Austin news

• New overhead signs on SH 71 toll lane are confusing, drivers report

  16-02-2017 23:39 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — One… two… three signs.
  We counted several new overhead signs alerting drivers to the new State Highway 71 Express toll lane. Each sign saying something different about whether the ramp is open or closed.
  Armond Prince commutes on SH 71 daily and says the current setup is far too confusing, especially for out-of-towners. “The signs may be digital and they may have a little orange sign here and there, but you’re having to pay attention to a
  
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• Drivers say that new toll signs on SH 71 are confusing

  16-02-2017 23:39 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — One… two… three signs.
  We counted several new overhead signs alerting drivers to the new State Highway 71 Express toll lane. Each sign saying something different about whether the ramp is open or closed.
  Armond Prince commutes on SH 71 daily and says the current setup is far too confusing, especially for out-of-towners. “The signs may be digital and they may have a little orange sign here and there, but you’re having to pay attention to a
  
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• Lubbock woman blinded after using flea market contact lenses

  16-02-2017 23:28 via kxan.com
  
  LUBBOCK, Texas (KLBK) — A Lubbock woman, Liza Garcia, filed a lawsuit in Lubbock County Feb. 10, claiming that she is now legally blind after wearing cosmetic contacts she purchased from a Lubbock flea market booth.
  The lawsuit explains that on Feb. 9, 2016, Ms. Garcia went to the National Flea Market of Lubbock to purchase cosmetic contact lenses from the One Stop Contact Lenses booth. She had bought their contact lenses before.
  The contact lenses she purchased were not for vision correct
  
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• Man arrested for plot to bomb east coast Target stores

  16-02-2017 23:25 via kxan.com
  
  OCALA, Fla. (WFLA) – A man is in custody in the Marion County Jail after offering a person money to plant explosive devices in Target stores down the east coast.
  According to an affidavit, Mark Barnett, 48, a previously convicted felon, of Ocala, offered a source $10,000 to place improvised explosive bombs in stores.
  Barnett created at least 10 explosive devices, disguised as food-item packaging, and delivered them to the source on February 9.
  He then asked the person to place them on stor
  
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• Family says ex-boyfriend killed woman in front of deputies in Del Valle

  16-02-2017 23:06 via kxan.com
  
  ELGIN, Texas (KXAN) — The woman killed in front of Travis County deputies by her accused kidnapper in Del Valle Wednesday has been identified.
  In a GoFundMe page, family members say 26-year-old Ibeth Aurora Lopez will be missed “more than words can express.” Lopez’s sister-in-laws tells KXAN the suspect is the victim’s ex-boyfriend.
  Lopez and the suspect broke up two years ago, the family says, but they say he continued to harass her. Lopez has an 8-year-o
  
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• Ex-boyfriend killed woman in Del Valle before turning gun on self, family says

  16-02-2017 23:06 via kxan.com
  
  ELGIN, Texas (KXAN) — The woman killed in front of Travis County deputies by her accused kidnapper in Del Valle Wednesday has been identified.
  In a GoFundMe page, family members say 26-year-old Ibeth Aurora Lopez will be missed “more than words can express.” Lopez’s sister-in-laws tells KXAN the suspect is the victim’s ex-boyfriend.
  Lopez and the suspect broke up two years ago, the family says, but they say he continued to harass her. Lopez has an 8-year-o
  
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• School district says national protests are a learning experience

  16-02-2017 22:53 via kxan.com
  
  KYLE, Texas (KXAN) — One local school district says they are using the immigration protests happening around the country as a learning experience.
  For the second time this year, students in the Hays Consolidated Independent School District planned a walkout. On Thursday, Hays CISD teachers were put on alert when they were notified that students at Chapa Middle School had plans to walk out around lunch time in support for “A Day Without Immigrants,” which encourages immigra
  
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• Hays CISD walkouts won’t be stopped, but there will be consequences

  16-02-2017 22:53 via kxan.com
  
  KYLE, Texas (KXAN) — One local school district says they are using the immigration protests happening around the country as a learning experience.
  For the second time this year, students in the Hays Consolidated Independent School District planned a walkout. On Thursday, Hays CISD teachers were put on alert when they were notified that students at Chapa Middle School had plans to walk out around lunch time in support for “A Day Without Immigrants,” which encourages immigra
  
