Rising grocery and fuel prices, immigration enforcement fears and the scaling back of SNAP benefits are among the factors advocates are concerned are contributing to the trend.

Tomorrow is election day in Lubbock’s District 4 city council special election runoff between candidates Tim Green and Gary Boren. Saturday is also Lubbock Public Library's Back-to-School Bash at the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center. You can find more information and register by the end of the day for a free CitiBus pass to the event here. Meanwhile, in Austin, a planned system of ultra-high-voltage transmission lines that would move electricity across Texas faced strong opposition at the state capitol this week. As KUT's Mose Buchele reports, rural landowners and opponents of renewable energy are asking lawmakers to put the brakes on the project.