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I'm Stephanie Wolf with a brief look
at the latest news in Texas politics and

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policy from the Texas Tribune. The
summer's sweltering heat has been brutal, even

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by Texas standards. Scorching temperatures pose
serious health risk, including heat exhaustion,

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heat stroke, and death, but
that hasn't kept nature lovers away from the

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eighty nine state parks. In natural
areas in Texas and Une State parks saw

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about a million visitors in spite of
record breaking temperatures. That's the third highest

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number for the month of June since
twenty sixteen. A number of those park

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goers are likely flocking to areas with
water features. That's according to Justin Rhodes,

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a deputy director in the Texas Parks
and Wildlife Department. He told The

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Texas Tribune that parks lacking water amenities
might experience to dip, while places like

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Galveston Island, which has beaches and
water recreation, have seen increased visitation,

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though park officials are offering a word
of caution for visitors. Doug cochrane is

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the superintended of Enchanted Rock State Natural
Area in Central Texas. He told the

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Tribune he's happy to see people enjoying
the outdoors, but he wants them to

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arrive well prepared, especially in extreme
heat. Texas has seen heat related deaths

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in state and national parks this summer, including a fourteen year old who died

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while hiking in Big Bend National Park
in one hundred and nineteen degree heat.

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His stepfather died while trying to find
help. To stay safe, officials recommend

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bringing at least a quart of water
per person, taking regular breaks in the

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shade, and not hiking alone.
Cochrane says hiking a chanted rock during the

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summer can feel like stepping into an
oven that's baking a peat. It's that

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hot, so his best advice come
in the spring or fall instead. The

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state's Child Protective Services is failing its
most vulnerable teens when they age out.

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According to a report from The Imprint, the agency is doing little to help

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adequately prepare foster youth with cognitive disabilities
and mental health needs when they turn eighteen.

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A whistleblower who works for CPS as
a disability specialist, detailed her concerns

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in a letter to state officials,
including the governor, in June. She

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wrote about an eighteen year old foster
teen with a history of hospitalizations for mental

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health issues being told to leave the
facility the agency housed her at. The

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worker helped the team find a bed
in a homeless shelter and then a placement

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for older youth, but she said
she was reprimanded for the additional aid,

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told by her boss that the eighteen
year old quote needs to learn and the

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letter. She said this situation was
not an outlier and there is a pattern

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of foster youth with cognitive and mental
health needs being pushed out of the system

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at eighteen with no resources to keep
them safe going forward, even though many

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states, including Texas, conserve foster
youth until they turned twenty one. The

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specialist confirmed the letter and the concerns
laid out in it. With the Imprint,

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a spokesperson for the Department of Family
and Protective Services responded to some of

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the allegations, saying the state has
taken measures to improve care for older youth.

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She cited things like privatization and service
packages intended to match teens with needed

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programs, but an investigation from the
Imprint earlier this year found that the state

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has a poor track record of getting
foster youth aged eighteen to twenty connected with

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the services they need, and many
older Texas foster youth with behavioral and mental

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health needs are housed and unlicensed,
poorly supervised settings like hotels, offices,

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and churches. We have a favor
to ask, would you go to Texas

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Tribune dot org slash brief survey to
take a five minute listener survey. This

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is the best way for Texas Tribune
journalists to know what works and what doesn't

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for our podcasts. The link again
is Texas Tribune dot org slash brief Survey.

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There's also a link in the show
notes. We appreciate your feedback.

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Check for updates to any of the
stories you heard in today's episode at Texas

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Tribune dot org, and follow the
Brief podcast for daily news updates wherever you

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get your podcasts. I'm Stephanie Wolf
with the Texas Tribune. You've been briefed.

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Today's Brief is brought to you by
Texas Farm Bureau. Find affordable health

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coverage through Texas Farm Bureau Health Plans. For more information or to get a

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quote, go to TF health Plans
dot com or call eight seven seven five

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hundred zero one four zero and join
us on Thursday, August third, for

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a conversation on Adapting to a Hotter
Texas. We'll talk with community advocates and

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local officials from South Texas and El
Paso about how Texans can work together to

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address the danger of extreme heat.
Learn more an RSVP at Texas Tribune dot

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org. Slash Events