Latest / Austin Signal / State making list of trans Texans using driver’s license data

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State making list of trans Texans using driver’s license data · Austin Signal

0:09
The state of Texas is collecting
0:11
information on transgender Texans,
0:14
and it's not clear what exactly
0:16
that information is being used for.
0:18
We'll hear more on this story from
0:20
the Texas newsroom's Lauren
0:21
McGaughy.
0:22
And the Trump administration is
0:24
looking to make changes to federal
0:25
policy that could affect how
0:27
homeless service providers do their
0:29
work here in the Austin area.
0:32
We sit down with Kate Moore from the
0:34
Ending Community Homelessness
0:35
Coalition to learn more.
0:37
The Austin Signal is a production
0:39
of KUT News, hosted by
0:41
Syeda Carrillo.
0:42
And the 37th Street Lights is
0:44
an annual holiday tradition for many
0:46
Austin families, but under
0:48
those twinkling lights, there's a
0:50
group of fluffy friends ready to
0:52
be adopted.
0:53
That and more coming up today
0:55
on Austin Signal.
0:57
Stay with us.
1:08
Is it just me or is it one of those
1:10
weeks that exemplifies just how
1:13
unpredictable Texas weather can
1:14
be? We've gone from lows in
1:16
the 30s to approaching 70
1:18
degrees on this rainy Wednesday.
1:21
I hope you're all staying safe and
1:23
cozy and dry and thank you for
1:25
joining us Today on Austin Signal,
1:27
I'm Syeda Carrillo filling in for
1:29
Jerry Quijano.
1:31
State lawmakers in recent years
1:33
have passed several policies making
1:35
it harder for transgender Texans
1:37
to be recognized legally,
1:39
most notably the recent bathroom
1:41
bill, which applies to public places
1:43
like parks, libraries,
1:45
and the Texas Capitol.
1:47
But there's another change that's
1:49
been rolled out quietly.
1:51
Documents obtained by the Texas
1:52
newsroom show that Texas is keeping
1:54
track of people seeking to
1:56
change the sex listed on their
1:58
driver licenses.
2:00
The Texas newsroom's Lauren McGaughy
2:02
broke this story and she joins me
2:03
now for an update on what she's
2:05
learned. Lauren, thanks for joining
2:06
us. Thanks for having me.
2:08
So Lauren, tell us more about what
2:10
you uncovered through your public
2:12
records requests and how long
2:13
the state has been keeping track of
2:15
this information.
2:16
Sure, so there was a major policy
2:18
change at the end of 2024 where
2:21
DPS, which handles our
2:23
driver's licenses, as we all know,
2:25
said they would no longer let
2:26
someone update the sex on their
2:28
driver's license unless it was to
2:29
fix a clerical error.
2:31
So for transgender people that
2:33
through them, you know, through the
2:35
community and to disarray
2:37
over this change.
2:38
But what we also found out
2:40
was that the state planned to gather
2:42
information for anyone who tried
2:44
to make the change, still tried to
2:45
the change even after the policy
2:47
change.
2:48
So I didn't know whether
2:50
they were keeping an actual list or
2:52
if they were just, there was
2:54
some email address somewhere where,
2:56
you know, these documents were
2:57
going. So I eventually just
2:59
asked DPS for
3:01
any list they were keep of
3:03
people who tried to update the sex
3:05
on their driver's license.
3:06
And found out that they did have a
3:08
list. They did give me an
3:10
Excel spreadsheet where the names
3:11
were redacted, but it had the dates
3:13
of those requested changes.
3:15
And that's how we were able to track
3:17
down that this list of
3:19
transgender people was actually
3:20
being kept by the state.
3:22
And this has been, they've been
3:23
recording this for just over a year.
3:25
Yeah.
3:25
Yeah, just about a year.
3:26
Actually, the records we got covered
3:28
almost exactly a year, so it was 110
3:30
people made it onto this
3:32
list between August 2024
3:34
and August of this year.
3:36
So, Lauren, what happens now if
3:38
someone tries to update their
3:40
gender?
