Texas

Ramping up motorcycle safety is the goal of a measure that is heading for final passage in the Legislature.

Motorcycles designed to carry more than one person would be required to have foot pegs and handlebars for the passenger under Malorie’s Law, which is named after a 19-year-old woman from Sherman who died in a motorcycle crash in 2010.

Texas is one of only three states that does not require footrests for passengers on motorcycles, according to the American Motorcyclist Association. The other states are Mississippi and Missouri.

You think moving a piano is a pain now: Try doing it over rough terrain ... with no moving van.

Some of the women who came with their families to Texas in the early days of the 1800's insisted on bringing their pianos with them. While many of these women came from more genteel Southern backgrounds, the rough and rugged environment in Texas did nothing to dampen their spirits or enthusiasm.

The Texas attorney general’s office has settled a lawsuit against Penguin Group, accusing the country's largest book publisher of colluding with Apple to raise the prices of electronic books.

Texas sued along with 32 other states and territories.

If the agreement is approved by a federal judge, $75 million will go to people who bought e-books.

Texas had already settled with four other publishers. The claims against Apple are scheduled for trial next month.

The head of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) says other government agencies are getting in the way of its investigation into the fertilizer plant explosion in West.

In a letter to U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer, CSB chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso says the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives blocked CSB investigators from accessing the site for a month, and "altered or removed almost all relevant physical evidence from the site."

Update: Police say the child has been found. The Amber Alert has been discontinued. 

Earlier: Police in McKinney, Texas -- north of Dallas -- have issued an Amber Alert for 10 month old Isabella Reyes. She has black hair and brown eyes and weighs 17 pounds.

Central Texas is helping those in Moore, Oklahoma and surrounding areas in relief and rescue efforts.

Last night, Texas Task Force 1 was dispatched to Oklahoma, an elite search and rescue team which includes 5 members from the Austin Fire Department.