Good evening, Texas. We're wrapping up the day for you with the most important stories you need to know and your weather outlook.
Your Weather Planner
Low-level moisture will slowly return to Texas this weekend. Warmer overnight temperatures and increased cloud cover will be the result. Friday starts cool with low 40s in North Texas, middle 40s in Central Texas and upper 40s and low 50s to the south. A low chance of rain comes late Sunday.
Get your 7-day forecast: Austin | San Antonio | Dallas
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Today's Big Stories
1. Trump orders a plan to dismantle the Education Department while keeping some core functions
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday calling for the shutdown of the U.S. Education Department, advancing a campaign promise to eliminate an agency that's been a longtime target of conservatives.
Trump has derided the Department of Education as wasteful and polluted by liberal ideology. However, finalizing its dismantling is likely impossible without an act of Congress, which created the department in 1979.
2. Texas wildfire prompts evacuations as Arkansas and Florida also battle blazes
Wildfires fueled by dry conditions and gusting winds burned in a few Southern states Thursday, forcing evacuations in Texas and prompting Florida officials to close part of a major highway with spring break in high gear.
A wildfire in Sam Houston National Forest near Houston prompted the evacuation of about 900 homes and closed schools. The National Weather Service issued elevated fire warnings around the nation’s fourth-largest city.
3. Consumers could pay as much as 50% of upcoming tariffs, economist says
Two weeks before the Trump administration is expected to impose reciprocal tariffs on its trading partners, economists say prices are likely to rise as a result. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that inflation is likely to increase because of President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Consumers could pay up to 50% of the increased tax on imported goods, according to ADP Research Chief Economist Nela Richardson.
4. In latest blow to Tesla, regulators recall nearly all Cybertrucks
U.S. safety regulators on Thursday recalled virtually all Cybertrucks on the road, the eighth recall of the Tesla-made vehicles since deliveries to customers began just over a year ago.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's recall, which covers more than 46,000 Cybertrucks, warned that an exterior panel that runs along the left and right sight of the windshield can detach while driving, creating a dangerous road hazard for other drivers and increasing the risk of a crash.
Notes for Tomorrow
Friday, March 21
- S&P Dow Jones Indices Quarterly Rebalance effective after markets close
- 15th anniversary of House passing President Obama's landmark health reform bill
- NOAA National Weather Service announces U.S. Spring Outlook
- European Council meeting of European Union heads of state and government
- World Poetry Day
In Case You Missed It 
In this handout photo released by Qatar Ministry of Foreign Affairs, George Glezmann, center, poses with Adam Boehler, second left, and Zalmay Khalilzad, second right, and Qatari diplomats in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, March 20, 2025, before departing to Doha, Qatar. (Qatar Ministry of Foreign Affairs via AP)
Taliban frees American who was abducted while traveling in Afghanistan more than 2 years ago
An American man who was abducted more than two years ago while traveling through Afghanistan as a tourist has been released by the Taliban in a deal with the Trump administration that Qatari negotiators helped broker, the State Department said Thursday.