3:41
Sure. Yeah. So I mean, for years,
3:43
anyone could go and ask
3:45
a judge to issue a court
3:47
order to update the sex listed
3:49
on their state documents.
3:50
You can also use these court orders
3:51
if you want to update your passport
3:53
or in certain health
3:55
scenarios where maybe you need to
3:56
prove your identity.
3:58
And so these court orders were very
3:59
important to folks.
4:01
That was the case up until
4:03
very recently.
4:05
Now, if someone tries to go get
4:07
a court order, it's a little, we're
4:08
acting a little bit of a gray area.
4:10
From what I understand,
4:12
judges are not going to be
4:14
issuing those court orders, likely
4:16
won't be issuing these court order
4:17
because of a new state law that we
4:19
can talk about.
4:20
But even if you do have
4:22
a court order.
4:23
And you're a trans person, you try
4:25
to update your driver's license or
4:26
your birth certificate,
4:29
that may in fact land you on
4:30
this list, this date list.
4:33
So even if you get the go ahead from
4:34
the judge, DPS will
4:36
deny your request to
4:38
update the sex on your driver
4:39
license and they will very likely
4:41
put you on the list of people that
4:42
they're keeping.
4:43
So what, if anything, has DPS
4:45
told you about how this information
4:47
is being used?
4:49
They haven't answered any of our
4:51
questions, so we sent them multiple
4:53
questions over the past year about
4:54
the policy change and why they're
4:56
keeping this list.
4:57
And then we also filed a bunch of
4:59
records requests, you know, for
5:00
memos, communications, trying to
5:02
see if we could figure it out that
5:04
way. And we did get some records
5:05
back, but they didn't really give us
5:07
any more insight into what
5:09
this list is being used for,
5:11
what other agencies maybe it's being
5:13
shared with. We just didn't get that
5:14
information.
5:16
And we mentioned this is coming at a
5:17
time where there have been a number
5:18
of policies passed at the state
5:20
level that target trans Texans.
5:22
How has the trans community
5:23
responded to the
5:25
use of this list?
5:26
You know, they're concerned.
5:28
Anytime a government entity
5:31
keeps a list of a specific
5:33
group of people, especially
5:35
a group that is this small, you
5:36
know, a minority community, there's
5:39
less than 1% of the population in
5:40
Texas identifies as trans,
5:42
it definitely makes them feel like
5:43
they're being targeted.
5:44
And I think the fact that they don't
5:46
know why or what that list might be
5:48
used for is even more concerning.
5:50
Absolutely.
5:51
Well, Lauren, I know you'll continue
5:52
to follow this issue.
5:54
And you've reported on a couple of
5:55
other policies, including the
5:57
bathroom bill, which we talked about
5:58
and others that have shaped the
6:00
lives of transgender Texans.
6:02
So lots more to come on this.
6:04
Lauren McGahey is an investigative
6:05
reporter and editor for the
6:07
Texas Newsroom.
6:09
Lauren, thank you so much for
6:10
joining us to talk about your
6:11
reporting. You're welcome.
6:20
For much of the city, issues of
6:22
housing affordability and
6:23
homelessness are top of mind.
6:26
The Ending Community Homelessness
6:27
Coalition, or ECHO, has
6:29
worked for years to address these
6:31
challenges with the help of grant
6:33
funding from the federal government.
6:35
But now, the U.S.
6:36
Department of Housing and Urban
6:38
Development has raised the
6:39
possibility of changing the
6:41
rules around this funding.
6:43
And that raises questions about how
6:44
this could affect the people who
6:46
need help finding stable housing.
6:49
For more on this, we're speaking
6:50
with Echo's Vice President of
6:52
Homelessness Response System
6:53
Strategy, Kate Moore.
6:55
Kate, welcome to Austin Signal.
6:56
Thank you for having me.
6:58
Kate, tell us, how has HUD
7:00
historically issued these
7:02
grants?
7:03
Sure, it's something that has
7:06
been on a regular cycle for the most
7:07
part. Typically in the summer, they
7:09
release guidance to local
7:11
communities on how they're
7:13
going to administer the grants.
