Brad Burt

The Lubbock County Elections Office received a backlog of more than 7,500 voter registrations due to a technical error with the Department of Public Safety's online registration portal. Lubbock County’s new Elections Administrator, Troy Havard, assures voters the backlog will not delay or affect anyone’s ability to vote in the November general election when early voting begins on Oct. 19.

Lubbock County Commissioners considered a resolution Monday supporting an independent investigation into 'payroll irregularities' for the Precinct 2 seat. While the resolution passed, it was not without contention, as members of the court and the district attorney pointed out that the investigation is happening with or without the commissioners' support.

This week, Lubbock's City Council said it would not consider any large-scale data center projects until regulations have been adopted to protect city residents and resources. Two days later, the Planning and Zoning Commission saw a presentation of potential requirements for developers, but members of the board said the proposal needs more work.

A debate over books in Texas' public school libraries picked up new attention last week, when Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick threatened legislative action unless Texas school districts pull books from the shelves that he and certain activists believe are "harmful" to students and families and violate Texas' Senate Bill 13. In a meeting of Lubbock ISD's board of trustees, the district stood by the parent-led library council and book review system established under state law.

In a city council meeting this week, recent fears of data center development met with generational frustrations over industrial zoning in north and east Lubbock, leading to threats of recalls for city leaders in a meeting where many who spoke out felt ignored.

Several Democratic candidates for local, state, and federal offices kicked off their West Texas campaign trail in Lubbock on Saturday with a roundtable, a rally, and a protest. A recurring topic of these separate events – data centers.

After 20 years as AT&T Stadium and nearly 80 years bearing the name of former university president Clifford Jones, Texas Tech Athletics has announced that the Red Raiders will now play from “Galaxy Stadium.” The 15-year naming rights deal between Texas Tech and data center developer Galaxy is just the latest in a push from university leadership to join in on high-tech research, large-scale data, and AI.

Lubbock ISD’s school library advisory council first met in November to review books flagged as potentially inappropriate to be on the shelves, in compliance with state law. Lubbock-area state senator Charles Perry helped author the bill which established these councils, but at a recent board of trustees meeting, he joined a group of community members saying the district's process is flawed.

Lubbock city leaders are asking for citizens’ opinions ahead of a public meeting to discuss the subject of large-scale data centers. Over the next week, the City is taking an online survey to gauge public opinion on large-scale data centers before the meeting. You can find a link to fill out the survey here.

Governor Abbott has declared a state of emergency over the New World Screwworm and its potential impact on the U.S. livestock industry, as state experts are calling on all Texans to help monitor for the flies. Meanwhile, West Texas ranchers are not panicking, taking the news as another part of an already difficult job.