Latest news with #Conroe
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘Texas Time' is here: Lone Star State moves to observe daylight saving time year-round
Texas lawmakers have disagreed for years over whether and how to abolish the unpopular semiannual clock change in the state, but a bill that is on its way to the governor will finally bring an end to that debate — if Congress also acts. House Bill 1393 by Conroe Republican Rep. Will Metcalf would establish 'Texas Time,' or permanent daylight saving time in the state, if federal lawmakers later allow states to do so. 'Right now, the federal government does not allow the states to make this change, so this is effectively a trigger bill,' said Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, who sponsored the bill in the upper chamber. Under the federal Uniform Time Act of 1966, states may not currently adopt permanent daylight saving time, but they can opt out of time changes by sticking with standard time year-round. That's how states like Arizona and Hawaii can keep from changing their clocks twice a year. Texas joins 18 other states that have passed similar permanent daylight saving time measures, and there's interest at the federal level in allowing the change. But lawmakers have remained divided up to this point on whether to keep changing the clocks or adopt permanent standard or daylight time. At least 13 bills were filed on the topic this session. Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, filed a proposal to make standard time the standard. Zaffirini and Bettencourt also each called for a statewide referendum to allow Texans to choose their preferred time system. Neither of those proposals gained any traction in the Legislature. Critics of permanent daylight saving time have health and safety concerns for their opposition to the idea, often touting permanent standard time as the better option. 'Everybody hates the time change,' said Sen. Nathan Johnson, a Dallas Democrat. 'But this has been studied medically, and there is a ton of health risks' to permanent daylight saving time. 'Daylight saving time itself disrupts the body's natural circadian rhythms and affects sleep,' he said, arguing that traffic accidents could also increase as Texans commute to work and school in the pre-dawn hours. The Senate passed HB 1393 with a 27-4 vote Thursday. The House overwhelmingly approved the measure in April, and the proposal was sent to Gov. Greg Abbott's desk for a signature Monday. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Legislature moves to observe daylight saving time year-round
The Independent
23-05-2025
- The Independent
Private security at ICE jail in Texas accused of choking a handcuffed detainee
A private security officer stands accused of putting his hands around a handcuffed detainee's neck and slamming him against walls at an immigrant detention center in Conroe, Texas. The officer, Charles Siringi, was criminally charged last week. The detainee was taken to the medical unit at the Montgomery Processing Center. The 66-year-old Siringi was charged in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas with deprivation of rights while acting under the government's authority, resulting in bodily injury, The Washington Post noted. On Tuesday, Siringi posted $10,000 bail. The company that employed Siringi, the GEO Group, operates the detention center. The firm told The Post that Siringi no longer worked for the group. Following an internal review, the company referred the incident to Immigration and Customs Enforcement 's Office of Professional Responsibility. The Independent has contacted ICE for comment. 'We are committed to respecting the human rights and dignity of all individuals in our care, and we have a zero-tolerance policy with respect to staff misconduct,' the GEO Group told The Post. The detainee claimed that Siringi handcuffed him outside his housing unit and took him into a small room alongside other officers, according to the criminal complaint. In the room, Siringi is alleged to have told the officers, 'You better get him before I do.' The complaint added that Siringi subsequently grabbed the detainee by the neck and slammed his face into a wall. As the detainee turned around, Siringi is alleged to have put enough force on his throat that he 'tucked his chin down to his chest because he was gasping for air.' The detainee said Siringi 'did not remove his hands from his throat' and 'used the choke hold to move him across the room and slam him into the wall near the doorway,' court documents state. One of the two officers in the room, Elbert Griffin, backed up the detainee's version of events and took him to the medical unit for treatment. 'Griffin stated he did not believe it was an appropriate use of force, nor did he believe [the detainee] had been resisting in any manner,' the complaint notes. The Post noted that experts said the incident was a rare moment when an officer at a detention facility was being held criminally accountable for alleged abuse. It's more common for detainees to file civil lawsuits. American Civil Liberties Union 's National Prison Project senior staff attorney Eunice Hyunhye Cho told the paper that detainees don't have much power to reveal abuses. 'The power dynamic is so significant that people are either afraid to come forth [or] they are not believed when they raise complaints about abusive treatment,' she told The Post. 'And facilities have all sorts of incentives to keep those types of incidents under wraps.' A spokesperson for the nonprofit Freedom for Immigrants, Jeff Migliozzi, told the outlet that the allegations of abuse against Siringi were 'unfortunately characteristic' of similar altercations. 'A lot of people don't realize how common that actually is,' he said. 'But again, in the vast majority of those cases, nothing results, in terms of an oversight process or some sort of lawsuit or investigation.'
