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Kinder Morgan donated $172,000 to the North Blanco County EMS last Wednesday at the North Blanco County Emergency Station in Johnson City. Kinder Morgan representative Alan Fore said this was one of several donations planned for local organizations and services in Blanco County. "Judge Bray recommended many organizations, and the EMS and ESD was at the top of his list,"

AUSTIN — Gov. Greg Abbott pledged to institute police reforms when he met with the Houston family of George Floyd, who was handcuffed and killed by police in front of a Minneapolis convenience store on May 25. Video footage showed the 46-year-old Floyd subdued by four uniformed officers and pinned down on the pavement, one of them pressing his knee into Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes.

Two Blanco teenagers died Monday night as the result of a vehicle accident on U.S. Hwy. 281. According to a Texas Department of Public Safety report, a 2013 Chevrolet driven by Jaley Brown, 16, of Blanco, was traveling northbound on U.S. Hwy. 281 when it left the roadway and struck an embankment at approximately 8:49 p.m., about 5 miles south of Johnson City. The vehicle rolled several times.

Austin— Texas continues to outpace the nation in corporate wind deals, with 39 percent of all power sold to corporate buyers, according to the recently released 2019 Wind Powers American Business Report. The report reveals that corporate customers bought a record amount of wind in 2019, 4,447 megawatts (MW) of U.S.

The coronavirus pandemic has laid much of the American economy on its back—but a bright spot has made the disaster less crippling than it might have been. That is the Paycheck Protection Program, which funneled money back to workers through small businesses. Four and a half million small businesses took the PPP loans, representing 50 million jobs, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told Congress in June. The program was about to run out at the end of June.

The Johnson City City Council held a special meeting on June 4 via Zoom online videoconference. All members were present, and Mayor Rhonda Stell called the meeting to order at 2 p.m.. There were no announcements, and CAO Anthony Holland shared a public comment from Tim Jung. Jung said that the tennis courts have always been underutilized, and suggested, “These should be open to the public, for a total of eight people, so that families can play tennis, and the Police Department can patrol th ...

Mayor Rhonda Stell called the regular meeting of the City Council to order at 6 p.m. on June 2 remotely via Zoom online videoconference. All council members were present and there were no public comments. Stell said there would be discussion of reopening the City parks and Market Days, and added, “We have been using the CDC guidelines for planning to reopen the park and we’re trying to do the best that we can to navigate these waters.” Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Anthony Holl ...

AUSTIN — As Tropical Storm Cristobal moved north in the Gulf of Mexico toward Louisiana, the weather system’s potential impact on East Texas grew and Gov. Greg Abbott on June 5 addressed the situation in a news conference. Abbott said preparedness is the key in any hurricane season. He added that the Texas Department of Emergency Management and a roster of state agency departments, local responders and FEMA were ready.

The League of Women Voters of Texas and the Fair Maps Texas Coalition are excited to present a special viewing of a new documentary about gerrymandering called Slay the Dragon.  The film highlights how a secretive, high-tech gerrymandering initiative launched 10 years ago threatened to undermine our democracy and follows everyday people as they fight to make their votes matter. At a time when Texas is ranked amongst the most politically polarized states in the nation, with divisive rhe ...

By Dr. Mark Wentzel, Hydrologist, Texas Water Development Board Hi everyone, and welcome to the Texas Water Development Board's latest Water and Weather report. I'm Dr. Mark Wentzel, a hydrologist in the Surface Water Division here at the agency. And today, we're going to take a look at conditions for our state at the end of May 2020. This month, I’m once again coming to you from my backyard.