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.
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Can a Texas county post signs in its jail telling inmates about personal bonds and cash bail bonds without violating the bail bond surety law?
The Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney asked several questions about jailhouse signs explaining pretrial release options. The Attorney General concluded that chapter 1704 of the Occupations…
Does a Texas commissioners court have to formally decide whether a newspaper is one of 'general circulation' before publishing county notices in it?
The Harrison County Criminal District Attorney asked, with two competing papers each claiming the status, whether the commissioners court had to formally determine which is a 'newspaper of general…
Can the Texas Real Estate Inspector Committee hold its meetings by telephone conference call as an advisory board?
The Texas Real Estate Commission's administrator asked whether the Texas Real Estate Inspector Committee and its subcommittees could meet by telephone conference call under Government Code section…
Can a Texas appropriations rider force a state agency to competitively bid small contracts that general law exempts from bidding?
The State Board of Dental Examiners asked whether a rider attached to its 2006-07 appropriation could require competitive bidding on all of its contracts, no matter how small, when Government Code…
Can a sitting school board trustee be appointed to fill a vacancy on the same board in Texas?
A senator asked whether a sitting Schulenburg ISD trustee could vote to appoint himself to fill a board vacancy left by another trustee's resignation. The Attorney General said no. The common-law…
Does Texas law bar the Workforce Commission from using block grants to fund certain listed employment programs?
A senator asked whether section 302.062(g) of the Labor Code prohibits the Texas Workforce Commission from using block grants to fund the fourteen programs that subsection lists. The Attorney…
If a county appraisal district employee marries the county tax assessor-collector, can the employee keep the job?
The Kerr County Attorney asked what happens when a county appraisal district employee marries the same county's tax assessor-collector, who sits on the appraisal district board as a nonvoting…
Did House Bill 383 ban corporal punishment in Texas public schools?
The Commissioner of Education asked whether House Bill 383, which added Family Code section 151.001(e) listing the persons who may use corporal punishment for the reasonable discipline of a child…
Can a Texas school district offer an early-payment tax discount if an appraisal district collects its taxes?
On behalf of the Killeen ISD, a senator asked whether a school district could give its taxpayers an early-payment discount when the district did not collect its own taxes but had contracted with the…
Can a Texas county clerk charge the court reporter service fee if the court has no official court reporter?
The Rains County Attorney asked whether the county clerk could collect the $15 court reporter service fee in civil cases under Government Code section 51.601 when the county court did not have a…
Can a Texas river authority sell surplus land to a neighbor by private sale without public bidding?
The Sabine River Authority asked whether it could sell surplus real property to an adjoining landowner without holding a public sale. The Attorney General said yes. Two statutes were in play: Local…
Can a Texas judge sue the county for back pay if it underpaid the salary the law required?
Wise County asked whether a statutory county court judge could recover back pay after the county collected court fees but, for years, failed to raise the judge's salary to the level Government Code…
If two Texas bills amend the same statute the same session, which version is the law, and did the published code get it right?
The Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners asked whether the printed Occupations Code had correctly combined two 2003 bills, House Bill 3507 and Senate Bill 282, that both rewrote chapter 1301 (the…
Can a Texas city give its employees a pay raise backdated to their last evaluation date?
A Texas House committee chair asked whether the Socorro Civil Service Commission could give municipal employees a pay raise backdated to their last evaluation. The Attorney General said no. Article…
Can a Texas county give a private pet-license billing company the owner info from rabies vaccination records?
The Harris County Attorney asked whether the county's animal control office had to turn over confidential pet-owner information to PetData, a private company that the City of Houston had hired to…
Can a Texas county assess a city's drainage fee on subdivisions in the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction?
The Comal County District Attorney's office asked whether a county could assess a city's drainage charge on land in the city's extraterritorial jurisdiction, either through a 'consolidation'…
Does a Texas DPS peace officer have to take the constitutional oath of office as a 'public officer'?
The director of the Texas Department of Public Safety asked whether DPS peace officers are 'public officers' who must take the constitutional oath of office (Texas Constitution article XVI, section…
Can a Texas constable keep the fee for delivering an eviction notice to vacate, on top of salary?
The chair of the Texas House Judiciary Committee asked two things about constables and eviction-notice fees. First, which notices count as 'required by Section 24.005, Property Code'? The Attorney…
Can a Texas city adopt the over-65 and disabled property tax freeze without first giving its own homestead exemption?
A state senator asked, prompted by the City of Windcrest, whether a city that had never adopted its own residence homestead tax exemption could still adopt the 'tax freeze' for disabled and over-65…
Can a Texas home-rule city bar its municipal judge from also serving as a justice of the peace?
A state representative asked, on behalf of the City of Pleasanton, whether a home-rule city's charter rule against dual office holding could stop a municipal judge from also serving as a county…
Does a Texas county election commission have to follow the Open Meetings Act?