Washington Post
23-05-2025
- Washington Post
Immigrant-detention officer charged with choking handcuffed migrant
A private security officer at an immigrant detention center in Texas was criminally charged last week with choking a handcuffed detainee, who was later transported to the facility's medical unit. Charles Siringi is accused of putting his hands around the detainee's neck and throat and slamming him against walls March 31 in Conroe, Texas, according to a criminal complaint. Siringi, 66, was charged in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas with deprivation of rights while acting under the government's authority, resulting in bodily injury. He posted a $10,000 bail Tuesday. Siringi's attorney did not respond to requests for comment on the incident, which took place at Montgomery Processing Center. His company, GEO Group, which runs the detention center, said it no longer employed Siringi as of April 29 and that it referred the matter to Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Office of Professional Responsibility after an internal review. 'We are committed to respecting the human rights and dignity of all individuals in our care, and we have a zero-tolerance policy with respect to staff misconduct,' the company said in a statement. ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The charges represent a rare instance of officers at detention facilities being held criminally accountable for allegedly abusive behavior, immigration experts told The Washington Post. More often, they said, detainees file civil lawsuits — often with help from advocacy organizations — to allege wrongdoing. Eunice Hyunhye Cho, a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union's National Prison Project, said immigrants who are detained have little power to expose abuse. 'The power dynamic is so significant that people are either afraid to come forth [or] they are not believed when they raise complaints about abusive treatment,' she said. 'And facilities have all sorts of incentives to keep those types of incidents under wraps.' In Siringi's case, the detainee alleged that the officer handcuffed him outside his housing unit and brought him into a small room with other officers, the criminal complaint says. Inside, Siringi allegedly told the officers, 'You better get him before I do,' referring to the detainee. Siringi then grabbed the detainee by the neck and slammed him face-first into the wall, the complaint says. When the detainee turned around, Siringi allegedly applied enough force to his throat that he 'tucked his chin down to his chest because he was gasping for air.' The detainee later said that Siringi 'did not remove his hands from his throat' and instead 'used the choke hold to move him across the room and slam him into the wall near the doorway,' according to court documents. Elbert Griffin, one of two officers who was in the room, corroborated the detainee's account and took him to the medical unit for treatment. 'Griffin stated he did not believe it was an appropriate use of force,' the complaint says, 'nor did he believe [the detainee] had been resisting in any manner.' Jeff Migliozzi, a spokesman for the nonprofit organization Freedom for Immigrants, said Siringi's alleged misuse of force was 'unfortunately characteristic' of similar incidents the group has tracked in the past. 'A lot of people don't realize how common that actually is,' Migliozzi said. 'But again, in the vast majority of those cases, nothing results, in terms of an oversight process or some sort of lawsuit or investigation.' Aaron Schaffer contributed to this report.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Huntsman Corporation Announces New Purification and Packaging Capability through its E-GRADE® Unit in Conroe, Texas
THE WOODLANDS, Texas, May 22, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Huntsman Corporation (NYSE: HUN), a global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated and specialty chemicals, is pleased to announce that its Performance Products division has expanded its manufacturing site in Conroe, Texas to better serve the growing needs of its global customers in the semiconductor industry. Peter Huntsman, Chairman, President, and CEO of Huntsman Corporation, stated, "With the rapid growth of AI and the need for high-quality advanced node chips, our investment in Conroe marks our commitment to developing new semiconductor-grade products and enhancing supply chain security to support the demands of our customers worldwide." The new E-GRADE® unit will bolster Huntsman's portfolio by providing high-purity, low-trace metal amines, including quaternary amines and amine oxides, essential for semiconductor chip manufacturing. Huntsman's commitment to safety, quality, reliability, and manufacturing excellence will help ensure a consistent production process – from blending, purification through packaging. "With this unique offering, we are well positioned to become a world-leading supplier of semiconductor-grade