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• Thimble tossed! Game piece voted out of Monopoly board game

  16-02-2017 22:29 via kxan.com
  
  ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (AP) — You can still pass “Go” and collect $200 on the Monopoly board, but you soon won’t be able to do it with the thimble game piece.
  Voters have rejected the thimble, an integral part of the game since being added to Monopoly in 1935. The move is part of a campaign to select the next generation of game pieces.
  Hashtags, emojis and even a rubber duck may replace dogs, cats and hats in an upcoming version.
  Monopoly is changing its game pieces–here
  
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• Wichita Falls man’s inspiring weight loss goes viral

  16-02-2017 22:07 via kxan.com
  
  WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KFDX) A Wichita Falls man is hoping his weight loss journey can help inspire others.
  22-year-old Andy Albertson was overweight for most of his life, reaching his peak weight of 317 pounds. With the help of his family and his trainer, he was able to drop 176 pounds.
  “It’s actually very hard to see that was me at one point. I don’t have a lot of memories of being that big,” Andy said.
  His family decided to document his weight loss journey, but they nev
  
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• Would you let someone who’s not a dentist pull your teeth?

  16-02-2017 21:51 via kxan.com
  
  BOSTON (AP) — Need a tooth pulled or a cavity filled? Forget the dentist. A number of states are allowing or considering letting “dental therapists,” professionals with a lower level of training, do the job.
  In dozens of countries and a handful of U.S. states, dental therapists also sometimes called advanced dental hygiene practitioners help fill gaps in access to oral care for low-income, elderly and disabled people, and in rural areas where few dentists practice, according to
  
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• Contentious union dues bill heads to full Texas Senate

  16-02-2017 21:48 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (AP/KXAN) — A hotly debated bill barring voluntary payroll deductions of union dues from state employee paychecks is going to the full Texas Senate. Republican Sen. Joan Huffman heads the powerful State Affairs Committee, which approved 6-2 her proposal Thursday.
  Senate Bill 13 doesn’t weaken union collective bargaining abilities like the much-watched proposal advancing in Iowa’s Legislature, or Wisconsin’s 2011 bill, which was approved amid sweeping protests. Stil
  
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• Are you prepared for your digital death?

  16-02-2017 21:35 via kxan.com
  
  SCRANTON, Pa. (WBRE/WYOU) — Preparing for your digital death is becoming more important and experts say if you don’t have a plan in place, it can put your loved ones in a tough spot.
  Krysty Adcroft is the president of Tribal Media, a digital marketing agency in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
  According to Adcroft, nearly all major social media sites require various forms of identification and proof of death to delete a profile but the issue of handling a digital death is prompting many to gi
  
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• City expands mental health and legal help for immigrants

  16-02-2017 21:10 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) – “We’re overrun.” That’s how the director of immigration legal services at the Catholic Charities of Central Texas describes the influx of new clients needing help navigating lawful federal government immigration and entry programs.
  “Going back several months [with] the rhetoric around immigration we felt the need to get the [public] funds into the community as quickly as possible was paramount,” said Justin Estep, with the non-profit
  
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• Tanker base for firefighting planes unveiled at ABIA

  16-02-2017 20:34 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas A&M Forest Service unveiled their newest tool for fighting wildfires at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport Thursday. A portable air tanker base is now stationed at the airport.
  It can refill the largest air tankers, like the DC-10 Tanker, which can drop 11,600 of fire retardant at a time. They say that is four times better than any other fire retardant-carrying plane in the country.
  The portable base has a place for crew to sleep and get briefed.
  &ldqu
  
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• ‘Priestess of Waste-Free Living’ offers advice for Austin residents

  16-02-2017 19:59 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Bea Johnson is in Austin this week, speaking to people about ways to reduce their household waste. She spoke to the public at the Mexican American Cultural center on Thursday as part of the Imagine Austin Speaker Series.
  Johnson is the author of “Zero Waste Home,” a website and a book that inspire people to “refuse, reduce, reuse, recycle, rot” in order to cut down their household waste. She even posts pictures of her single jar of family h
  
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• World Relief to lay off 140 after Trump refugee order

