Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton Is Outsourcing More of His Office’s Work to Costly Private Lawyers

Despite having an office of hundreds of attorneys, Ken Paxton is frequently opting for private lawyers — many to whom he has personal or political ties — to argue on behalf of Texas. One attorney cost taxpayers more than $24,000 for a day’s work.

About the Partnership

In this first-of-its-kind collaboration, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune work together to publish investigative reporting for and about Texas.

Texas Lawmakers Largely Ignored Recommendations Aimed at Helping Rural Areas Like Kerr County Prepare for Flooding

Texas lawmakers’ inaction on flood prevention often hits rural and economically disadvantaged communities the hardest, experts said.

He Came to the U.S. to Support His Sick Child. He Was Detained. Then He Disappeared.

Like most of the more than 230 Venezuelan men deported to a Salvadoran prison, José Manuel Ramos Bastidas had followed U.S. immigration rules. Then Trump rewrote them.

Why Gov. Greg Abbott Won’t Release His Emails With Elon Musk

We asked Abbott for his and his staff’s emails with Elon Musk and Musk’s companies. The governor’s office won’t turn them over, saying some contain “intimate and embarrassing” information that is “not of legitimate concern to the public.”

Vino a EE.UU. para pagarle el tratamiento a su hijo enfermo. Lo detuvieron. Luego desapareció.

Como la mayoría de los más de 230 venezolanos deportados a una prisión salvadoreña, José Manuel Ramos Bastidas siguió las normas de inmigración estadounidenses. Pero Trump cambió las reglas.

Elon Musk Hired a Dozen Texas Lobbyists This Year. State Law Keeps the Extent of Their Influence Under Wraps.

Musk, the billionaire businessman behind Tesla and SpaceX, influenced several new Texas laws this year. How his lobbyists came about these wins, however, is more of a mystery.

Inside Elon Musk’s Stellar Year at the Texas Capitol

While Elon Musk took Washington, D.C., by storm, his company representatives and lobbyists were also notching up big political wins in the heart of his vast business empire: Texas.

Texas Lawmakers Pull Funding for Child Identification Kits Again After Newsrooms Report They Don’t Work

For the second legislative session, lawmakers have withdrawn funding for a company selling kits that promise to help find missing kids after ProPublica and The Texas Tribune reported there’s no evidence to support that claim.

Texas Talks Tough on Immigration. But Lawmakers Won’t Force Most Private Companies to Check Employment Authorization.

Texas’ conservative Legislature has again and again refused to mandate that most private businesses use E-Verify. Experts say that Republican resistance is rooted in how the system could impact the state’s labor supply and economy.