amines," said Jan Buberl, President of Performance Products. "We now have the global manufacturing capability, R&D expertise, and broad portfolio to offer our customers with solutions that meet the industry's highest quality standards." Conroe City Mayor, Duke Coon, commented, "Huntsman's new E-GRADE® unit provides a significant boost for our local economy, helping to create numerous job opportunities and further solidifying Conroe's position as a hub for advanced manufacturing and technology." About Huntsman:Huntsman Corporation is a publicly traded global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated and specialty chemicals with 2024 revenues of approximately $6 billion. Our chemical products number in the thousands and are sold worldwide to manufacturers serving a broad and diverse range of consumer and industrial end markets. We operate more than 60 manufacturing, R&D and operations facilities in approximately 25 countries and employ approximately 6,300 associates within our continuing operations. For more information about Huntsman, visit the company's website at To learn more about E-GRADE® products, visit Social Media:LinkedIn: Facebook: View original content: SOURCE Huntsman Corporation Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Associated Press
16-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Texas Senate reveals $8 billion school funding plan as it seeks middle ground with House
The Texas Senate on Thursday unveiled its highly anticipated counterproposal to the House's multibillion-dollar public school funding legislation, which would establish a long-term teacher pay raise system tied to years of experience, phase out the state's reliance on untrained teachers by the end of the decade and overhaul the state's special education funding system. Sen. Brandon Creighton, who chairs the Senate's education committee, called his version of House Bill 2, an $8 billion investment into Texas public schools, 'exciting and historic,' adding that the bill would encompass more funding 'than any public education package that we've ever passed.' 'Every single district, from Beaumont to El Paso, from Wichita Falls to McAllen, benefits,' the Conroe Republican said during a public hearing for the legislation on Thursday. The bill is the result of ongoing negotiations between leaders in the House and Senate who have worked to find middle ground between their diverging funding proposals as the end of the 2025 legislative session approaches. The Senate took many of the education bills it passed earlier in the session and combined them into a sweeping 225-page proposal. During early parts of Thursday's hearing, legislators and members of the public highlighted two notable deviations in the Senate bill from the House's nearly $8 billion proposal: a modest $55 per-student increase to public schools' base funding and the absence of millions in funding for fine arts. House lawmakers' version of the bill sought to boost schools' base money, known as the basic allotment, from $6,160 to $6,555 per student, with future increases tied to property values. They also reserved $15 million per year for students in grades 6-12 enrolled in courses like art and music. The Senate's version of HB 2 does not include additional funding the House set aside for students in bilingual education programs and leaves out a provision that would extend free prekindergarten to children with disabilities. Senate Democrats during the meeting also expressed concerns about the revised legislation imposing certain mandates on traditional public schools that do not apply to charter schools, which are publicly funded but privately managed. Under both the House and Senate proposals, for example, only traditional public schools would be required to keep educators without formal training from teaching core subjects and to notify parents when their child has an uncertified instructor. 'With all due respect, sometimes it feels like we call charter schools public schools when it's convenient, when we're helping, but we exclude them from the public school requirements,' said Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio. Among the roughly six dozen Texans who signed up to testify on the Senate's version of HB 2, many spoke in favor of the bill's overall investment in public education. But they raised worries about its proposal to only increase districts' base funding by $55 per student, which they said could potentially leave their schools and staff without adequate support. John Griggs, superintendent of the Blooming Grove Independent School District, called on the Senate education committee to bring back key provisions in the House bill, notably the nearly $400 per-student increase to the basic allotment and bigger investments in smaller schools. 'We're fortunate to have adopted a balanced budget this year, something that many small rural districts across the state couldn't achieve,' said Griggs, whose district is located about 50 miles south of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. 