  16-02-2017 19:53 via kxan.com
  
  BALTIMORE (AP) — World Relief says it is laying off more than 140 staffers after President Donald Trump’s executive order cut the number of refugees allowed to resettle in the United States.
  The Baltimore-based non-profit that helps resettle refugees announced Wednesday that it also will close offices in Glen Burnie, Maryland; Miami, Boise, Idaho; Columbus, Ohio; and Nashville, Tennessee.
  Trump’s executive order last month suspended the U.S. Refugee Admissions program for 120 d
  
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• VIDEO: Woman taken as baby meets siblings 50 years later

  16-02-2017 19:31 via kxan.com
  
  NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – A three-month-old baby girl was taken from her parents and adopted in the 1960s. Her biological parents never stopped looking for her but passed away before she was found.
  The couple’s children took over the search and finally found their long lost sister 50 years later.
  Faith Johnson and her younger sister, who live in Coffee County, say their parents had searched for their daughter Cheryl Lynn for years.(Photo: WKRN)Just last week, a family frien
  
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• Rebuilding broken Bastrop dam to take years, cost millions

  16-02-2017 18:59 via kxan.com
  
  BASTROP, Texas (KXAN) — The process of designing and rebuilding the damaged Bastrop State Park Lake dam has started, but it will cost millions of dollars and take years before it’s finished.
  In a May 2015 disaster, the nearly 100-year-old dam buckled under the pressure of excessive floodwaters. The 10-acre lake dam drained out, barreled down a creek bed and damaged a road.
  Hazard Class and InspectionsThe National Inventory of Dams defines the following hazard classes for dams:
  1
  
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• Austin agrees to $3.5M settlement with David Joseph’s family

  16-02-2017 18:52 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin City Council has approved a multi-million dollar settlement with the mother of David Joseph, a naked unarmed teen who was shot and killed by an Austin police officer last year.
  David Joseph’s mother, Ketty Sully, filed a wrongful death lawsuit in June 2016. The family’s attorney, Jeff Edwards, originally said his client would not settle for a “token settlement.” The suit claimed the city did not train officers on using other
  
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• Austin agrees to $3.25M settlement with David Joseph’s family

  16-02-2017 18:52 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin City Council has approved a multi-million dollar settlement with the mother of David Joseph, a naked unarmed teen who was shot and killed by an Austin police officer last year.
  David Joseph’s mother, Ketty Sully, filed a wrongful death lawsuit in June 2016. The family’s attorney, Jeff Edwards, originally said his client would not settle for a “token settlement.” The suit claimed the city did not train officers on using other
  
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• Britax recalls several popular strollers

  16-02-2017 17:59 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The maker of a popular baby stroller is issuing a voluntary recall due to reports of the stroller frame malfunctioning. Britax is conducting a voluntary recall on all Britax B-Agile and BOB Motion Strollers when using the Click & Go receivers to create a travel system (car seat attached to stroller frame).
  The company says it has received reports of damaged Click & Go receiver mounts on the stroller frames which may cause the attached car seats to disconne
  
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• Britax issues voluntary recall of several strollers

  16-02-2017 17:59 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The maker of a popular baby stroller is issuing a voluntary recall due to reports of the stroller frame malfunctioning. Britax is conducting a voluntary recall on all Britax B-Agile and BOB Motion Strollers when using the Click & Go receivers to create a travel system (car seat attached to stroller frame).
  The company says it has received reports of damaged Click & Go receiver mounts on the stroller frames which may cause the attached car seats to disconne
  
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• Texas Sen. Carlos Uresti’s office raided by FBI, IRS

  16-02-2017 17:09 via kxan.com
  
  SAN ANTONIO, Texas (KXAN) — Federal agents raided the law offices of Texas Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio, Thursday morning, reports the San Antonio Express-News.
  San Antonio news outlets have been reporting that agents were seen entering and exiting Uresti’s office in downtown San Antonio around 8 a.m. A spokesperson with the Federal Bureau of Investigation says FBI and IRS agents are “lawfully conducting a law enforcement operation.”
  The San Antonio Express-News says
  
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• Dads doing ballet on Valentine’s Day will make your heart happy

  16-02-2017 15:10 via kxan.com
  
  PHILADELPHIA (NEXSTAR MEDIA) — Videos posted on Facebook of fathers taking part in their child’s ballet class on Valentine’s Day are melting hearts around the world.
  (Facebook/Philadelphia Dance Center)The Philadelphia Dance Center posted three videos on Facebook Tuesday night that have since gone viral with more than 22 million combined views and 300,000 shares. Thousands have commented with praise for the dads.
  The videos show them following their child’s lead as they s
  
