- In Lamar County, people whose homes or businesses were destroyed by the Nov. 4 tornado can now apply for low-interest federal disaster loans. The Paris News reports the U.S. Small Business Administration has made those loans available. This follows a request from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for a federal disaster declaration for both Lamar County and Morriss County, where one person was killed by a tornado. The Lamar County tornado destroyed parts of Brookston, Sumner, Powderly and Midway and caused more than $11 million worth of damages according to a federal survey.
- The next public step in the permitting process for a proposed waste facility near Commerce has been scheduled for next month. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality along with the State Office of Administrative Hearings will be hosting an online hearing on the permit application at 10 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 19. If approved, the facility would be built on State Highway 24 just south of Commerce. A Paris-based company, Transfer Station Solutions, has submitted an application with the TCEQ for what’s described on the application as “municipal solid waste processing.” The address of the property in question is 3491 State Highway 24, in Campbell. That’s on the east side of the highway, across from the university’s veterinary instruction center and near other university properties. The Dec. 19 hearing will be accessible by Zoom. Details are available at the State Office of Administrative Hearings website, https://www.soah.texas.gov.