Austin, TX
Here are some of the strangest Texas laws that are still on the books
In Texas, it’s illegal to milk somebody else’s cow.
AUSTIN, Texas — When the 2025 session of the Texas Legislature opened on Tuesday in Austin, it was another round of our lawmaking body facing 21st Century problems under a state constitution that’s 149 years old.
The Texas Legislature meets only every other year, while most state legislatures in the U.S. meet every year. Add to that the fact that the Texas legislative session is relatively brief for a state so big and with so many challenges. Lawmakers meet for just 140 days, while most other state lawmakers meet anywhere from six months to a full year. However, Texas lawmakers can be called back to Austin by the governor for a special legislative session.
While a lot of the state’s business still manages to get done, throughout Texas history what counted as important state business now seems, well, weird.
Here are a few of the strangest laws approved by the Texas Legislature in days gone by:
It’s illegal to milk somebody else’s cow.
Since horses are a form of transportation, they are required to have working taillights when being ridden after dark.
Texas requires that all vehicles have working windshield wipers but does not require that vehicles have windshields.
One Texas bill that almost became a law said that if criminals intend to commit a crime, they are supposed to give their victims oral or written notice 24 hours in advance.
Finally, one of the weirdest things the Texas Legislature did in 1971 was to unanimously approve a resolution honoring Albert de Salvo for being an exemplary citizen. De Salvo was also known as the “Boston Strangler,” who killed several women in New England.
The lawmaker who got that resolution approved said he did it as a joke and quickly withdrew it.
Perhaps it was a good example of why it’s important to actually read to bill or resolution that you’re voting on.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas’ highway system dropped two spots since 2025, and now ranks at No. 27 in the country for its cost-effectiveness and overall conditions, according to the Reason Foundation’s 2026 Highway Report.
The report assessed pavement conditions, fatalities, deficient bridges, infrastructure costs and congestion levels across the United States. Texas earned the following rankings:
- 33rd in urban interstate pavement conditions
- 21st in rural interstate pavement conditions
- 39th in urban arterial pavement conditions
- 12th in rural arterial pavement conditions
- 3rd in structurally deficient bridges
- 26th in urban fatality rate
- 42nd in rural fatality rate
- 41st in traffic congestion
“More than 42,000 of the nation’s 618,923 highway bridges, nearly 7%, are still structurally deficient. Arizona, Nevada, and Texas reported the lowest percentages of deficient bridges,” the report said.
The full report can be found online.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Small hail peppered the Austin area as strong thunderstorms moved through Saturday.
A few of the storms dropped rain and up to pea-sized hail in San Marcos, Dripping Springs and the Austin metro area.
A Severe Thunderstorm Warning was issued for Williamson County around 8:15 p.m., and then canceled shortly after. However, it was enough for the Two Step Inn music festival in Georgetown to cancel shows for the rest of the evening. Event organizers say the festival will run as planned Sunday.
KXAN’s First Warning Weather team is monitoring the storms. We will update this post as the evening continues.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas Society Sons of the American Revolution unveiled a new monument at the Texas State Cemetery on Saturday, dedicated to Texas Revolutionary War soldiers.
“We must educate every generation about why it is that America grew from a tenuous 13 colonies into the most powerful country in the history of the world,” said Governor Abbott. “This monument here is an enduring testament to the heroes who fought for the freedom that is unique to America.”
The monument was dedicated to 69 soldiers who fought in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in Texas, according to a press release.
Among those that were honored, Abbott recognized:
- José Santiago Seguín, grandfather of Texas Revolutionary hero Juan Seguín.
- Peter Sides, who fought in the 2nd Battalion of the North Carolina Regiment of the Colonial Army, and was later killed in the 1813 Battle of Medina, fighting for Mexican independence against Spain.
- Antonio Gil Y’Barbo, the founder of Nacogdoches.
- William Sparks, who fought as a mounted rifleman in the American Revolution and later settled in Texas. He had two sons and two grandsons who fought in the Texas Revolution.
“This year marks the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, which not only gave freedom to the British colonies of North America, but inspired movements for freedom and liberty all over the world,” said TSSAR President Mel Oller. “Texans played a role in the war too, and it’s important to recognize them, and the sacrifices they made for our freedom.”
At the monument unveiling, Abbott was also inducted into the Sons of the American Revolution and received its Silver Good Citizenship Medal.
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