The Ledger is Lubbock Lights’ daily digest of the news that matters to Lubbock and the South Plains — our reporting first, then short summaries of stories reported by other newsrooms, each linked to its source. How we build it →
Daily Ledger
Daily digest straight from the source
Tuesday, September 29, 2026
Today’s lead
Gov. Abbott warns of a flash-flood threat running from Amarillo through Lubbock to Midland
The National Weather Service in Lubbock expects repeated rounds of heavy showers and storms across the South Plains from Tuesday, September 29, into Wednesday, with a Moderate Risk - level 3 of 4 - for excessive rainfall and flash flooding and totals of 2 to 3 inches.
A flood watch runs Tuesday morning through Wednesday afternoon for Parmer, Castro, Swisher, Bailey, Lamb and Cochran counties. Lubbock County is not included, though forecasters said the watch could be extended southeast. Gov. Greg Abbott's warning covered the corridor "ranging from Amarillo down through Lubbock to Midland," and he said the state has positioned rescue boats, helicopters, game wardens and transportation crews.
Sources Lubbock Lights · National Weather Service · KCBD
More Local
A person with tuberculosis spent time on West Texas A&M's campus and Amarillo Public Health is contact tracing
A person who tested positive for tuberculosis spent time on the West Texas A&M University campus, and Amarillo Public Health began contact tracing after announcing the case Monday, September 28. Health officials said TB does not spread as easily as a cold or the flu and that the whole campus does not need testing.
"People who are identified as potentially exposed will receive specific instructions from Amarillo Public Health," Health Director Casie Stoughton said. Chris Thomas, the university's vice president for student affairs, said WT and the health department will hold a campus information forum at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, September 30, in the Alumni Banquet Hall. Questions go to 806-378-6300, option 7.
Sources Amarillo Tribune
Two feedyard workers were found dead in a Parmer County runoff pond filled by the recent rain
Two 18-year-old feedyard employees were found dead in a runoff pond at a Parmer County feedyard on Sunday evening, September 27, and early findings indicate both men died the day before. Parmer County deputies and Texas game wardens used two specialized boats and sonar during the search.
The sheriff's office said the pond is usually dry and had filled after recent rainfall. The sheriff thanked the Texas game wardens, the Friona Police Department, the Friona Fire Department and volunteers who joined the search effort. Officials said no further information would be released out of respect for the families. The investigation is continuing.
Sources KCBD
Hockley County deputies hold a 27-year-old after a fatal shooting in Levelland
The Hockley County Sheriff's Office is investigating a shooting in the 2500 block of Mockingbird Lane in Levelland that was reported Monday, September 28. One person died as a result of the shooting.
A 27-year-old was taken into custody in connection with the case. The sheriff's office said there is "no ongoing threat to the community or the public at this time." Deputies said the investigation remains open and that more information will be released when it is appropriate. The name of the person in custody is being withheld.
Sources KCBD
Action PrintingNo. 12 Texas Tech opens Big 12 road play at Colorado on Saturday as Romaine takes conference honors
Texas Tech plays its first Big 12 road game of the season Saturday, October 3, at Colorado, kicking off at 6:30 p.m. Central at Folsom Field in Boulder with the game on FOX. The Red Raiders are 4-0 overall and 1-0 in the league; Colorado is 2-2 and 0-1.
Linebacker Austin Romaine was recognized in the Big 12's weekly awards Monday, September 28, after returning two interceptions for touchdowns seven seconds apart in Saturday's 49-14 win over Sam Houston. Head coach Joey McGuire is seeking his 40th career win. Tech carries the longest active AP poll appearance streak in the country at 22 straight weeks.
Sources Texas Tech Athletics · KCBD · KFYO
Eight people are charged after a funeral procession blocked Amarillo roadways
Amarillo police disclosed Monday, September 28, that officers arrested eight people two days earlier on charges of obstructing a highway or other passageway during a funeral procession. The department said organizers declined an offered police escort, and the Texas Department of Public Safety had told them to obey traffic laws and not block roadways.
Police said the deceased was affiliated with the Bandidos, which the state classifies as a Level 2 Texas gang, and that officers monitored the procession in case members of rival clubs appeared. Civilian vehicles and motorcycles were not authorized to direct traffic. The charge is a Class B misdemeanor. The eight names are withheld pending disposition. The procession itself was not stopped.
Sources Amarillo Tribune
State
Abbott declares a statewide disaster over diesel prices and lifts dyed-diesel and load limits
Gov. Greg Abbott declared a statewide disaster Monday, September 28, over soaring diesel prices, a 30-day order that can be extended indefinitely. It expands the use of dyed diesel on Texas roads, suspends Texas Low Emission Diesel rules to the federal limit, and raises the allowable weight for fuel, agricultural and timber loads.
