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Cost of Living

Same 20-Cent Gas Tax, Very Different Bills: Rural Texans, Home Health Aides and Long-Haul Commuters Pay Two to Three Times What City Households Do

Every Texan pays the same 20 cents a gallon in state gas tax, but a ranch family running two pickups can pay more than twice what a city household does, a long-distance commuter nearly three times, and a home health aide driving between clients gives up a larger slice of a small paycheck, a Texas Dispatch analysis of federal travel, fuel-economy and wage data shows.

The Texas Dispatch · Oct 16, 2026

Texas Windstorm Insurer Sends Four Recommendations to the Legislature, Including a Plan to Move Coastal Policies to Private Carriers

The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association's board voted Oct. 8 to ask the Legislature for four changes in state law when lawmakers return in January 2027: a repeal of a special-judge requirement for lawsuits against the association, public money for storm-resistant construction, repairs to the 2025 law that rebuilt how it pays for a catastrophe, and a redesign of the program meant to move coastal policies to private insurers.

The Texas Dispatch · Oct 15, 2026