7:14
There may be small changes that we
7:17
would expect year to year, but
7:19
it's been something that has run
7:21
fairly smoothly for decades
7:24
now.
7:25
Okay, so as we know, federal
7:26
officials have proposed some
7:28
significant changes to this process.
7:30
How are they looking to change the
7:32
rules around this funding?
7:34
Yes.
7:35
So they are changing a
7:37
lot really quickly.
7:39
So one of the big impacts would be
7:41
a loss of permanent housing
7:42
resources for our community.
7:45
We receive about $14 million
7:47
in HUD Continuum of
7:49
Care funds.
7:50
The grant is called Continuum of
7:51
Care that we administer on behalf
7:53
of our community.
7:55
And they have put a restriction
7:57
this year that only 30%
7:59
of the funds can be used
8:01
for permanent housing.
8:03
Which is a rapid
8:05
rehousing and a permanent supportive
8:07
housing, which are two intervention
8:09
types that HUD
8:11
allows us to use the funding for.
8:14
And so this could mean that we
8:16
have about 500 people
8:17
who could lose their housing
8:19
if that change is
8:21
made.
8:22
So with HUD redirecting
8:25
or limiting the amount of funds that
8:26
can be put toward those type of
8:28
interventions, what are they
8:29
proposing instead?
8:31
So they are asking us
8:33
as communities to put together
8:36
applications that are either for
8:38
transitional housing or
8:40
for supportive services.
8:42
You can still put in applications
8:44
for permanent housing, but there's
8:46
a cap for those.
8:48
So transitional housing is
8:51
two years worth of assistance.
8:53
They're also requiring 40
8:55
hours a week of services
8:57
be available for people in
8:58
transitional housing.
9:00
We just don't have a lot of
9:01
experience as a community at
9:03
administering that type of
9:05
housing, primarily because HUD
9:07
historically has asked us to
9:08
stop doing that intervention type
9:10
and focus more on permanent housing.
9:13
So this tight turn,
9:15
this quick shift
9:17
is causing a lot questions
9:19
and concerns about how can we
9:21
keep folks stable in
9:23
the community as we shift
9:25
to these new priorities that.
9:27
That are brand new.
9:28
Right, it sounds like a quick shift,
9:30
like you mentioned, from the
9:32
approach that Echo and other
9:33
providers have historically been
9:35
using.
9:35
Can you tell us, for folks that are
9:37
not familiar with the work that
9:39
Echo does, what are considered
9:41
the best practices for helping
9:42
people exit homelessness, and
9:45
do these changes align
9:47
with the work that echo is
9:48
doing?
9:50
So we really
9:52
want to have in our homelessness
9:54
response system a broad array
9:56
of interventions to
9:58
meet the needs of people,
10:00
whether they're sheltered or
10:01
unsheltered.
10:02
And so that means we need
10:04
shelter.
10:05
We do need transitional housing.
10:07
We need rapid rehousing.
10:08
We need permanent supportive
10:10
housing.
10:10
We need services that can
10:12
meet the unique needs of every
10:14
person that is exiting homelessness.
10:18
The evidence tells us
10:20
that permanent housing,
10:22
where you put somebody into a
10:23
housing unit and you make robust
10:25
services available to that person
10:28
is the best practice.
10:29
And that will keep that person more
10:32
likely to be housed long-term
10:34
than other types of housing options,
10:36
especially for people that have been
10:38
homeless for long periods of time,
10:40
which is called chronic homelessness
10:42
in our terms.
10:44
And those people are particularly
10:47
vulnerable and need a lot of
10:48
services in order to be stabilized.
10:51
So we know that federal officials
10:53
have put a pause on this
10:55
change for now because of some
10:57
recent legal challenges, but if
10:59
these changes do in fact go through,
11:02
how could this affect people who
11:04
are experiencing homelessness here
11:05
in the Austin area?
11:08
It will affect the agencies first
11:10
that provide
11:12
the services.
