Editor’s Note: The State Bar of Texas is providing a daily collection of important links, blog posts, and media stories to keep its members and the public informed of the latest news and resources related to Hurricane Harvey relief and recovery efforts.
Important Harvey Links
If you are an attorney who has been adversely affected or wish to assist a colleague, please take a moment to complete the State Bar of Texas’ Hurricane Harvey assistance survey.
If you would like to donate money to the hurricane relief effort in Texas, you can give through the Texas Bar Foundation by clicking here.
If you are an attorney who wants to help by giving brief advice, limited-scope service, or full representation to Harvey survivors, please complete the form at texasbar.com/attorneyvolunteer.
State Bar Disaster Resources for Attorneys — Information on this page includes recovery plans, court closures, court orders, and other items.
State Bar Disaster Resources the Public — The State Bar of Texas legal hotline — (800) 504-7030 — helps people find answers to basic legal questions and connects them with local legal aid providers following declared disasters.
Latest Harvey News
‘Harvey Can’t Mess With Texas’ benefit at Erwin Center will feature Willie Nelson, Paul Simon, James Taylor, Bonnie Raitt, Leon Bridges, Lyle Lovett — Tickets to the four-hour concert, which runs from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. and will air live on TEGNA stations (including Austin’s KVUE-TV), go on sale at 3 p.m. Wednesday, September 13, via RebuildTX.org for $30 to $199. — Austin American-Statesman
Harris County seeks $17 million to buy out 104 homes at highest risk to flood — Harris County Commissioners Court on Tuesday unanimously approved a plan to seek more than $17 million in Federal Emergency Management Funds to buy out more than 100 homes at the highest risk of flooding in the county. — Houston Chronicle
Texas draws criticism for insisting applications for disaster food stamps be filed in home counties — Advocates for poor and moderate-income Texans are urging state officials to reconsider requiring that Hurricane Harvey victims return to their home counties to apply for federal disaster food relief. — The Dallas Morning News
As fetid post-Harvey trash piles linger, so do health risks — The pile of trash outside Mark Urbach’s home in Meyerland stands more than five feet high and covers nearly every inch of grass on his front lawn. — Houston Press
City presses landlord on repairs as flooded apartment tenants seek relief — Hundreds of Rockport tenants are scrambling to figure out their next steps as city officials converge on a property where management was, as of last Friday, charging rent for flooded apartments it had not even begun to repair. (Subscription required) — Houston Chronicle
Local evacuees return to eviction notices — Phoebe Cormier was taken by Beaumont firefighters from her flooded apartment to the Beaumont Civic Center, and then by bus to Louisiana when the city’s shelter shuttered. A week after Harvey hit Southeast Texas, calls came in from her neighbors: eviction notices on doors, five days to leave, anything left behind will be removed. — Beaumont Enterprise
Harvey’s flooding blamed in major gasoline spill in Texas — Hurricane Harvey’s floodwaters triggered a spill of almost a half-million gallons of gasoline from two storage tanks along the Houston Ship Channel, marking the largest spill reported to date from a storm that slammed into the heart of Texas’ huge petrochemical industry. — The Associated Press
Customs and Border Protection resumes operations despite ongoing Harvey disaster declaration — Despite an ongoing federal disaster declaration, Customs and Border Protection has resumed routine immigration enforcement operations in areas affected by Hurricane Harvey, agency spokeswoman Yolanda Choates said in a statement Tuesday. — The Dallas Morning News
As A&M chancellor and hurricane recovery czar, John Sharp balances two intensely personal jobs — Former Democratic rising star John Sharp was already chancellor of the school he loves. Now, he’s been tasked with restoring the region where he got his start. — The Texas Tribune
Rising costs for homebuilders likely to push prices up — An untimely confluence of labor shortages, rising material costs and the possibility of tougher development guidelines in the wake of Hurricane Harvey is expected to result in escalating prices for new homes across Houston, a part of the country frequently lauded for its affordably priced housing. (Subscription required) — Houston Chronicle
Experts: New way of thinking needed to reduce flooding risk — If Houston and Harris County are to ever get the upper hand on our flooding problems, it will take a big, bold new way of thinking according to several experts who’ve studied the issue for decades. — KHOU – Houston
Post-Harvey, Houston officials hope Congress is up for funding Ike Dike — Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner on Tuesday gave his strongest endorsement to date for constructing a physical coastal barrier to protect the region from deadly storm surge. — The Texas Tribune
AG sues 3 businesses for alleged price gouging during Harvey — The Attorney General’s office on Tuesday filed lawsuits against three Texas businesses, accusing each of unlawful price gouging during Hurricane Harvey. — KVUE – Austin
Houston-area legal advice clinics to help those impacted by Harvey — The Houston Bar Association’s Houston Volunteer Lawyers has several legal advice clinics scheduled to assist those in affected areas of the county who have legal questions and legal issues following Hurricane Harvey. — Texas Bar Blog
Texans who lost gun licenses due to Harvey can get new ones for free — Texans who have lost or damaged their license to carry a handgun as a result of Hurricane Harvey can receive a free replacement, Gov. Greg Abbott announced Tuesday. — The Texas Tribune
Officials: Austin’s mega-shelter for Harvey evacuees to close soon — As Harvey evacuees begin making their treks home or finding new places to live, Austin’s mega-shelter is winding down its operations and will close by the end of the weekend, officials estimate. — Austin American-Statesman