News

AUSTIN—The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) has officially issued the 60-day notice that the COVID-related waiver on expiration dates for driver licenses and identification cards ends on April 14. Customers are urged to make an appointment or renew online today.

Last week, U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady (TX-08), dean of the Texas Delegation in the U.S. House of Representatives, named U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson (TX-13) as a cochair of the Texas Agriculture Task Force. Other Texans named co-chairs of the task force include U.S. Reps. Jodey Arrington, Michael Cloud, Tony Gonzales, and August Pfluger. The task force will advocate for Texas agriculture priorities in the House, ensuring the delegation presents a united front in advancing policy positions. Texas is home to 247,000 farms, covering over 126 million acres, making it the top agriculture state in the country.

AUSTIN—Last Thursday, Feb. 4, Speaker Dade Phelan released committee assignments for the 87th Legislature. State Rep. Ken King, of Canadian, was named chair of the House Committee on Culture, Recreation, and Tourism (CRT), and was appointed to serve his fifth term on the House Committee on Public Education.

Filing ends at 5 pm tomorrow, Friday, Feb. 12, for candidates in the May 1 city council, and hospital and school board elections.

City officials received a report last weekend of a rabid skunk within the city limits. The caller reported the sighting to the Canadian Animal Control Office around 3 pm on Sunday, February 7, saying he had seen the animal, which he described as “walking funny,” in the vicinity of Sunset Park on the south end of town.

On Jan. 26, the Hemphill County Sheriff’s Office investigated a call concerning a recording device in a home, which appeared to be a cellphone charger. Through the course of the investigation, multiple video recordings and digital images were found on the device.