11:13
So many of the large agencies that
11:16
provide services to people
11:17
experiencing homelessness will
11:19
have to figure out how to
11:22
shift their service model.
11:24
And that causes a lot of chaos,
11:26
right? They've been building
11:27
programs, they've been developing
11:29
skills of staff, and
11:32
most importantly, they've been
11:33
housing people in these
11:35
programs with a
11:37
certain model.
11:38
In mind that HUD has
11:40
endorsed and and
11:41
funded.
11:42
And so they're going to have to
11:44
shift how they support
11:46
these folks.
11:47
We also are going to lose
11:49
if this NOFO goes forward
11:51
seven and a half million dollars in
11:53
permanent housing funds.
11:55
HUD is telling us that we can
11:56
compete and shift those funds
11:58
to transitional housing or
12:00
services for people who are
12:02
experiencing homelessness.
12:03
But that won't help us keep those
12:05
folks housed that were being housed
12:07
by that funding source before.
12:11
Are there any proposed changes to
12:13
the types of organizations that
12:15
can apply for this federal funding
12:16
or is it more so a question of how
12:18
that funding would be applied?
12:21
It's more about how...
12:21
It would be applied, the same
12:24
type of eligibility is still
12:26
there.
12:27
So you know, typically nonprofits,
12:28
government entities can
12:30
apply for these funds.
12:32
You know, one of the things that I
12:34
think could, good that could come
12:36
out of this is we have some
12:37
non-traditional providers that
12:40
we are engaging at
12:42
Echo to see if they would be
12:44
interested in applying for these
12:45
fund. So we are not
12:47
against...
12:49
Providing new different types
12:51
of housing resources, bringing
12:53
in new providers, all of that is a
12:55
value add.
12:56
It's more about the
12:59
ending of services for people that
13:00
have historically been funded.
13:02
And the quick shift that
13:04
has happened from HUD is causing
13:06
a bit of chaos and uncertainty
13:08
within the homelessness response
13:10
system.
13:11
Well, we'll continue to follow these
13:13
changes as this all plays out.
13:15
We've been speaking with Kate Moore.
13:17
She is the Vice President of
13:19
Homelessness Response System
13:20
Strategy for ECHO.
13:22
Kate, thanks for talking with us on
13:23
Austin Signal. Thank you so much for
13:25
having me.
13:27
We've got more Austin Signal coming
13:29
up right after this.
13:39
You're listening to the Austin
13:41
Signal.
13:43
Hi, I'm Fresh, co-host of
13:45
The Breaks for KUTX.
13:47
One of my favorite songs out of
13:49
the Austin this year is Video Girl
13:51
by Grace Sorensen.
13:52
I just love the
13:54
bounce to it, the fun hook
13:56
of it, and the smoothness
13:58
of Grace on the record.
14:00
See you in
14:02
the next
14:05
video!
14:15
Grace is a rising R&B artist out of
14:17
Austin, Texas. She's been splitting
14:18
her time between Austin and LA
14:21
this year in 2025, but
14:23
making some waves nonetheless.
14:24
Can't let it slip away,
14:27
don't matter how Chase you
14:28
all around the world
14:33
To be your video
14:35
Girl,
14:38
real life fantasy
14:44
I love, like I said, the smooth hook
14:46
of it.
14:47
I thought this was an instant hit
14:49
when I first heard it, and
14:51
it's just a fun song.
14:56
I'm Fresh, one half of the breaks
14:58
at KUTX.
14:59
You can find out our favorite songs
15:01
from 2025 at kutx.org.
15:04
This is Austin Signal.
15:07
When the light's down,
15:09
say the word, keep my last name
15:11
I'll come running in the foreign
15:13
brain Here and now,
15:15
can't let it slip away Don't matter
15:17
how, chase you all around
15:22
Thanks, Fresh, for sharing a great
15:23
song with us.
15:25
A lot of families consider getting a
15:27
new pet over the holidays.
15:29
I know I'm holding out hope that one
15:30
of my presents will start barking.
15:32
Maybe you've had that thought too,
15:33
but you're just not sure if you're
15:35
ready for the responsibility.
