Texas Briefing

Texas has rolled out new hemp regulations that are reshaping the state’s cannabis landscape — restricting smokable products, tightening oversight, and raising new questions about public health, enforcement, and market impacts. Host Edward M. Emmett sits down with Katharine Neill Harris to examine what has changed, why it matters, and how the new rules fit into broader state and federal policy tren...

How do students experience faith on campus, and how does religion shape their views on public policy? In this student panel moderated by Baker Institute fellow Michael O. Emerson , Rice University students David Lee, Zaina Waheed, and Jacob Alemeshet discuss how faith influences their daily lives, identities, and civic perspectives. Representing Christian and Muslim student organizations, the pane...

As religion becomes more visible in Texas politics, how is it reshaping the modern workplace?
From expanded religious accommodations to the rollback of DEI initiatives, Texas employers are increasingly caught between federal protections, state legislation, and a workforce that is more religiously diverse than ever. In this episode, Dr. Elaine Howard Ecklund , faculty scholar at the Baker Institute...

How can scientists interact with religious beliefs that increasingly shape public policy? Must there instead exist a separation between faith and science? Michael O. Emerson sits with Neal F. Lane , the Baker Institute’s senior fellow in science and technology, and Heidi Russell , the director of the Center for Health Policy, to dive into the complex, often misunderstood relationship among faith,...

Why has the role of religion in Texas public education become one of the most consequential policy battles in the state? What is at stake for religious liberty, church-state separation, and the future of education across the nation? Baker Institute fellow and guest host Michael O. Emerson is joined by nonresident scholar David R. Brockman to unpack how faith-based politics, Christian nationalism,...

How has faith – particularly Christian nationalism – become a powerful force shaping Texas politics and public policy? How should policymakers approach religion? Joined by Baker Institute fellows Eric McDaniel and Mark P. Jones , guest host Michael O. Emerson unpacks what Christian nationalism is, how it differs from religious conservatism, and why Texas has emerged as a key testing ground for its...

More than half of Texas women can’t access their preferred birth control method — meaning they can’t use the method that works best for them. Gracia Sierra , a nonresident scholar at the Baker Institute and data scientist at Resound Research for Reproductive Health, sits down with senior health policy fellow Elena Marks to discuss how insurance status shapes access to contraception and why uninsur...

Texas lawmakers returned to the Capitol yesterday for a special legislative session intended to address flood resilience, congressional redistricting, and the state’s booming consumable hemp industry. Katharine Neill Harris lays out the consumer risks of underregulated hemp products and commonsense measures to protect public health and child safety.   For more, read Harris’ road map for hemp regul...

This is our third episodes in a miniseries series on reproductive health in Texas — where we have world-class health facilities, yet rank near the bottom when it comes to women’s health outcomes. Texas banned all abortions in 2022, with one exception — to save the life of the pregnant patient or “prevent substantial impairment of a major bodily function.” The law’s vague language and harsh penalti...

This is Episode 2 in our miniseries on reproductive health in Texas — where we have world-class health facilities, yet rank near the bottom when it comes to women’s health outcomes. Kari White , the Baker Institute’s new nonresident fellow in maternal and reproductive health, joins senior health policy fellow Elena Marks to discuss teenagers’ access to confidential contraceptive care.   Texas, whi...

This is Episode 1 in our miniseries on reproductive health in Texas — where we have world-class health facilities, yet rank near the bottom when it comes to women’s health outcomes. Eleanor Klibanoff, the law and politics reporter and former women’s health reporter at the Texas Tribune, joined senior health policy fellow Elena Marks to discuss new abortion legislation in Texas that aims to clarify...

Introducing “ Texas Briefing ,” a new podcast that brings expert insights into the challenges shaping life in the Lone Star State. Institute scholars and their guests will untangle issues in health, the economy, climate resilience, and more to understand how policy matters are impacting communities, from the Panhandle to the Gulf Coast.   In our first series, senior health policy fellow Elena Mark...