Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Monday, July 13, 2026. Check back later today for updated story links and audio.
What the new housing law means for Texans
Housing affordability has become one of the rare issues where Republicans and Democrats have found enough common ground to pass major legislation, which has just become law. Many experts describe the bipartisan ROAD to Housing Act as the most significant federal housing legislation in decades: making it easier to build homes, reducing some construction costs, expanding access to financing, and placing new limits on large institutional investors buying up single-family homes.
Whether those changes are enough — and whether Texans will notice them anytime soon — is another thing altogether. Stephen Sherman, associate director of research with the Center for Housing and Neighborhoods at Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research, joins the Standard with more:
Talarico polling stronger with Texas’ Black voters than expected, but enthusiasm questions remain
Ever since state Rep. James Talarico won the Democrats’ nomination for U.S. Senate, there have been questions about whether he could win over Black Democrats by November.
But as The Texas Newsroom’s Blaise Gainey reports, new polling suggests Talarico is doing better with Black voters than current public perception might suggest.
Data centers are coming to Wilmer. Residents would rather see a grocery store
The small southeast Dallas County town of Wilmer has remained largely rural – but it’s becoming a hotspot for data centers.
City and county leaders say the arrival of two new facilities will ultimately benefit the community, but as KERA’s Pablo Arauz Peña reports, residents say they need better roads and a grocery store – not more industry.
‘We’re trying to help people grow the game’: An enthusiast showcases soccer history in Frisco
A soccer history buff in North Texas is showcasing an extensive memorabilia collection. He says the goal is to foster interest in the “beautiful game” amid World Cup fever.
KERA’s Andy Lusk stopped by the new Legends of Soccer exhibition in Frisco.
What renewed fighting around the Strait of Hormuz means for oil prices
Over the weekend, the conflict between the U.S. and Iran escalated again, with renewed fighting around the Strait of Hormuz — one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints.
Matt Smith, lead energy analyst at Kpler, joins the Standard with more on this means for global energy markets, oil supplies, and prices here at home:
This week in Texas music history: Stevie Ray Vaughan at Montreux
On July 17, 1982, Stevie Ray Vaughan played the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, the first time an unsigned act performed at the prestigious festival’s main stage.
Jason Mellard from Texas State University’s Center for Texas Music History looks back.
Texans are losing millions in scams involving crypto kiosks
In recent years you might have seen a new offering pop up at convenience stores in Texas: cryptocurrency kiosks that look like ATMs. But these machines are banned in other states, because of how they can help facilitate scams.
Ayden Runnels, reporter for The Texas Tribune, joins the Standard with more.
Texas Stock Exchange officially opens
Last week, the Texas Stock Exchange officially opened trading, albeit in a limited rollout, with more products and eventually corporate listings expected later this year.
Is this the beginning of a genuine challenger to Wall Street, or is the hype running ahead of the reality? Bulent Temel, associate professor of economics at the University of Texas San Antonio, weighs in.