15:37
Well, KUT's arts editor,
15:39
Stephanie Federico, suggests you
15:41
visit a new shelter that's
15:43
open only in December.
15:46
Wendy Mitchell runs a no-kill
15:47
shelter from her home on West 37th
15:50
Street. It's full of animals waiting
15:52
to be adopted, but not all of
15:54
them.
15:55
He will be staying with me.
15:57
It's sometimes it's hard to give
15:59
up some of them, you know,
16:01
like if you were fostering dogs or
16:03
something.
16:04
Can't get rid of cheese burtel.
16:05
She's holding a grinning animal from
16:07
a loft inside a 12-by-12-foot
16:09
shed.
16:10
You might be wondering about the odd
16:11
breed name.
16:12
It's not a German Shepherd or a
16:14
Labradoodle.
16:15
This cheese-birdle is
16:17
part turtle and, obviously,
16:19
part cheeseburger.
16:21
Did I mention it's a
16:23
stuffed animal?
16:26
Mitchell is the founder and chief
16:28
operating surgeon of the Stuffed
16:30
Animal Rescue Foundation.
16:32
The organization takes in and
16:33
rehabilitates stuffies with all
16:35
sorts of injuries.
16:36
Missing eyeballs is a common
16:38
one because of dog attacks.
16:41
They go for eyeballs mostly.
16:42
Cats often go for noses.
16:45
We have a lot of neck injuries,
16:47
particularly with stuffed animals
16:49
that are, whose
16:51
living companions are younger.
16:53
Mitchell calls herself a fixer of
16:54
things, much like her father, who
16:56
performed surgery on her teddy bear
16:57
when she was little.
16:59
Initially, she picked up the injured
17:01
animals from thrift stores.
17:03
After a while, people heard she was
17:04
making repairs and started bringing
17:06
them to her.
17:07
People would just leave them
17:09
in bags on the doorstep,
17:11
like a firehouse, you know, how you
17:13
can like leave babies, I guess.
17:15
At the Stuffed Animal Rescue
17:17
Foundation HQ, shelves
17:19
and lockers are filled with
17:20
supplies.
17:21
Fabric and noses and every size
17:23
of eyeball, both googly and
17:25
static. There are sewing machines,
17:27
different types of paint, and lots
17:28
of stuff to get gum or whatever
17:30
dried candy out of fur.
17:31
So this is the box of random,
17:33
like colored pantyhose.
17:37
You know, you're repairing something
17:38
and it's weird and you're like,
17:39
well, I wish I had
17:42
a random blue.
17:47
Pantyhose. There are boxes with
17:49
props, ties and trophies,
17:51
and musical instruments.
17:52
Various things she says the animals
17:54
might be interested in.
17:56
Mitchell just moved her animal
17:58
rescue headquarters to this shed,
18:00
and she's trying to organize the
18:01
chaos.
18:02
Hundreds of stuffed animals in
18:04
various conditions remain in
18:06
storage.
18:06
She's had to put repair appointments
18:08
on hold.
18:09
It wasn't my intention to do a
18:11
bunch of repairs, but then it
18:13
started happening.
18:14
And then I just did that for
18:16
a long time and then my brain
18:17
exploded.
18:18
So I have, I'm getting
18:20
back to being able to maybe do some
18:22
of that.
18:22
One operation currently underway is
18:24
uniting a pair of conjoined koalas
18:26
who are separated and turned into
18:28
slippers.
18:30
So they had like a
18:32
padded growth on
18:34
the back.
18:35
So I removed that and did
18:37
reconstructive surgery.
18:38
So now they have butts.
18:41
But what to do with all those
18:42
rescued animals?
18:44
Well, when Mitchell first moved to
18:45
37th Street over 10 years ago,
18:47
she knew she had to get involved in
18:49
the annual holiday tradition of
18:51
over-the-top lights and quirky
18:52
displays.
18:53
In 2010, she started a petting zoo
18:55
with the stuffed animals, writing
18:57
first-person bios for each.
