UT Arlington is expanding to Parker County in 2028 with a new campus in far-west Fort Worth.

Why it matters: There aren't many options to pursue higher education in rural areas of North Texas, a gap that UT Arlington hopes to address with its UTA West campus.

Context: Parker County is located just west of Tarrant County and includes parts of Fort Worth.

• Weatherford College is the only college in the fast-growing county, with a population of roughly 180,000.
• Tarleton State University's campus on the Tarrant County side of Fort Worth also serves Parker and Johnson counties.

State of play: The UTA West campus will be located near Aledo, close to where I-30 and I-20 meet.

• The 51-acre site features rolling hills with wildflowers, live oak trees and a small lake.
• The campus will focus on high-demand fields, hoping to supply a "highly skilled homegrown workforce" for the region, per a news release.
• Construction has started, with plans to open in fall 2028.

Zoom out: Fort Worth's growing population — the city recently surpassed 1 million residents — and diversifying economy have made the city a popular destination for university expansions.

• UT Arlington has a research institute in east Fort Worth and a center in downtown Fort Worth. UNT Health Fort Worth's six schools are located in the city's cultural district.
• And Texas A&M plans to open a law and education building in downtown Fort Worth this fall.

What they're saying: "Great universities reach their highest purpose when they grow alongside the communities they serve," UTA president Jennifer Cowley said in a news release.

Texas hemp businesses are suing the state, aiming to reverse new rules that ban pre-rolled joints and other smokeable THC products made legal under a 2019 state law.

Why it matters: The lawsuit is the latest battle over hemp-derived THC in Texas' multibillion-dollar industry.

Catch up quick: Federal and Texas law states consumable hemp products must contain less than 0.3% of delta-9 THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis.

• The law does not include limits on THCA, a compound in hemp that turns into delta-9 THC when burned.

Flashback: The Texas Department of State Health Services and the Health and Human Services Commission implemented rules March 31 that dictate limits on the "total THC" in a product, including THCA.

• The move effectively banned all smokable hemp products, like flower buds or pre-rolls.

The latest: The Texas Hemp Business Council, manufacturers and retailers assert in their lawsuit that the departments exceeded their legal authority by counting a product's "total THC" toward the delta-9 THC limit imposed by Congress in 2019 and the Texas Legislature in 2018.

• They are asking a judge to immediately block the rules as the lawsuit plays out. They also want to end a recent increase in regulatory fees.

The other side: The state has yet to formally respond to the lawsuit, court records show.

• Patrick's office and the Texas Attorney General's Office, which will defend the state departments, did not respond to Axios' request for comment.

💰 Texas is giving data centers more than $1 billion in tax breaks each year. The incentives may soon become the most expensive of their kind in the country. (Texas Tribune)

⚖️ A Wichita Falls woman was sentenced to six years in prison for smuggling drugs into Texas prisons. Authorities had alleged that she hid the drugs in Bibles, newspapers and other materials. (WFAA)

🔍 Dallas' inspector general's office is investigating two of the city's IT employees after they were accused of working for the city of Austin at the same time. (DMN)

Dallas celebrities sometimes have a bad rep, but we have yet to hear anything disparaging about Scottie Scheffler.

Driving the news: Scheffler is in Augusta, Ga., for the Masters, hoping to earn a third green jacket as one of the world's top golfers.

• Does that make him our most popular Dallas sports star?

The intrigue: At a news conference on Tuesday, Scheffler gushed over his wife, Meredith, who delivered their second son last week and has been taking the overnight shifts with the baby so Scheffler can rest for the tournament.

• He said he doesn't really know how to use Instagram. And he walked through the crowd and to the practice green on Wednesday without a caddie or entourage, ESPN reported.
• "He sounds like any old suburban dad; it's just that being ranked No. 1 in the world for 186 consecutive weeks is his 9-to-5," ESPN's Dan Wetzel says.

What he's saying: "I'd much rather be a great father than I would be a great golfer," Scheffler told Sports Illustrated last year.

🤔 Are any other Dallas athletes more famous than Scheffler? Hit reply to this email and let us know.