"Texas agriculture and freight run on diesel. Record prices put both industries at risk and raise costs for every Texas family," Abbott said. AAA put Texas diesel at $5.86 a gallon, against $3.30 in early February. The order does not waive the flat 20-cent state fuel tax. Abbott also asked the EPA to waive federal ultra-low sulfur diesel rules.
Sources The Texas Tribune · KPRC · KWTX
Abbott activates additional state emergency resources ahead of this week's flooding
Abbott held a severe weather briefing Monday, September 28, and activated additional state emergency response resources ahead of heavy rain and flooding expected across much of Texas through midweek. Tropical moisture and an approaching low-pressure system are driving the threat, with excessive rainfall and flash flooding named as the main hazards.
Resources include Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service swiftwater rescue teams, Division of Emergency Management incident management teams, National Guard personnel and helicopters, Texas Parks and Wildlife rescue boats, and Department of Public Safety tactical marine units. Chief Nim Kidd of the state emergency management division and Adjutant General Thomas Suelzer joined the briefing. Abbott urged Texans to avoid flooded roadways.
Sources Lubbock Lights · WOAI
Texas homebuilders say suing a city freezes the project, and the Legislature may narrow sovereign immunity
Homebuilders and developers rarely take Texas cities to court over illegal code enforcement even when they expect to win, industry figures said in a report published Monday, September 28, because filing suit effectively stops work on the project in dispute.
"If a builder or developer enters into a lawsuit with a city or a county, the project freezes. They cannot do anything with that project at all until the lawsuit is resolved. And for us, time is money," said J.D. Hale, vice president of government affairs for the Texas Association of Builders. State Rep. Gary Gates, R-Rosenberg, said the Legislature may build on its 2025 housing reforms by chipping away at local governments' sovereign immunity.
Sources The Texan
U.S. & World
Georgia's governor suspends the state gas tax for 30 days as pump prices surge
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp suspended his state's motor fuel taxes for 30 days beginning at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, September 29, declaring a state of emergency as pump prices climb. The suspension covers 33 cents a gallon on gasoline and about 37 cents a gallon on diesel.
Regular gasoline averaged $4.19 a gallon in Georgia on Monday, against $2.88 a year earlier, an increase tied to conflict in the Middle East. The state expects the move to cost roughly $200 million a month, likely drawn from reserves. It is the third such suspension Kemp has ordered under that authority. Texas' governor has said he cannot unilaterally waive fuel taxes.
Sources The Hill · Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Duffy Law Firm, PCThe Justice Department asks the Supreme Court to restore its ban on transition care in federal prisons
The Justice Department asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday, September 28, to let the Bureau of Prisons reinstate a policy barring gender-transition surgeries and halting hormone treatment for new patients in federal prisons. The February policy also restricts items such as chest binders, wigs and makeup.
U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth ordered in June that the care continue, finding officials had not justified treating gender dysphoria differently from other medical conditions, and the D.C. Circuit declined to reinstate the policy while appeals proceed. Solicitor General D. John Sauer argued the bureau's decision "falls well within the bounds of reasoned decision-making."
Sources Fox News
Vance says the H-1B visa program must stop letting companies replace American workers
Vice President JD Vance said Monday, September 28, in a podcast interview that the H-1B visa program needs changes to keep technology companies from displacing American workers with cheaper foreign labor, and that the administration is weighing rules aimed at firms that lay off Americans.
"You'll have a company that applies for an H-1B, and they'll say, 'oh, we're desperate for workers, we can't find the workers,' and then you go and look at their history and they've laid off 5,000 people," Vance said. The administration has proposed a fee of $103,265 per H-1B petition; a federal court struck down a similar measure.
Sources Fox News
Pope Leo says warnings about AI safety are not 'fake news'
Pope Leo said Monday, September 28, aboard the papal plane returning from a trip to France that warnings from experts about artificial intelligence deserve to be taken seriously rather than brushed aside, and that leaders cannot wait to act.
"I don't think that that is 'fake news' as some have said to try and cause whether financial or other some other kind of benefit," he said. He called for discussion among political leaders, technology developers and other organizations so that artificial intelligence does not push people out of important decisions, while saying he is relatively hopeful that solutions can be found.
Sources The Hill · PBS NewsHour
FBI co-deputy director Andrew Bailey resigns after a year in the job
FBI Co-Deputy Director Andrew Bailey said on social media Monday, September 28, that he is stepping down and returning to his family in Missouri, ending a year in one of the bureau's top posts.
"With great pride in what we have accomplished, I am announcing that I am stepping down to return to my family in Missouri," Bailey wrote, adding that he expects the bureau's reform work to continue. The FBI director thanked him publicly. The co-deputy arrangement dates to 2025, and the other original holder of the post left in December of that year.
Sources Fox News
