Texas Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Texas, with full citations and the original source on every page.
No Texas opinions match these filters
Try a different search term or clear the filters.
Does an FAA designated engineering representative need a Texas professional engineer license?
The Attorney General concluded that a person the Federal Aviation Administration appoints as a 'designated engineering representative' (DER) likely does not have to be licensed as a Texas professional…
Does adopting one county tax rate above its rollback rate trigger a property tax rollback election in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that the right to petition for a county tax rollback election turns on totals, not components. A county can set an individual property tax rate (say, its general fund ra…
Can a Texas county issue tax increment financing bonds the way a city can?
The Attorney General concluded that a county cannot issue tax increment financing (TIF) bonds the way a city can. The Legislature gave that bonding power only to incorporated cities and towns, and a T…
Who sets a county court at law reporter's salary, the judge or the commissioners court?
The Attorney General concluded that setting an official court reporter's salary in the Van Zandt County Court at Law is a shared decision: the judge sets the salary and the commissioners court approve…
Can a Texas store or restaurant add a disclosed service fee to my purchase?
The Attorney General concluded that no Texas statute or constitutional provision stops a private retailer from charging an itemized, disclosed 'service fee' on a consumer purchase, as long as the fee …
Can the Texas Lottery Commission run second-chance drawings for losing tickets online?
The Attorney General concluded that the Texas Lottery Commission likely has authority to use the Internet for its promotional 'second-chance' drawings, where players enter a losing scratch-off ticket …
Can a Texas school district make employees attend charity fundraising meetings?
The Attorney General read section 22.011 of the Education Code, which bars a school district from directly or indirectly requiring or coercing employees to give to charity. The opinion concluded the s…
Can a retired federal judge officiate a wedding in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that a retired federal judge is not authorized to conduct a marriage ceremony in Texas. Section 2.202(a)(4) of the Family Code lists the judges who may officiate. It aut…
Who pays the State Office of Administrative Hearings for a contested case hearing in Texas?
The Attorney General explained how the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH) should bill for a contested case hearing when its chief judge assesses the fee against the party that loses. If th…
Can an 18-year-old be charged with truancy for skipping school in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that a student who is eighteen or older cannot be prosecuted for the failure-to-attend-school offense, even if the school district has a policy requiring attendance up t…
Can a Texas hospital district sell its hospital and lease it back?
The Attorney General concluded that the Angleton-Danbury Hospital District may sell a hospital facility to a third party and then lease it back to keep providing care for the district's needy resident…
Must a therapist report child abuse that happened to an adult patient years ago?
The Attorney General concluded that chapter 261 of the Family Code does not require a mental health professional treating an adult patient to report abuse or neglect the professional believes happened…
Do nearby foreclosure-sale prices count when the appraisal district values my home?
The Attorney General concluded that under section 23.01(c) of the Tax Code, a chief appraiser setting the market value of a residence homestead may not throw out the sale prices of nearby homes just b…
Can a small Texas city ban alcohol sales near a public school?
The Attorney General concluded that a Type A general-law city is generally allowed to pass an ordinance banning alcohol sales by a dealer located within 300 feet of a public school. A 1,000-foot ban i…
Can a Texas county vote early to appoint an emergency services district board member?
The Attorney General concluded that a county commissioners court may hold its vote to appoint a member of an emergency services district board on a date before January 1, even though the term itself b…
Can a Texas constable set up a payment plan for someone with a justice-court warrant?
The Attorney General concluded that a constable has no authority to offer payment arrangements to, or accept partial payment from, defendants with outstanding justice-court warrants; the constable enf…
Can a county elections administrator also handle 9-1-1 addressing and redistricting work?
The Attorney General concluded that a commissioners court may employ the same individual who serves as county elections administrator to also work as a 9-1-1 addressing agent and to help prepare redis…
Can a Texas constable work paid law enforcement for an HOA in another precinct?
The Attorney General concluded that a constable may not provide law enforcement services for a fee to a private property owners association in a precinct other than the one for which the constable was…
Who reconciles a county's special fund accounts, the elected official or the treasurer?
The Attorney General concluded that a county treasurer cannot refuse a request from an elected official to reconcile the checks and payments from special fund accounts under that official's authority.…
Can a non-lawyer represent a parent at a special education due process hearing in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that, because Texas generally limits the practice of law to licensed attorneys and the Legislature created no exception for special education due process hearings, a non…
Can a Texas county require proof of available water before approving a subdivision?
The Attorney General concluded that Water Code section 35.019 gives a county in a priority groundwater management area only a limited power: to require a developer to show an adequate water supply whe…
Can you ride an ATV or off-highway vehicle on a Texas public beach?
