By City Manager Marc Maxwell COVID-19 RESPONSE – The number of active cases in Hopkins County decreased 13% since our last meeting, with a total of 120 active patients as of February 01, 2021. The is the second consecutive month of declining active cases. Last month active cases fell by 11%. …

The pressure is mounting on Governor Abbott to cancel STAAR tests this year. In July, Governor Abbott waived the grade promotion requirements for the tests for 2021, but the state still scheduled it to be administered. The Texas House Democratic caucus calls for canceling the STAAR tests this year while …

Cases of COVID-19 in Texas are finally leveling off, but viruses mutate all the time. Dr. Paul Klotman, president and CEO of the Baylor College of Medicine, says the vaccine should work well against the UK variant and be OK for the one that came from South Africa. A third …

There is some good news for over a million people in Texas. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission will provide around $300 million in emergency Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP food benefits for February. It is in addition to the more than $2 billion in services previously provided …

Six people, including five young children, were shot to death early Tuesday at home in Muskogee. Authorities found one man and four children dead at the scene, and a fifth child died at a Tulsa hospital. Officials arrested Jarron Deajon Pridgeon. Investigators say the suspect and victims all lived in …

Alexis Dawn Wilson Pittsburg County Jail A Southeast Oklahoma woman charged with threatening a mass shooting at her former high school has pleaded no contest to a reduced charge of outraging public decency. The court sentenced 19-year-old Alexis Dawn Wilson, of McAlester, to one year of probation.

Camp Maxey will continue its controlled burn between 350 and 800 acres today. There should be lots of smoke visible throughout the northern portion of Lamar County, depending on the wind direction and speed.

Zachary Salazar Bowie County Sheriff’s Office A court charged a Northeast Texas man with capital murder in connection with a fatal crash in DeKalb in January that claimed the lives of two children, aged 3 and 7. Reportedly, 21-year-old Zachary Salazar of Texarkana had been arguing with his girlfriend, and …

A coalition of more than 30 Texas business leaders has launched a new initiative to push a permanent solution for the so-called Dreamers, who are migrants brought into the country as kids. Nationally, about 542,000 Dreamers are essential workers in healthcare, agriculture, construction, and foodservice. The plan has support from …

President Joe Biden President Biden’s executive orders on energy are being called job killers by those who work in the Texas oil and gas sector. One of those orders was the cancellation of the Keystone XL Pipeline, which would have brought oil from Canada to Texas Gulf Coast refineries. Mike …