students, or 8% of the state’s nearly 5.5 million public school students.

“It was the changes in immigration enforcement that caused the enrollment to turn the way that it turned this year, especially as it relates to the Hispanic community,” said Templeton.

Abbott, Rollins update Texans on screwworm response

Gov. Greg Abbott and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins briefed the public on the state and federal governments’ ongoing response to the threat posed by the New World Screwworm. There have been 11 confirmed cases in Texas as of Monday.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is importing and dispersing sterile male flies to combat the invasion, and the Texas Animal Health Commission has designated five "infested zones” that include Coke, Edwards, Gillespie, Kerr, Kimble, La Salle, Sutton, Tom Green, Uvalde, Val Verde, Webb and Zavala counties.

Warm-blooded animals must pass an inspection before being authorized for shipment outside an affected area.

“Sterile flies are the well-established solution to the spread of the New World screwworm,” Abbott said.

Ranchers and livestock owners are urged to remain vigilant by checking animals daily and treating wounds promptly. The screwworm lays its larvae in open wounds.

Texans are urged to report any suspected New World screwworm cases in livestock to the Texas Animal Health Commission at 1-800-550-8242 and report suspected wildlife cases to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) at (512) 389-4505. 

Texas leads nation in solar growth

Texas is leading the nation in new solar capacity, installing 50% more than any other state in the first quarter of 2026, the San Antonio Express-News reported. Across the nation, solar generation and battery storage accounted for 91% of new energy capacity.

“Texas is actually soon to overtake California for the most total installed solar capacity,” said Daniel Giese, state director for the Solar Energy Industries Association. California now has 55.5 gigawatts of installed capacity, barely exceeding Texas’ 53.5 gigawatts. 

A separate report from a global energy think tank showed that nationally, solar supplied more electricity than coal in May for the first time. Solar accounted for 12.8% of U.S. energy last month, while coal dropped to 12.2%. In Texas, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas expects solar to exceed coal for the first time later this year.

The growth in data centers is a major reason for the growth in new solar capacity in Texas, since it can come online fairly quickly.

Abbott takes aim at Texas data centers

Abbott has directed electric regulators and ERCOT, the agency that oversees the electric grid, to require new data centers to pay for the power and infrastructure needed to power their operations, The Dallas Morning News reported. The explosive growth in the centers is sparking fears that they will drive up consumer electric bills.

The governor further ordered the Public Utility Commission to ensure that new data centers actually reduce residential electric bills.

“Data centers must operate in ways that reduce costs for residential electricity customers, do not drain water needed for our communities and take into consideration the needs of our neighborhoods,” Abbott said in a statement.

He has also proposed new laws in next year’s legislative session that would repeal a data center sales tax exemption that could cost the state billions of dollars in tax revenue, require data centers to use water-efficient technologies, and report electric and water usage.

Agency to set rules on using fracking wastewater on farmland

Lawmakers have directed the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality to lead the charge in setting water quality guidelines for using treated oilfield wastewater on Texas farmland, The Tribune reported. As the state’s demand for water grows, lawmakers have invested millions of dollars studying ways to treat the billions of gallons of toxic wastewater produced from fracking operations so it can be used for irrigation purposes.

Each site where the water is to be used will require its own permit, including limits on pollutants before the water is released, and reporting requirements “as necessary to ensure protection of human health and the environment,” said Laura Lopez, a TCEQ spokesperson.

Gary Borders is a veteran award-winning Texas journalist. He published a number of community newspapers in Texas during a 30-year span, including in Longview, Fort Stockton, Nacogdoches, Lufkin and Cedar Park. Email: gborders@texaspress.com.