The Attorney General concluded there is no across-the-board yes or no on driving an ATV or recreational off-highway vehicle on a Texas public beach. The Transportation Code's ban on operating these ve…
Does a felony conviction automatically remove a Texas constable from office?
The Attorney General concluded that a felony conviction automatically removes a county officer such as a constable from office once all appeals are exhausted, with no further official action needed, w…
Do Texas real estate inspectors have to carry liability insurance to keep a license?
The Attorney General concluded that the Occupations Code requires an applicant for a real estate inspector's license to carry liability insurance, and that requirement holds even in the hypothetical s…
What must the Texas Comptroller do before spending Major Events Trust Fund money?
The Attorney General concluded that, before the Comptroller may undertake any of the duties for spending Major Events Trust Fund money under section 5A of article 5190.14, she must follow the precise …
Can a Texas child under 17 who is tried as an adult be held in a jail that does not separate them from adult inmates?
No. The Attorney General concluded that even when a child under seventeen is transferred to adult criminal court for prosecution, article 4.19 of the Code of Criminal Procedure did not let officials d…
Is it illegal gambling in Texas to charge an entry fee for an online quiz contest with prizes?
Maybe not. The Attorney General advised that if an online contest genuinely turns on knowledge, skill, or speed and involves no element of chance, a court could conclude the entry fee is not a 'bet' u…
When can a Texas county hold an election to create an emergency services district?
The Attorney General concluded that, for Navarro County in 2012, the next available date to hold an election creating an emergency services district was November 6, 2012, the November uniform election…
What ID do you need to get a Texas residence homestead property tax exemption?
The Attorney General concluded that only a driver's license, personal identification certificate, or vehicle registration receipt issued by Texas can satisfy the documentation rules in Tax Code subsec…
Who prosecutes violations of a Texas water district's criminal rules?
The Attorney General concluded that who prosecutes a violation of a water control and improvement district's criminal regulation under chapter 51 of the Water Code depends on the court where the citat…
Does Texas's ballot-language law for bond and tax votes apply to junior college district elections?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that subsection 52.072(e) of the Election Code, which requires a bond or tax ballot proposition to state specifics like the total principal amount of the bonds or t…
Can an ENT doctor who sells hearing aids serve on Texas's hearing-instrument examiners board?
It depends, and the opinion left the call to the board. Occupations Code subsection 402.053(d) bars the physician member of the State Committee of Examiners in the Fitting and Dispensing of Hearing In…
Who approves spending from a Texas district attorney's asset forfeiture fund?
The Attorney General concluded that a district attorney's asset forfeiture spending may proceed once it is approved by a regional review committee under Government Code section 24.377, even after the …
Can a nurse with a nondisclosure order keep their criminal record out of the nursing board's disciplinary order?
Probably not. The Attorney General concluded that a court would likely find section 411.081 of the Government Code does not require the Texas Board of Nursing to redact or seal criminal history inform…
Can the Texas appraiser board regulate 'uniform and equal' studies done by property tax appraisers?
Largely yes. The Attorney General explained that chapter 1103 of the Occupations Code does not regulate only 'appraisals'; it regulates the licensing and certification of appraisers, who must follow t…
Does Texas nepotism law stop a school superintendent from reassigning their spouse to another campus?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a superintendent of an independent school district is not a 'public official' subject to the anti-nepotism provisions of chapter 573 of the Government Code when…
Can a Texas mental health facility arrange to transport a patient to a state hospital after just a preliminary examination?
Not on its own. The Attorney General concluded that the transportation statute, section 574.045 of the Health and Safety Code, covers people detained under sections 573.022 and 574.023, but not someon…
Can a Texas HOA board that's subject to the Open Meetings Act meet by phone conference call?
Generally no. The Attorney General concluded that the board of trustees of the Clear Lake City Community Association, a property owners' association made subject to the Open Meetings Act, may not hold…
How is a vacancy on a Texas junior college district board filled, and how can you challenge a trustee who no longer lives in the district?
The Attorney General gave two answers. To test whether a trustee vacated the seat by moving out of the single-member district that elected the trustee, the opinion said a court could decide the questi…
Can the Texas Comptroller refuse to pay unclaimed property proceeds directly to a company that bought the claim?
Most likely yes. The Attorney General did not lay down a flat rule, but concluded that because the Comptroller is the agency charged with enforcing Property Code section 74.501, a court would defer to…
Can a Texas navigation district develop, run, and pay for a public park like Rockport Beach Park with district tax revenue?