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• Dads dancing with daughters on Valentine’s Day will make your heart happy

  16-02-2017 15:10 via kxan.com
  
  PHILADELPHIA (NEXSTAR MEDIA) — Videos posted on Facebook of fathers taking part in their daughters’ ballet class on Valentine’s Day are melting hearts around the world.
  (Facebook/Philadelphia Dance Center)The Philadelphia Dance Center posted three videos on Facebook Tuesday night that have since gone viral with more than 20 million combined views and 300,000 shares. Thousands have commented with praise for the dads.
  The videos show them following their daughter’s lead as
  
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• Will you McMarry me: Man proposes with McDonald’s nuggets

  16-02-2017 14:04 via kxan.com
  
  ILLINOIS (KXAN) — Valentine’s Day means people around the world are popping the question. With love in the air, so was the smell of fast food for one Illinois man who popped a tasty question.
  “Will you McMarry Me?”
  That is the question Kristian Helton asked his girlfriend who has a serious love of McDonald’s. Helton says his girlfriend’s favorite food are the chicken nuggets.
  He proposed by putting the engagement ring in a box of nuggets. She said yes and the
  
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• Producer apologizes for Grammy show glitches

  16-02-2017 13:49 via kxan.com
  
  LOS ANGELES (AP) — The longtime producer of the Grammy Awards is offering apologies to Metallica and Shirley Caesar after a technical glitch and a misprint marred their inclusion on the show.
  The mic for Metallica’s James Hetfield wasn’t initially working when the band took the stage to perform with Lady Gaga, and Caesar, a lifetime achievement award honoree, was misidentified during the televised ceremony when a photo of another gospel star, CeCe Winans, was shown instead of h
  
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• Pixar in a Box: Online course in how animated movies are made

  16-02-2017 13:40 via kxan.com
  
  LOS ANGELES, CA (KXAN) — Learn how to bring toys to life, find Nemo, save the world, race to the finish line, or cook some Ratatouille.
  If you love Pixar movies you can now learn how they’re made. The studio is teaming up with a free online education platform, the Khan Academy, for a third season of Pixar in a Box sponsored by Disney.
  The lessons focus on storytelling, character creation, setting, animation, color science, effects, and more. The Oscar-winning director of Inside
  
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• Catapult discovered along border hurling marijuana into U.S.

  16-02-2017 13:26 via kxan.com
  
  DOUGLAS, AZ (KXAN) — The Border Patrol stopped a smuggling operation getting attention for it’s brazen engineering design.
  Agents found a catapult on the Mexican side of the fence near Douglas, Arizona. Officials explain it was being used for hurling bundles of marijuana into the U.S.
  American agents dismantled the catapult and Mexican authorities seized it in a joint operation. Investigators are working to determine who set up the catapult.
  INVESTIGATION: New border arrest data show
  
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• Dozens arrested after crimes-against-children officer fired

  16-02-2017 13:04 via kxan.com
  
  FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A Fort Worth police task force that reviewed hundreds of cases handled by a crimes-against-children detective before his July firing has issued 85 arrest warrants.
  The Fort Worth Star-Telegram (http://bit.ly/2lS4jgn) reports the 13-member task force audited about 1,100 cases out of about 2,700 cases assigned to former detective Dennis Hutchins over 14 years with the Fort Worth Police Department crimes against children unit.
  Last March, a children’s advocate a
  
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• Video shows well-known hunter rescuing puppy in New Mexico

  16-02-2017 13:00 via kxan.com
  
  SOCORRO, N.M. (KRQE) – Video of a well known hunter rescuing a puppy in New Mexico is getting a lot of play online.
  “Half a day of antelope hunting and a puppy I’ve never seen until about four hours ago,” Randy Newberg said.
  The face of TV show “Fresh Tracks,” Randy Newberg was hunting antelope near Socorro when he and his cameraman came across an abandoned puppy.
  The episode of the hunt aired back in August but only a snippet of the rescue was shown.
  New
  
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• Volunteers plea for funding to help hundreds of Texas children in foster care