'While that might sound like a win on paper, the reality is it came at a cost — a cost paid by our students, our teachers and our programs. We had to make tough decisions. Budgets were slashed. Our custodians and bus drivers, paraprofessionals, are barely making enough to live on. And most importantly, our students are missing out on experiences they deserve. Our students and staff and our community deserve better.' Alicia Noyola, executive director of the South Texas Association of Schools, thanked the Legislature for its focus on public school funding but said the 'most troubling' aspect of the Senate proposal is that it leaves 'districts with very little flexibility.' 'Most funds are predirected, with almost nothing left for basic operations,' Noyola said. The public hearing comes less than three weeks before the 2025 legislative session ends on June 2. Earlier in the year, lawmakers promised that passage of a private school voucher bill and public school funding legislation would happen in tandem. Gov. Greg Abbott has since signed the voucher program into law. The House and Senate, meanwhile, have not yet come to terms on what the final version of public school funding legislation will look like. Lawmakers have insisted that Texans should not be concerned about the delay and said they are working diligently to arrive at a final agreement. House Speaker Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, endorsed the Senate's revised plan on Wednesday, adding that 'we are very optimistic and very excited where we're at.' It remains unclear how the majority of Burrows' chamber will respond. In place of a significant increase to schools' base funding like the House's version of the bill proposes — which would largely help districts raise pay for teachers and support staff — senators want to provide educators more money through the following system: Creighton said on Thursday that a significant raise to the basic allotment would mean taking money away from other areas of critical need, like the more than $4 billion in long-term teacher pay raises the Senate is proposing. He also reiterated his belief that direct state investment in areas like teacher pay can free up districts to use more of their base funding elsewhere, like salaries for support staff. School districts have advocated to raise the allotment because it offers them the most flexibility to address the unique needs of their campuses, as opposed to money they can only use for specific purposes determined by the Legislature. The Senate is also proposing an expansion of the Teacher Incentive Allotment, a state program that offers pay raises to educators who demonstrate that they have improved their students' academic outcomes. Only about 6% of Texas teachers currently receive raises through the performance initiative. The Senate previously sought to keep educators with their national teaching certification from automatically qualifying for raises under the Teacher Incentive Allotment, but the new version of the bill would allow them to continue participating. The latest proposal would grant the State Board for Educator Certification authority to review educators' national certification status, which less than 1% of Texas educators have earned, and either reauthorize or take away a teacher's participation in the incentive program. A Republican State Board of Education member, Julie Pickren, recently criticized the rigorous national training for prioritizing diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, which Republican state lawmakers have targeted even as Texas' student and state populations have grown more diverse. The Senate version of HB 2 also would ensure that, by 2030, traditional public schools no longer hire uncertified teachers to lead instruction in core classroom subjects like math and reading. The state would provide funding for educator preparation and mentorship programs, compensating teaching candidates and current teachers who commit to high quality training initiatives. Additionally, the legislation would invest roughly $1.3 billion in Texas' special education funding overhaul, more than what both the House and Senate previously proposed. The new funding system would direct funding to schools based on the individual needs of each child with a disability, as opposed to basing it on how much time the student spends in a particular classroom setting. Districts would also receive $1,000 for each evaluation assessing a student for a disability — and $3,000 for evaluations of homeschool or private school students during the next two school years. Public schools are required by federal law to conduct those evaluations, even for students who are not regularly on their campuses. The state's recently signed private school voucher law will require public schools to conduct the assessments within 45 days for families hoping to participate in the program. ___ This story was originally published by The Texas Tribune and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.
