FOUND: Amber Alert Issued For Bryan Teenager

Attor­ney Gen­er­al Ken Pax­ton Sends Let­ters Pro­hibit­ing Over 250 Texas Cities from Ille­gal­ly Rais­ing Tax­es

Attorney General Ken Paxton has sent letters to some 250 cities in Texas after he says they failed to be trans­par­ent with taxpayers. The notices inform cities that they are prohibited from raising ad valorem taxes above the no-new-revenue tax rate. The action follows Attorney General Paxton’s investigation of over 1,000 Texas cities to ensure that none are unlawfully raising taxes. Included on the list of recipients is Hearne, Somerville, Franklin, Bedias, and Hempstead. During the 2025 legislative session, SB 1851 was passed and then enacted into law. It bars cities from raising property taxes above the no-new-revenue rate if they do not meet Texas’s financial statement audit and transparency requirements. Last month, Attorney General Paxton demanded documents from over 1,000 municipalities as part of an ongoing investigation to determine statewide compliance with SB 1851. It has led to the identification of 245 cities that failed to comply with the statutory requirements for the new fiscal year. Attorney General Paxton has now notified those cities that they are subject to the enforcement provisions and penalties established under SB 1851 and may not adopt property tax increases above the no-new-revenue rate. The letters are addressed to an initial list of non-compliant cities, and the investigation remains ongoing. The OAG will continue to take additional action and make further determinations as more cities are found to be out-of-compliance with audit requirements. “I will not allow cities to unlawfully raise taxes on hardworking Texans. That is why I took aggressive action against over 130 Texas cities to hold them accountable and ensure they comply with state law,” said Attorney General Paxton. “Cities cannot fail to abide by state audit requirements without consequences. My office will continue to aggressively enforce Texas law to protect taxpayers across the state.” He sent out the lists in two waves. The initial 135 letters were sent out May 14, 2026 to the cities of: Alpine, Aspermont, Baird, Balch Springs, Balmorhea, Bedias, Berryville, Big Spring, Bishop, Blooming Grove, Blue Mound, Briarcliff, Brookside Village, Buffalo Gap, Calvert, Cameron, Campbell, Centerville, Chico, Chireno, Clarksville, Clear Lake Shores, Combine, Corrigan, Crane, Cross Timber, Crowell, Crystal City, Cuero, Dalhart, Danbury, De Leon, Eagle Lake, Elkhart, Eureka, Eustace, Fairfield, Farwell, Flatonia, Franklin, Fritch, Fulton, Gordon, Grandfalls, Gregory, Groesbeck, Groom, Hale Center, Hamilton, Hearne, Hempstead, Higgins, Hillcrest Village, Horizon City, Howardwick, Howe, Huntington, Industry, Ingleside On the Bay, Jewett, Jonestown, Keene, Kemah, Kenedy, Kerens, Kermit, Lamesa, Livingston, Lott, Lumberton, Manvel, Marquez, McCamey, Megargel, Menard, Mertzon, Mexia, Miami, Midway, Miles, Mount Enterprise, Natalia, New Home, New Waverly, Newcastle, Oyster Creek, Paducah, Panorama Village, Pelican Bay, Pleak Village, Plum Grove, Port Lavaca, Quanah, Red Lick, Redwater, Rockdale, Rocksprings, Roma, Rusk, San Elizario, San Felipe, San Perlita, Seabrook, Shepherd, Smiley, Snyder, Somerville, Southmayd, Spring Branch, Spur, Sterling City, Stinnett, Sunray, Surfside Beach, Taft, Tehuacana, Texas City, Texline, Three Rivers, Tiki Island, Tom Bean, Tool, Turkey, Valley Mills, Valley View, Victoria, Weslaco, Weston Lakes, Wharton, Wickett, Wimberley, Wolfe City, Woodloch, Yantis, and Yoakum. The latest set of 116 letters on August 17, 2026 were sent to: Adrian, Annona, Aransas Pass, Avery, Blackwell, Blossom, Bogata, Bonney, Brazoria, Brownsboro, Charlotte, China, Clifton, Clint, Cottonwood Shores, Cotulla, Cranfills Gap, Cresson, Cumby, Darrouzett, Detroit, Dickens, Dish, Edgecliff Village, Electra, Florence, Friona, Gallatin, Godley, Goldthwaite, Goodlow, Goodrich, Gorman, Grand Saline, Granger, Greenville, Gruver, Hallsburg, Hallsville, Hawk Cove, Hawkins, Hawley, Hereford, Hilshire Village, Hudson, Indian Lake, Ingram, Itasca, Ivanhoe, Jones Creek, Kempner, Kendleton, Kennard, Kingsbury, Kress, La Villa, Ladonia, Linden, Log Cabin, Lone Star, Lyford, Mason, Mathis, Mission, Moody, Morgan, Munday, New London, Newton, Nordheim, Oakwood, Odem, Oglesby, Overton, Palacios, Pasadena, Pattison, Peaster, Penitas, Pine Forest, Point Comfort, Port Isabel, Presidio, Rancho Viejo, Rice, Robinson, Roman Forest, Round Mountain, Round Top, San Leanna, Sanford, Santa Fe, Seadrift, Simonton, Spearman, Springlake, Stockdale, Stockton Bend, Stratford, Strawn, Sunset Valley, Taylor Landing, Throckmorton, Toyah, Trinidad, Tulia, Uhland, Vega, Vinton, Weimar, Winfield, Winnsboro, Woodcreek, Woodsboro, Wortham, and Yorktown.

Man Shot and Killed in Brenham on Sunday

Brenham Police announced today the details regarding a fatal shooting early Sunday morning. BPD responded at 2:29am to the 800 block of Pleasantview Avenue for a reported weapons-related incident. Upon arrival, officers found that 25-year-old Laterius Ragston, of Brenham, had been shot. Officers provided lifesaving measures until medical assistance could arrive. Ragston was transported to the hospital, but he succumbed to his injuries. The BPD Criminal Investigation Unit is working in conjunction with the Texas Rangers to conduct an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting. As part of the investigation, officers executed a search warrant at a location in Hempstead. The search warrant was conducted with assistance from the Waller County Sheriff’s Office, Hempstead Police Department, Austin County Sheriff’s Office Special Response Teams, and Washington County EMS. They ask that anyone with information, no matter how minor you might believe it to be, to contact Sergeant Ashley Burns with the Brenham Police Department at (979) 337-7369. Additional information will be released as it becomes available and as the integrity of the ongoing investigation permits.

FBI Reminds Students That Making a School Threat Is A Crime

The FBI wants to remind everyone that making a threat against a school is a crime, whether you’re a juvenile or an adult. During the 2025-2026 school year, The FBI branch in Houston alone received 42 tips related to school threats, and they have already investigated three this school year. Three underage teenagers in the Pasadena Independent School District (near Houston) were charged with third-degree state felony offenses of a terroristic threat by planning a mass shooting at a high school. Threatening to commit acts of violence against a school is a crime, and the FBI will investigate every threat. To help identify and investigate the threats and who’s behind them, they ask for the help of students, school staff, and anyone who comes across them. If you see someone make a threat online, on social media, or text, DO NOT share it. Doing so will only incite fear and create panic. Instead, immediately notify school police or local law enforcement. And you should report threats against any school…not just your own. Hoax threats are also a problem for law enforcement. They use more resources to investigate a threat which drains law enforcement resources and diverts them from responding to an actual crisis. Hoax threats can shut down school campuses, cause undue stress and fear amongst the public, and cost taxpayers a lot of money…and ruin the future of those making the hoax threats as they’ll have a criminal record.