In part. The Attorney General concluded that the Aransas County Navigation District is authorized to have and maintain parks and recreation facilities, but only to the extent the park is necessary or …
When two Texas bills amend the same groundwater law in conflicting ways, which version controls?
The Attorney General concluded that House Bill 3109 prevails. Both bills passed by the 82nd Legislature amended Water Code section 36.121, which exempts certain wells from groundwater conservation dis…
Can a Texas county still collect on a bail bond forfeiture judgment that is more than twelve years old?
Yes, in most respects. The Attorney General concluded that a bail bond forfeiture judgment is a judgment in favor of the state, so under Property Code section 52.006(b) it does not become dormant if i…
Can the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board set up complaint procedures for colleges, including religious schools?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that Education Code section 61.031 gives the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board authority to adopt procedures for handling, investigating, and resolving comp…
Can a Texas sheriff use the county jail commissary fund to pay for inmate job-training programs?
Possibly, and the call is the sheriff's to make first. The Attorney General would not decide as a matter of law whether paying out of commissary proceeds for an inmate water-catchment building project…
Does the Texas catalog-purchase procedure for state technology buying apply to independent school districts?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the catalog-purchase procedure in Government Code section 2157.0611 sits in a subchapter that applies only to a state agency covered by Chapter 2054. Chapter 20…
Can the Texas State Cemetery Committee ban bicycles on a state highway that runs through the cemetery?
The Attorney General did not decide that. The opinion concluded that the Texas State Cemetery Committee's authority over 'all operations of the State Cemetery' under Government Code section 2165.256(a…
Can a member of a Texas county ethics commission also serve as the review officer on its screening committee?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a member of the El Paso County Ethics Commission may not serve as the review officer on the commission's standing preliminary review committee. The governing st…
Can a Texas school psychologist use the 'Nationally Certified School Psychologist' title?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the Psychologists' Licensing Act does not prohibit a Licensed Specialist in School Psychology from truthfully using the 'Nationally Certified School Psychologi…
Can emails between Texas government board members violate the Open Meetings Act?
It depends on the facts. The Attorney General concluded that electronic communications, including email, among members of a Texas governmental body can amount to a 'deliberation' and a 'meeting' that …
Can a Texas county bail bond board limit who a bail bondsman is allowed to hire?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the Hunt County Bail Bond Board's Rule 9.1(g), which barred a bail bond licensee from employing anyone currently on probation or parole or facing a pending crim…
Can a Texas public university give or trade its land to a private nonprofit?
It depends, and the key calls are left to the university's board. The Attorney General concluded that Article III, sections 51 and 52 of the Texas Constitution would not bar Texas Southern University …
Does a Texas university system's $25 million investment threshold apply system-wide or per campus?
At the system level. The Attorney General concluded that the University of North Texas System's Board of Regents is the 'governing board' under Education Code section 51.0031(c), so the $25 million en…
Must a county court judge's pay include the extra salary the local administrative district judge gets?
No. The Attorney General concluded that Government Code sections 25.0862 and 25.0023 require Galveston County's statutory county court at law judges and statutory probate court judge to be paid at lea…
Can a group other than a chamber of commerce get Texas's 'community business organization' property tax exemption?
Potentially yes, but the appraiser decides. The Attorney General concluded that the property tax exemption in Tax Code section 11.231 for a 'nonprofit community business organization' is not limited t…
Is the Texas Medicaid fraud oversight task force an 'advisory committee' under chapter 2110?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the Medicaid and Public Assistance Fraud Oversight Task Force is not an 'advisory committee' within Government Code chapter 2110, so that chapter's rules do not…
Does a Texas prosecutor need a judge's approval to advance a witness's travel expenses?
No. The Attorney General concluded that article 35.27 of the Code of Criminal Procedure does not require a county or its district attorney to get the presiding judge's preapproval before advancing fun…
Must a Texas public housing authority reimburse a city or county for services to a housing project?
Not under this statute. The Attorney General concluded that Local Government Code subsection 392.005(b) authorizes, but does not require, a public housing authority to agree to reimburse a municipalit…
Is a Texas notary public a state 'officer' under Government Code chapter 603?
The Attorney General could not say for sure. The opinion concluded that it could not definitively determine whether a notary public is a state 'officer' for purposes of Government Code chapter 603. So…
Who appoints successor directors to a Texas regional mobility authority board?
The county commissioners court. The Attorney General concluded that for a single-county regional mobility authority, the commissioners court that made the initial appointments is the 'appointing autho…
Browse Texas opinions by topic
Attorney general opinions in Texas are written by the Texas Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.