1. God Save Texas: A Journey into the Soul of the Lone Star State
By Lawrence Wright
Presents a portrait of Texas through a collection of observations, personal experiences, and reflections by the author. Explores the history, culture, and politics of Texas, acknowledging its virtues as well as its many contradictions. Recounts numerous stories about Texas' colorful history, including some of the more divisive legislative battles fought inside the Capitol. Provides intimate portraits of notable Texans from both political and artistic worlds. Considers the author's love for the state alongside his concerns about its political trajectory.
Alfred A. Knopf, 2018. 349 pages.
917.6404 W933G 2018


 

2. We the Corporations: How American Businesses Won Their Civil Rights
By Adam Winkler
Chronicles the history of the corporate rights movement from the pre-Revolutionary period to the recent Supreme Court decisions in the Citizens United and Hobby Lobby cases. Argues these cases were not an aberration but rather marked the culmination of a 200-year campaign by corporations to obtain the same constitutional rights as individual citizens and to limit regulation of big business. Profiles Supreme Court justices, politicians, and activists who played significant roles in the movement, including Daniel Webster, Roscoe Conkling, Alexander Hamilton, Theodore Roosevelt, Thurgood Marshall, and Louis Brandeis.
Liveright Publishing Corporation, 2018. 403 pages.
346.73 W729W 2018


 

3. Where There's Smoke: The Environmental Science, Public Policy, and Politics of Marijuana
By Char Miller, ed.
Discusses the impact that the legal and illegal marijuana industries are having on the environment, immigrants, crime, and the economy. Reviews how cannabis legalization efforts in Oregon, Colorado, California, and Washington, D.C., have benefited them economically. Considers whether the legalization of marijuana in these states is a precursor to marijuana being removed as a Schedule I drug and allowing for federal legalization.
University Press of Kansas, 2018. 221 pages.
362.29 M612W 2018


 

4. Drones Across America: Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Regulation and State Laws
By Dr. Sarah Nilsson
Analyzes the ever-changing legal and regulatory framework surrounding drones and drone technology in the United States, from Federal Aviation Administration regulations to state drone laws, and best practices for operation of commercial, government, and recreational drones in different airspaces. Defines terms used in the regulation of drones: unmanned aircraft (UA), unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), and the subcategories of micro UAS, small UAS, and large UAS.
American Bar Association, Air & Space Law Forum, 2017. 349 pages.
343.7309 N599D 2017


 

5. Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America
By James Forman Jr.
Provides historical perspective on how drug policies, gun control, policing, and sentencing became increasingly punitive starting in the mid-1970s, with the impact falling hardest on the African American community—and why many members of this community supported these harsher law enforcement tactics. Notes that despite recent reform efforts, particularly to decriminalize marijuana possession, people of color continue to be overrepresented in prison populations. Calls for a criminal justice system that seeks accountability rather than vengeance.
Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2017. 306 pages.
364.973089 F765L 2018


 

6. Sources of Revenue: A History of State Taxes and Fees in Texas, 1972 to 2016
By Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Fiscal Management Division
Provides a guide to the history and status of Texas state revenue sources, identifying and tracking legislative changes affecting state tax and fee revenues from 1972 through 2016. Profiles each tax and fee and sets forth legal citations, revenue history, rates, and bases.
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Fiscal Management Division, 2017. 252 pages.
Online at: https://comptroller.texas.gov/transparency/revenue/sources.php
C2600.8 SO85 2017


 

7. Spanish Water, Anglo Water: Early Development in San Antonio
By Charles R. Porter Jr.
Discusses the early development of water rights in San Antonio. Notes that the principles of water rights established in Spanish colonial land grants comprise the theoretical basis of important portions of Texas water laws still in effect today. Analyzes management and sharing of water under Spanish control from 1718 to 1836 and under Anglo control from 1836 to 1902. Attributes post-1840 and current challenges in resolving water rights disputes, as well as questionable judicial rulings, to the blending of Spanish civil law and English common law.
Texas A & M University Press, 2009. 181 pages.
333.91009764 P833S 2009