  16-02-2017 12:54 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — A group of volunteers with CASA, Court Appointed Special Advocates, will be at the State Capitol on Thursday meeting with legislators to discuss ways to improve the Child Protective System.
  CASA volunteers help when a child enters the foster care system. Funding comes in several different ways, including private donations and money from the state.
  The group is requesting more funding statewide for volunteers. In Williamson County, the group says they had 114 volunteers last
  
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• Immigrant services, DNA analysis, David Joseph lawsuit top council agenda

  16-02-2017 12:29 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Several items of interest top Thursday’s Austin City Council agenda. Here’s a quick rundown of what we’re eyeing.
  Increase funding for immigrant legal and counseling services
  In mid-December, city council directed the city manager to identify emergency funding for immigrant legal services and outreach efforts. The goal was to assist 100 more people a month and consider expanding contracts to meet the needs as soon as possible.
  Catholic Charities of Central
  
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• Tennis star Bouchard honors Super Bowl wager, goes on blind date

  16-02-2017 11:10 via kxan.com
  
  NEW YORK (NEXSTAR MEDIA) — A bet is a bet, and Canadian tennis star Eugenie Bouchard is a woman of her word.
  On Wednesday, Bouchard, 22, went on a blind date with a man named John Goehrke after a wager made via Twitter during Super Bowl LI.
  With the Falcons up 21-0 in the first half, Bouchard tweeted that she knew Atlanta was going to top Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. That’s when Goehrke made his move.I knew Atlanta would win btw
  — Genie Bouchard (@geniebouchard) Febr
  
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• David Pierce on More Than the Score

  16-02-2017 05:00 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — New Texas Baseball coach David Pierce will making his head coaching debut on Friday when the Longhorns host Rice in a four game weekend series.On Wednesday Pierce joined Roger Wallace on the CW Austin’s More Than the Score.
  
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• Woman with Down syndrome hopes to be first to finish Austin Marathon

  16-02-2017 04:59 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — This weekend the Austin Marathon will test the strength and endurance of thousands of athletes. One of those runners is 26-year-old Kayleigh Williamson, who hopes to set a record of her own for the city.
  She has Down syndrome and was inspired to run long distances because of her mother. Williamson trains at RunLab Austin, working with specialists on her stability and technique.
  “I love my mom, I told her it’s changed my life,” said Williamson.
  Sh
  
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• Runner hopes to be first woman with Down syndrome to finish Austin Marathon

  16-02-2017 04:59 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — This weekend the Austin Marathon will test the strength and endurance of thousands of athletes. One of those runners is 26-year-old Kayleigh Williamson, who hopes to set a record of her own for the city.
  She has Down syndrome and was inspired to run long distances because of her mother. Williamson trains at RunLab Austin, working with specialists on her stability and technique.
  “I love my mom, I told her it’s changed my life,” said Williamson.
  Sh
  
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• East Texas boy narrowly escapes SUV crashing into store

  16-02-2017 04:19 via kxan.com
  
  PORT ARTHUR, Texas (KJAC) — A child narrowly escaped serious injury Wednesday morning after a driverless SUV drove through the front doors of a Port Arthur, Texas convenience store.
  At about 8 a.m. the driver pulled up, got out and entered the store followed shortly after by his three children.
  VIDEO: Passenger flung across bus in terrifying crash
  As the last child, a seven year-old boy, entered the store the SUV lurched forward and smashed through the glass front doors of the store a
  
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• ‘Day Without Immigrants’ encouraging workers to stay home in solidarity

  16-02-2017 03:46 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Organizers are trying to give people an idea of what a world without immigrants would be like on Thursday.
  The campaign, part of a national movement, encourages immigrants and those who support them to remove themselves from the economy for the day.
  That means not going to work and not buying or selling products. Organizers say they want to show how critical immigrants are to the US economy and way of life.
  Gary Freeman, professor of government at the University of Texas at
  
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• ‘Day Without Immigrants’ encourages workers to stay home Thursday in solidarity

  16-02-2017 03:46 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Organizers are trying to give people an idea of what a world without immigrants would be like on Thursday.
  The campaign, part of a national movement, encourages immigrants and those who support them to remove themselves from the economy for the day.
  That means not going to work and not buying or selling products. Organizers say they want to show how critical immigrants are to the US economy and way of life.
  Gary Freeman, professor of government at the University of Texas at
  
