Itâs been a busy couple of months for our Local Progress Texas Chapter! From our debut at SXSW and the launch of our Collaborative Governance Lab, weâve been gathering with members across the state and celebrating local wins! We are excited to provide a glimpse of what our work has looked like in 2026 so far, at a time when local governments are seen as a crucial component of our democracy, and what we have to fight for thatâs at stake amid rising authoritarianism.Â
Local Progress members lead in their communities every day alongside partners who help them innovate, bring accountability and transparency, and ideate solutions at the local level to tackle the biggest challenges our communities face in these uncertain times. See how LP members and partners are shaping their reality and futures each day, and how you can get involved with our network!Â
Ready to explore what your leadership looks like in these moments? Email me or schedule a meeting with me to connect about upcoming opportunities for our local elected leaders across the state!
â SXSW Defending Democracy Panel & Reception
This March, Local Progress made its SXSW debut thanks to our LPTX Organizing Committee member and former Co-Chair, Austin Councilwoman Vanessa Fuentes! Our panel titled âDefending Democracy: How Localities Push Back When the Feds Push Downâ featured our very own Managing Director of Membership & Organizing, Francesca Menes, Minneapolisâ Councilmember Jason Chavez, and LP Board Member and Philadelphiaâs Minority Leader, Councilwoman Kendra Brooks. Our biggest takeaway from this panel was that while federal authoritarianism threatens civil rights, immigration, and economic justice, cities are stepping up to defend democracy, and if democracy survives this moment, it will be because local elected leaders held the line. You can read all about our time at SXSW here and watch the full panel conversation on YouTube!
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âď¸ Harris County Appoints First-Ever Immigrant and Refugee Commission
This April, the Harris County Commissionersâ Court, led by LP Member Commissioner Rodney Ellis, approved the appointments of the first-of-its-kind Immigrant & Refugee Commission. This comes at the heels of a failed effort by the TX Attorney General Ken Paxton to end the countyâs Immigrant Legal Services Fund. The TXAGâs lawsuit was struck down in February by the Fifteenth Court of Appeals, affirming that the fund, which has been running for 5 years, has only strengthened the economy and kept families together, despite claims by the AG that it has harmed Harris County residents. We are proud of the ways Harris County elected leaders continue to fight each and every day for our immigrant and refugee neighbors and communities.Â
đ Launching Our 2026 Texas School Board Collaborative Governance LabÂ
Just last week, we launched our Collaborative Governance Lab (CGL) with an in-person kick-off Collaborative Governance Academy (CGA) training in Austin, TX. Alongside our partners Texas AFT, the San Antonio Alliance, and El Pasoâs Amanecer Peopleâs Project, we gathered with over a dozen school board members who are embarking on a five-month journey together as part of our first-ever Texas School Boards CGL Cohort. As part of our CGA, we also gathered for a member, partner, and ally social, where Texas CGL cohort participants shared their foundational experiences from the CGA training. Over the next few months, Local Progress Texas school board members will strategize, learn, and plan together, led by Local Progress staff and our amazing public education partners, ahead of the 2027 90th Texas Legislative Session.Â
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đď¸Â Affordable Homes, Stable Communities: Our 2026 Housing Convening in Seattle
At the end of March, we held our first Housing Convening in four years: Affordable Homes, Stable Communities! More than 70 elected officials and staff gathered in Seattle for two days to talk about how to fund and preserve affordable housing, organize alongside tenant unions, and explore publicly-owned options! We also had the chance to explore the city, talking with El Centro de la Raza and Seattle Chinatown Int’l. Dist. Preservation and Development Authority about their efforts to preserve affordable housing for their communities. The strength of Local Progress is when our members can come together to learn from one another and build relationships with each other.Â
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đŁ Comms Cohort 2026
Thatâs a wrap on another comms cohort! In April, we brought 15 LP members to Washington D.C. as the grand finale to our second-ever communications cohort. Since January of this year, this amazing group of members has come together almost every week on Zoom to learn from LPâs comms team how to become better communicators. From learning how to develop better press relationships to best practices for short-form video content, we did a deep dive for our membership on everything they need to know to be successful communicators in 2026. In D.C., we took all the lessons learned virtually and saw real-life professional communicators put them into practice. From visiting with local NPR journalists to meeting communications staffers on the Hill, the threads of our lessons were interwoven into every sit visit and important moment during our time in the nationâs capital.Â
đ¤ 2026 Local Progress Texas Statewide Meeting
This Winter, we have something special coming to our Texas chapter! Local Progress Texas will host its 2026 Statewide Meeting, welcoming partners, members, and friends of the movement from all corners of our state. Our statewide meetings are a special time to spend in community among the people that make Local Progress an organization that lives out its values of racial justice, elected leaders as an organized force, adaptive change from the ground up, and collaborative governance as our North Star. Be on the lookout for our âSave the Dateâ coming soon! Interested in participating or sponsoring our in-person gathering? Email me so you can learn more about how to be a part of it!Â
đNEW RESOURCE:Â Tax the Rich, Fund Our Communities
With billionaires and corporations getting richer thanks to the Trump administrationâs billionaire tax break and working communities struggling because of its cuts to essential public programs, illegal wars, and chaotic tariffs, itâs more urgent than ever for local leaders to respond by taxing the rich to fund our communities’ needs.
