STATE CAPITAL HIGHLIGHTS
SpaceX, Tesla make Grimes plant official
What CEO Elon Musk says will be the world’s largest computer chip manufacturing plant is planned for Grimes County, east of College Station, the Austin American- Statesman reported.
In a joint announcement last week, Space X and Tesla unveiled an initial $16.8 billion investment in a plant called Terafab. It is expected to employ at least 3,000 people. Many of those jobs are expected to go to residents of Grimes and neighboring Brazos counties.
“We’re now embarking on the most epic chip-building effort,” Musk, CEO of both companies, said in a statement. “The Terafab is bringing cutting-edge manufacturing to America, creating thousands of high-paying jobs in the Lone Star State and enabling us to produce AI chips at scale for use on Earth and in space.”
Gov. Greg Abbott confirmed last week that the project is receiving a $30 million Texas Enterprise Fund grant from the state. Grimes County has previously approved a property tax waiver in exchange for annual payments of $20 million.
The plant would eventually span 100 million square feet.
State Fair of Texas’ gun ban upheld by appeals court
A Texas appeals court upheld a handgun ban at the State Fair of Texas, rejecting the state’s claim that the city of Dallas unlawfully allowed a private operator to prohibit guns on city-owned property, according to The Dallas Morning News.
The 15th Court of Appeals affirmed a Dallas County judge’s dismissal of a case originally filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and three gun owners. It rejected the state’s argument that the restriction on cities banning guns doesn’t automatically apply to private tenants operating on public property. The ban will remain in place unless the Texas Supreme Court intervenes.
“The decision to prohibit firearms on the fairgrounds is the correct decision to protect the safety of our patrons,” Karissa Condoianis, a State Fair of Texas spokesperson, said. This will be the third year the ban will be in place.
Talarico voted using parents’ address, report says Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico voted in five elections using his parents’ address after buying a nearby home for himself, according to The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, a practice that may have violated state voting laws. The revelation comes weeks after Talarico accused Paxton, his GOP opponent, of voting from his estranged wife’s address despite not having lived there for two years.
Talarico has taken advantage of a state law that allows some public officials to redact personal information, such as home addresses. The news organizations pieced together the information from unredacted records provided by the Talarico campaign.
Texas law requires that residents register to vote where they live. The Talarico campaign declined to answer questions about his residency and voting history, saying “right-wing actors” have made threats about trying to locate the candidate and his family.
Talarico’s house is in the same county as his parents’ home. Both res- idences are located in the same state House district he represents, but in different jurisdictions for some local elections, according to The Tribune.
Wildfire danger increasing as conditions turn dry
August is typically the peak month for wildfires in Texas. The Texas A&M Forest Service expects wildfire potential to increase due to dry vegetation, particularly in the Panhandle and North Texas.
The state is deploying numerous wildfire response resources as a result, including the state’s mutual aid system and assistance from a number of state agencies.
There were two active wildfires as of Sunday. The 200-acre Round Up fire west of Amarillo was zero-percent contained at that time.
The service recently acquired three multi-mission aircraft, adding to its first dedicated, state-managed wildfire aviation fleet. It previously had acquired two wildfire suppression helicopters.
“Every wildfire is different, which is why a diverse aviation fleet is so important,” said Texas A&M Forest Service Fire Chief Jared Karns. “Having multiple aircraft types available, including multi-mission aircraft platforms that can serve a variety of roles, allows us to respond effectively to the unique demands of each incident.”
Salmonella cases linked to jalapeños
The popular jalapeño pepper has been linked to 345 cases of salmonella illness in 27 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The San Antonio Express-News reported three cases in Texas, stemming from peppers imported from Sinaloa, Mexico.
No deaths have been reported nationwide, but 36 people have been hospitalized, according to the CDC. Nearly all of the cases were reported by people after eating at a Mexican-style chain restaurant.
Two affected chains, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Qdoba, said they had taken steps to remove potentially contaminated peppers.
Gary Borders is a veteran award-winning Texas journalist. He published a number of community newspapers in Texas during a 30-year span, including in Longview, Fort Stockton, Nacogdoches, Lufkin and Cedar Park. Email: gborders@texaspress. com.