19:00
People who stopped by could fill out
19:01
applications to adopt animals.
19:03
And then people showed up and they
19:05
filled out the applications and I
19:06
was like, Whoa, this is
19:08
weird and crazy.
19:10
This year, she's switching things
19:11
up.
19:12
Visitors will be able to buy the
19:14
stuffed animals, but not with-
19:16
Each one has a price tag
19:18
attached to it, and that
19:20
price tag has a task written on
19:22
it. And you have to
19:24
commit legally
19:27
by the laws of the Stuffed Animal
19:28
Rescue Foundation.
19:30
If you take the stuffed animal,
19:31
which you can do, but you have
19:33
do the task associated
19:35
with it.
19:36
Once the recipient has performed the
19:38
task, they have to describe what
19:39
they did on a postcard and mail it
19:41
to Mitchell as proof.
19:43
She'll then send out an adoption
19:44
certificate.
19:45
Mitchell isn't 100% sure folks
19:47
will comply.
19:48
I mean it could be that they all
19:49
just disappear and I never hear from
19:51
anyone again but usually
19:53
people are really good at doing what
19:55
I tell them to do or ask them to
19:57
because it's fun.
19:59
Aww, she's so cute.
20:02
Guys, look with your eyes.
20:05
It's the first night of 37th
20:07
Street Lights, and families are
20:08
wandering around, eating ice cream
20:10
in Christmas pajamas.
20:12
The brass band Bloco Motion plays
20:14
funk and soul music in an apartment
20:16
complex parking lot.
20:18
Visitors to the petting zoo rush
20:19
past the start here sign with
20:21
all the instructions.
20:23
Children grab at the stuffed
20:24
animals. Their parents are confused
20:26
about the process.
20:28
Brielle understands.
20:30
She's taking home a horse.
20:31
I asked her to read me the
20:33
task.
20:34
Find a new use for a plastic
20:36
yogurt container instead of throwing
20:37
it away. I like that one.
20:39
That's what I think you'll do.
20:42
A lot of things.
20:44
What can you do with a plastic
20:45
yogurt container?
20:47
I could probably use it for
20:49
like my cat water bowl
20:51
or I
20:54
don't know.
20:55
I could make a piggy bank with
20:56
a lid.
20:58
That's a great idea.
21:00
I love it.
21:01
Cool. Enjoy.
21:02
What are you going to name it?
21:06
I don't know.
21:10
Arden holds a green snake with
21:12
a purple tongue that he's going to
21:13
name Scaly.
21:14
His task?
21:16
Look at the stars and
21:19
invent
21:21
a new
21:24
constellation, give it
21:26
a name, draw it
21:28
on the postcard
21:30
and send it to
21:32
us.
21:34
Claire is going to prepare a recipe
21:35
without looking it up on the
21:36
internet in exchange for a teddy
21:38
bear.
21:39
I'm gonna make a pumpkin
21:41
cookie that my mom makes
21:43
and my dad knows how to make it.
21:44
He's gonna teach me to make and then
21:46
I fill out this postcard and
21:48
he goes into my room which is
21:50
aka stuffy mania because
21:52
it's filled with stuffies.
21:54
About 30 stuffed animals
21:56
are on display at a time.
21:58
In less than an hour, all the crates
21:59
are cleared.
22:01
Mitchell says she'll restock.
22:03
I'm Stephanie Federico in Austin.
22:10
Thanks to the Texas newsroom's
22:12
Lauren Megahi and KUTX's
22:14
Miley Carballo for their help with
22:16
today's episode.
22:17
Rayna Sevilla is our technical
22:19
director.
22:20
Kristin Cabrera is our managing
22:21
producer.
22:22
We've got more in our podcast show
22:24
notes and at KUT.org
22:26
slash Signal.
22:28
I'm Syeda Carrillo sitting in today
22:30
for Jerry Quijano.
22:31
Austin Signal is back tomorrow and
22:33
we'll be here during the holidays
22:34
with some special shows too.
22:36
Be sure to check them out and thanks
22:37
for listening.