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• ‘Day Without Immigrants’ aims to show what society would miss without them

  16-02-2017 03:46 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Organizers are trying to give people an idea of what a world without immigrants would be like, Thursday.
  The campaign, part of a national movement, encourages immigrants and those who support them to remove themselves from the economy for the day.
  That means not going to work and not buying or selling products. Organizers say they want to show how critical immigrants are to the US economy and way of life.
  Gary Freeman, professor of government at the University of Texas at A
  
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• Austin businesses close up shop for ‘Day Without Immigrants’

  16-02-2017 03:46 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Organizers are trying to give people an idea of what a world without immigrants would be like on Thursday.
  The campaign, part of a national movement, encourages immigrants and those who support them to remove themselves from the economy for the day.
  That means not going to work and not buying or selling products. Organizers say they want to show how critical immigrants are to the US economy and way of life.
  Gary Freeman, professor of government at the University of Texas at
  
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• American Girl to sell its first-ever boy doll

  16-02-2017 03:40 via kxan.com
  
  NEW YORK (AP) — For the first time in its more than 30-year history, American Girl will sell a boy version of its pricey dolls.
  The 18-inch “Logan Everett” doll will go on sale this week. American Girl, which is owned by Barbie maker Mattel Inc., says Logan is a drummer and will come with a doll-sized drum kit.
  It’s the latest move by Mattel to be more relevant to iPad-playing kids and their parents. A boy appeared in a Barbie commercial for the first time two years ago.
  
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• Yahoo issues new warning to users over possible malicious activity

  16-02-2017 03:24 via kxan.com
  
  LONDON (AP) – Yahoo is warning users of potentially malicious activity on their accounts between 2015 and 2016. It’s the latest development in the internet company’s investigation of a mega-breach that exposed 1 billion users’ data several years ago.
  It’s not clear how many users were affected by the malicious activity, which involved the use of forged cookies – strings of data which can be used to allow people to access online accounts without re-entering the
  
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• Social Security Administration declares woman dead twice, but she’s not

  16-02-2017 02:22 via kxan.com
  
  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) – 84-year-old Carmen Martinez of St. Petersburg got a letter last June offering her family condolences for her death.
  “I said wow, this is a mistake because I am not dead,” explained Ms. Martinez.
  In fact, she is very much alive. But the Social Security Administration mistakenly declared her dead.  According to daughter Irene Santiago, that caused a series of giant headaches.
  “They canceled her insurance, Her checks were stopped,&rdqu
  
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• State pays less for schools as bonds and property values increase

  16-02-2017 02:09 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Several Central Texas school districts will decide whether to ask voters for more than half a billion dollars in bonds. The state is constitutionally required to have a public school system, but money coming from state lawmakers is less and less each year.
  The Round Rock Independent School District will consider a $530 million recommendation from its citizens bond committee. The school board north of Austin will decide on Thursday whether to take the issue to voters. H
  
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• School districts look to bonds as state continues to cut funding

  16-02-2017 02:09 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Several Central Texas school districts will decide whether to ask voters for more than half a billion dollars in bonds. The state is constitutionally required to have a public school system, but money coming from state lawmakers is less and less each year.
  The Round Rock Independent School District will consider a $530 million recommendation from its citizens bond committee. The school board north of Austin will decide on Thursday whether to take the issue to voters. H
  
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• Hey, Mr. President: Make spellcheck great again

  16-02-2017 01:15 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON (AP) — Time to make spellcheck great again.
  The mangled spellings that were a staple of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign are flourishing in the White House.
  It started on Trump’s first full day in office, when he described himself as “honered” to serve as the 45th president.
  (Tweeted at 12:02 p.m.; deleted and replaced at 12:11 p.m.)
  This was probably not a typo: Trump had used the same spelling a year earlier, when he tweeted that it was an “ho
  
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• Distracted driving initiative nets 99 citations in downtown Austin

  16-02-2017 01:15 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — In an effort to get more drivers to comply with the city’s hands free ordinance, Austin police are conducting traffic initiatives to make sure people have their eyes on the road.
  Last Friday, officers blanketed the downtown area between 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. and ticketed 99 drivers who were caught driving while using an electronic device. Five officers on bikes and three other officers issued a total of 162 citations, warnings and made arrests for miscellaneous traffic vio
  
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