On Monday, May 18, the Local Progress Impact Lab and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy released a new policy toolkit, Tax the Rich, Fund Our Communities: Local Options For Progressive Revenue. This toolkit surveys progressive local tax options, includes case studies of local successes, and provides advice on policy design and managing common challenges. The taxes outlined in this toolkit would raise funds to support essential public services, including education, affordable housing, parks, transportation and other services for our communities to thrive.Â
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đťNEW RESOURCE: No Buildout for Billionaires: Understanding the Data Center Expansion
Across the country, the worldâs largest corporations are pushing to build massive data centers in our communities. The developers behind these projects promise localities benefits like tax revenue and jobs, but the reality is far more dire. Corporations are padding their own pockets with tax breaks while harming the very neighborhoods they claim to be investing in.
As Local Progress members are facing these proposals, we want to be sure leaders are armed with the knowledge to understand what these projects are and how to cut through corporate misinformation. Check out the first in a series of one-pagers demystifying the billionaire buildout for local elected officials.
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đŁ NEWLY UPDATED: Immigrant Justice Messaging & Narrative Guide
Since taking office, Trump and his billionaire allies have waged war on all of us â militarizing our cities, abducting our neighbors, and stripping us of our freedoms â but no one has been more targeted and scapegoated than our immigrant family members and neighbors. To win the narrative, we all need to document the Trump Administrationâs horrific actions, counter their lies and misinformation, AND collectively demand our vision for a better future. Check out our newly updated Immigrant Justice Messaging & Narrative Guide for situational messaging guidance, best practices, tough Q&A, and more!Â
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đ How to Start a Municipal Grocery Store: First Steps Local Leaders Can Take
As grocery prices rise, municipal grocery stores may be one solution to stabilizing the cost of putting food on the table. Our new policy bulletin breaks down the grocery affordability crisis and how localities can explore municipal grocery programs with existing and emerging models, as well as practical steps to begin introducing them in your own neighborhoods. Check out (pun intended) our new resource today!
đŁď¸ Want to Get More Involved With Our Chapter? Letâs Talk!
Local Progress members have access to a slew of policy and strategic resources, but sometimes it can be hard to know where to start. Letâs connect about it. I am based in Laredo, and I would love to meet with you online or wherever you are. Schedule a meeting with me!
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đş Interested in Stepping Up Your Leadership? Join the Nuestro Caucus Leadership Committee!Â
Are you interested in developing your leadership in our network and donât know where to start? Nuestro Caucus is seeking new leadership committee members! To express your interest, fill out this form or email me. If youâre interested in learning more about our Caucuses and upcoming meetings, you can check out our linktree! Â
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đĄ Your One Stop for Caucuses
Trying to remember when the next Pride Caucus General meeting is? Want to join the Black Caucus signal group chat? Or find your caucus playlist? Look no further! Your one-stop shop for all things caucus is right here!Â
⨠Elida Castillo, City of Taft Mayor & Chispa Texas Program Director
Mayor Elida Castillo was first elected to serve as a city councilmember in Taft in 2024 after running a campaign to take on the oil and gas industry in her Coastal Bend town in San Patricio County. She then ran and won the mayoral seat in 2025 and serves alongside a council that is three-fourths female. Elida is also the Program Director at the League of Conservation Votersâ Chispa Texas, which runs a Latine grassroots program in communities that are impacted by climate change and oil & gas development.Â
Elidaâs priorities include holding corporate actors of the fossil fuel industry accountable, securing water resources for Taft, San Patricio, and the greater Coastal Bend region, and bringing transparency and accountability to City Hall in a small rural town with a history of high mistrust in local government. Elida joined Local Progress because her colleagues in Corpus Christi, Sylvia Campos & Jim Klein, were fellow LP members who were facing similar battles in their respective localities, being severely impacted by decades of rampant and deregulated buildout of the fossil fuel industry. A little-known fact about Taft is that it is actually named after President Howard Taftâs half-brother, not the president himself.Â