Kayla is correct to note that a decline in overall public safety harms women more than men. She is also correct that a lot of “pink tax” talking points have more to do with consumer choices than with any kind of actual tax. But there is one real pink tax the government levies: Tariffs on women’s clothes are, on average, higher than tariffs on men’s clothes. Research from Ed Gresser and… Read more »

The American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) backs the proposal of the Pink Tariffs Study Act, being introduced by Congresswomen Lizzie Fletcher and Brittany Pettersen from the New Democratic Coalition (NDC) Trade Task Force, voicing concerns over the alleged “century-long potential gender-bias and regressivity” within the US tariff system. The congresswomen said they introduced… Read more »

A $1.5 million study will look into how to reconnect the Alief community that is currently divided by the Westpark Tollway. The study will involve a community-driven planning process to focus on roadway safety, flood mitigation, bicycle-pedestrian access, transit options, parks and open spaces, and art. Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher said the study will consider community members… Read more »

A $43 million federal grant is slated to bring new sidewalks, bike lanes, and more trees to the Gulfton community by 2026. Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher made the announcement in a press release on Monday and walked the community on Wednesday, getting a first-hand look at areas in need of improvements. Houston Public Works and Tammy Rodriguez, the president of the Gulfton Citizens… Read more »

U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, whose Houston-based 7th Texas District includes part of Fort Bend County, told an audience at the Safari Texas Ranch event center last week that the area serves as a model for how politics at the national level and work better. First elected in 2018 and reelected twice since, Fletcher, a Democrat, has represented the eastern-most part of Fort Bend after… Read more »

Today, Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher (TX-07) announced Harris County Precinct Four will receive $1,200,000 from the Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program—a program established in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).  These funds will allow Harris County to develop safe pedestrian and cycling connections between communities on… Read more »

A new study has ranked Alief and Gulfton as two of the most dangerous neighborhoods in Houston when it comes to traffic injuries and fatalities for children. But a $43 million federal grant could soon help reduce the danger. Rice University's Baker Institute found that three of the four most dangerous areas for children walking and biking in Houston are in Alief and Gulfton.… Read more »

The walk to catch a Long Point-Cavalcade bus in Kashmere Gardens, or to school at Baker Ripley in Gulfton, will soon be safer and smoother, after federal officials committed $43.4 million to sidewalk, drainage and shade improvements in the long-neglected neighborhoods.  These Houston neighborhoods will wait months for the work to begin, as designs must still be… Read more »

Legislation from Texans would create federal working group Lawmakers will also offer language as amendment in E&C markup Bipartisan legislation introduced late Tuesday in the House would create a federal working group to help oversee and streamline the permitting of liquefied natural gas facilities. The previously unreported bill from Texas Reps.… Read more »

Democrats are going on offense over access to in vitro fertilization (IVF), looking to hold Republicans’ feet to the fire and force them to answer uncomfortable questions about the full impact of fetal personhood.   In the wake of the Alabama Supreme Court ruling, Republicans have publicly spoken up to say they fully support IVF.   But they have largely avoided… Read more »