Newscast

UMC continues to investigate and respond to an IT outage after a ransomware attack last week. While Emergency Centers and Urgent Care Clinics remain open, patients are still being diverted to nearby health facilities. And David Martin Davies reports a new study on partisan gerrymandering, particularly in Texas, continues to influence congressional politics.

Texas settled a lawsuit accusing Frisco ISD of illegally using funds to advocate against a voucher program. Less than six weeks away from the November election, we hear about America's youth voters. And here in Lubbock, the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and Lubbock Public Health are collaborating today for a Q&A session to educate the community on the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.

Frenship Independent School District cut the ribbon on its newest elementary school campus yesterday. Our reporter Samantha Larned has more from the event. And the City of Lubbock is holding a joint public hearing for the Unified Development Code tonight at 6 p.m. at Citizens Tower.

Texas Tech University released its annual Security and Fire Safety Report last week, revealing campus crime statistics for 2023. Our reporter Bishop Van Buren has a breakdown of the numbers and comparisons from the past three years.

The U.S. Department of Education recognized National Blue Ribbon Schools for the year 2024, including several schools from the area. State lawmakers got an update on last year's new school safety legislation, where committee members expressed concerns over the strain it may have on district budgets. And Lubbock County Commissioners yesterday passed a reduced budget but will likely be forced to adopt a no-new-revenue tax rate.

Lubbock county commissioners will meet to vote on the county’s property tax rate for what could be the last time before the end of the fiscal year when the county is mandated to cut the budget to the no-new-revenue rate. And KERA's Miranda Suarez reports the Dalby Correctional facility in Garza County is set to shut down at the end of the month — after Tarrant County decided to pull out of its contract early.

The East Lubbock Art House is hosting the Parkway Mural Fest tomorrow, September 21 from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Art House at 405 MLK Jr. Boulevard, carrying a theme of housing and land justice in Lubbock. KERA’s Toluwani Osibamowo reports the Texas State Fair's ban on guns at this year's event will stay in place after surviving a legal challenge from the Texas Attorney General. And today marks the first official day of the 107th annual South Plains Fair.

Federal officials say a small device that coverts firearms to machine guns is rapidly spreading across Texas. And they warn anyone making, selling, or using the device faces prison time. KTEP’s Angela Kocherga reports. And the U.S. Economic Development Administration announced a grant for the South Plains Association of Governments this week.

KTTZ's Samantha Larned has more on a 5.1-magnitude earthquake that hit the West Texas city of Ackerly. And The Texas House of Representatives State Affairs Committee heard testimony yesterday about the investigation into what caused the largest wildfire in Texas history to burn more than one million acres of the panhandle in February.

The trial for 25-year-old Omar Soto-Chavira, charged in the 2021 murder of a Lubbock County Sheriff's deputy, has been delayed after Soto-Chavira was found incompetent to stand trial. And KERA’S Zara Amaechi reports a Dallas nonprofit is developing a toolkit to combat housing displacement. Also, Lubbock Animal Shelter is offering free adoption for any of their long-stay dogs for the whole month of September.