Opinion

Three people were arrested last week by federal authorities in connection with a human smuggling incident that left 53 migrants dead.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe vs. Wade effectively ends all legal abortions in Texas within the next 30 days, many news media outlets reported.

State Comptroller Glenn Hegar last week released his agency’s plan to support the expansion of broadband internet access. Hegar and his agency’s Broadband Development Office received feedback through a series of town halls, virtual discussions and more than 16,000 survey responses.

Anti-gun violence protests were held in multiple cities across the state over the weekend, while the state has imposed additional measures designed to strengthen school security.

In helping a client with a tax issue involving Travis and Hays County, I was surprised to learn how much higher property taxes are in Hays County for the same value home. Some may think it’s because of skyrocketing tax appraisals, but that is not true. Hays County homeowners’ taxes are higher than necessary (and higher than those in Travis County) because your Hays officials, especially the Commissioners Court and School Boards have not adopted the 20% homestead exemption authorized by Texas Tax Code section 11.13(n). By comparison, Travis County, the City of Austin, and Lake Travis ISD have adopted it.

Governor Greg Abbott directed the Texas Education Agency to ensure school facilities are made safer in the wake of a mass shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde.

The gunman who killed 21 people inside a Uvalde elementary school walked into the unlocked building unopposed, the Department of Public Safety said in a revised statement.

Firefighters are looking to the skies for muchneeded rain this week as crews continue battling wildfires across the state. Fires reported Sunday by the Texas A&M Forest Service were being fought in Brown, Taylor, Wilbarger, Llano, Schleicher and San Saba counties.

Early voting in the May 24 primary runoff elections ends Friday, May 20. Under state law, voters who cast ballots in either party’s primary election must vote only in the same party’s runoff election. Voters who did not cast ballots in the primary may vote in either party’s runoff election.

How do you go about selecting a candidate? For me, a resident of Western Hays County, there are several different qualifications I review when deciding who to vote for. One of the main items I evaluate is experience. I’ve found that elected official experience is extremely helpful in working through the governmental process. It’s difficult for a freshman elected official to accomplish much their first year as they are often busy learning the players, the system, the law and how it all works.

Texas voters overwhelmingly approved two proposed amendments on Saturday that will provide property tax relief to homeowners.

BARRON CASTEEL