Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock announced today that more than 42,000 students applied for Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) on Feb. 4, the first day of the program’s launch. The total represents a nationwide record for most enrollments for day one of a new school choice program, surpassing Tennessee’s 33,000 student applications in 2025. The number of applicants will continue to climb. As of 11 a.m. today, more than 46,000 students had applied.
Yesterday on the floor, U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) highlighted the federal government’s efforts to prevent and combat the spread of the highly destructive New World screwworm, including legislation led by the Senator that was signed into law last year and the creation of a sterile fly facility in South Texas. Excerpts from Sen. Cornyn’s remarks are below, and video can be found here.
Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas Military Preparedness Commission (TMPC) today announced a $17 million loan from the Texas Military Value Revolving Loan Fund (TMVRLF) to the city of Del Rio. The funds will be used to rehabilitate the San Felipe East Springs Containment Wall and expand and modernize the City of Del Rio’s Water Treatment Plant. The two water projects will add resiliency to the water capacity of the City of Del Rio and the Laughlin Air Force Base.
Harmony Public Schools–Central Texas will host the third annual Central Texas Math Carousel on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026, bringing together fifth-grade students from across the Austin metroplex for a high-energy academic competition focused on mathematics. The event, held at Harmony School of Endeavor, features individual- and team-based challenges designed to strengthen problem-solving skills, encourage collaboration, and build students' confidence in math.
This week, President Trump may have just delivered the most historic week for prescription drug reform ever. Why isn’t the mainstream media talking about it? First, his FTC Chair, Andrew Ferguson, announced a historic deal with Cigna/Express Scripts to lower prescription drug prices. The company agreed to make some changes to its PBM (“pharmacy benefit manager”) operations that will significantly cut consumer healthcare costs.
“By making it illegal to transport a minor to another state for an abortion without abiding by the relevant laws and parental consent requirements, this bill would honor the rights of parents, protect children, and save our most vulnerable lives,” said Sen. John Cornyn, pushing the "Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act" to make it a crime to knowingly transport a minor across state lines for an abortion.
"When violence or terror strikes, the best-trained men and women need to be able to respond without hesitation about the bureaucratic backlash,” said Cong. Tony Gonzales as he introduced the "Homeland Threat Response Act" to close a longstanding gap in Federal Law. "With the Super Bowl around the corner, this is timelier than ever and would ensure that Law Enforcement can do their jobs,” Gonzales said.
Texas families began submitting applications today for the state’s new Education Freedom Account (EFA) program. The application window opened February 4, 2026, and runs through March 17, 2026. Awards will be determined through a lottery process conducted by priority category. We believe every kid is capable, is worthy of respect, and deserves educational opportunities that treat them with dignity, foster the free movement of ideas and promote self-actualization.
With FDA-approved RSV Immunizations now medically proven to help keep Babies & Infants safe from the worst of RSV, or Respiratory Syncytial Virus, and significantly reduce respiratory infections and hospitalizations, major breakthroughs are giving families new therapies to fight back against RSV. I've seen how RSV immunization can save lives – most personally in the case of a close friend’s baby.
There are some people who should be grateful that breathing is a reflex. If it required any mental ability whatsoever, they would suffocate on the street having forgotten to do it. These people should be pitied, but Democrats hold them up as aspirational figures. I get why they do it – Democrats actually have very little to be proud of. But what is disturbing is that so many are even more dumb to fall for it.
Sounds to us like the Schumer Democrats WANT ineligible voters to vote. This law requires voters show the same type of ID now required to sign up for federal programs such as Medicare and Social Security. Harry Enten, a CNN data analyst, finds overwhelming support for requiring a photo ID to vote. In last year's Pew Research poll it was backed by 71% of Democrats, 76% of blacks, and 82% of Latinos. When it comes to voter ID, Enten said the issue is a complete "nontraversy."
As soon as Joe Biden was elected president, he erased the Southern Border – and lied to all of us while they did, saying "the Border is closed." That and inflation put Donald Trump back in office. Donald Trump considered Illegal Immigration to be a problem that needed fixing, and the Left – always on the side of illegal activity – is offended by his tactics. But what do we typically do when someone breaks the law?
By enforcing the immigration laws against those who are violating them in this country, the Trump administration has deterred illegal border crossings. According to DHS, the Border Patrol encountered a daily average of 5,110 individuals at the southwest border during the Biden administration, while daily encounters averaged only 251 in the first year of Trump's second term. This country must never go back to former President Joe Biden's open borders.
“It's ridiculous that we need to pass a bill to ensure that Americans alone are the ones voting in our Federal Elections, but thanks to Joe Biden’s reckless open-border policies and Democrat-run Sanctuary Cities, this is the reality we live in,” said Sen. John Cornyn, as he, Utah Sen. Mike Lee & Cong. Chip Roy launched a renewed push to pass the "SAVE America Act" to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote, photo ID before voting in Federal Elections, and states to maintain accurate voter rolls.
State sales tax revenue in January 2026 increased 7.1% compared to January 2025, with business spending showing the largest gains said Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock earlier today. The Mining & Construction sectors also both exhibited double digit growth, leading to total sales tax growth for the three months ending January 2026 being up 6.1% compared to a year ago. Sales tax is the largest source of state funding for the state budget, accounting for 58% of all tax collections.
Under the Working Families Tax Cuts Act, millions of Americans are expected to see significantly larger refunds. Economic analyses project average refunds rising by $1,000 or more, with some estimates showing increases of 15 to 30 percent. In total, taxpayers could receive up to $50 billion more in refunds this year. That means more money staying where it belongs, with families, workers, and seniors who earned it.
As cities descend into repeated cycles of chaos and lives are lost in Minnesota, Americans are asking a simple question: how did we get here? Many Americans, understandably shocked, look at the protests, the violence, and the loss of life and point to immediate causes. Some cite fraud and corruption in federally funded social programs, apparently tolerated by state officials. Others point to aggressive enforcement of immigration law that sparked deadly confrontations. But these are symptoms, not the cause.
"As always, Texans can rest assured the Senate will hit the ground running on day one of the 90th Texas Legislature to ensure the priorities of the conservative majority of Texans are accomplished including, but not limited to, continued property tax relief via ‘Operation Double Nickel,’ eliminating fraud and abuse in state government, strengthening the power grid, and promoting a Texas-first agenda across the board.”