The Titus County Attorney asked, for the county commissioners court, whether a county election commission (the small panel that hires and oversees a county elections administrator) has to follow the…
Can a Texas county auditor also work as the accountant for a county emergency services district?
The San Jacinto County criminal district attorney asked whether the county auditor could also be hired as the accountant for the county's emergency services district (ESD), given the auditor's…
Can a Texas county repair a subdivision road or a private road, and does the road become a county road?
The San Jacinto County criminal district attorney asked whether the county could repair three kinds of roads (a public subdivision road, a public neighborhood road, and a private road) and whether…
Can the Texas Legislature allow county video-lottery gaming districts without amending the constitution?
Senator Jane Nelson asked whether a 2005 bill (Senate Bill 1326) could have worked without a constitutional amendment. The bill would have let counties vote, county by county, to create 'gaming…
What does 'district judges trying criminal cases' mean in Texas Government Code section 76.002?
The Gregg County criminal district attorney asked the Attorney General to define the phrase 'district judges trying criminal cases' in Government Code section 76.002, the statute that says those…
Can a city's term limits count service from before the term-limit rule was adopted?
The Alvin City Attorney, through the Brazoria County criminal district attorney, asked the Attorney General three questions about the term limits in Alvin's city charter, including whether council…
Do elected-but-not-sworn directors count toward a quorum under the Texas Open Meetings Act?
State Representative Robert Puente asked whether two people who won a special election to the Bexar Metropolitan Water District board, but whose elections had not been certified and who had not…
Can a private association of public officials pay its outgoing president?
The Kerr County Attorney asked whether the $5,000 the County and District Clerks Association of Texas traditionally pays its outgoing president is an illegal honorarium or gift under the Penal Code,…
How does a Texas county split funds with a new hospital district that covers only part of the county?
Liberty County asked the Attorney General how to divide county money with the newly created Liberty County Hospital District No. 1, which sits inside the county but does not cover all of it. Under…
Can a Texas state agency board delegate authority to approve an interlocal contract?
The Texas A&M University System asked whether the Interlocal Cooperation Act (Government Code chapter 791) lets a state agency's governing body delegate the authority to approve an interlocal…
If a board member develops a conflict of interest after a contract is signed, is the contract still valid?
The Texas A&M University System asked whether its pre-existing contract with a law firm became invalid after a person who joined the A&M Board of Regents then became a partner in that firm. The…
Can two neighboring county attorneys appoint each other as assistant county attorneys?
The county attorneys of Jeff Davis and Presidio counties, each a one-lawyer office, asked whether they could appoint each other as unpaid assistant county attorneys so a neighbor could cover…
Can a constable investigate a crime anywhere in the county, or only in their own precinct?
A Tyler County prosecutor asked whether a constable can investigate a crime that did not happen in the constable's view, and whether that authority covers the whole county or only the constable's…
Can a county commissioner also serve as a paid municipal judge in a city in the same county?
The Bell County Attorney asked whether a county commissioner could be appointed, for pay, as the municipal judge of a city in the same county and hold both jobs at once. The Attorney General…
What does 'citizen of Texas' mean for the veteran tuition exemption in Texas?
A state senator asked the Attorney General to settle how to read the 'citizen of Texas' requirement in the veteran tuition exemption, Education Code section 54.203, which colleges and the Higher…
Can the Texas Structural Pest Control Board regulate removal of animals like raccoons and squirrels?
The executive director of the Texas Structural Pest Control Board asked whether the Board could regulate (license) people who remove vertebrate animals like armadillos, squirrels, skunks, and…
Can a Texas county take a private subdivision road into its county road system by accepting a gift?
Landowners on a private subdivision road, Lynnwood Lane, offered to give Waller County an easement or deed and the materials to fix the road up if the county would take it into the county road…
Does a bail bondsman's old or out-of-county license count toward their bail bond limit?
The Brazos County Attorney asked whether a bail bond board could count a surety's earlier, expired license toward the limit on how much in bail bonds the surety may write, under Occupations Code…
Can Texas revoke a manufactured home's title statement if it was moved without paying property taxes?
The Hunt County Attorney asked whether the state housing department must revoke a manufactured home's 'statement of ownership and location' when the home is moved out of the county without paying…
Can a home-rule city's voters change the city's election date by charter amendment after the state deadline?
After the San Marcos City Council used a state-law window to move the city's general elections from May to November, the Hays County District Attorney asked whether the city's voters could later…
Can a Texas nonprofit give a savings bond or prepaid card as a charitable raffle prize?
A county attorney, on behalf of a hospital that runs an annual fundraising raffle, asked whether the Charitable Raffle Enabling Act lets a nonprofit award savings bonds or prepaid bank credit cards…
How must a Texas county account for and spend the excess court-cost contributions the state returns to it under Government Code 26.008?
A county auditor asked whether Government Code section 26.008 requires a separate fund and budget for the excess court-cost contributions the state comptroller returns to the county each year, what…
Is the 1838 Live Oak Treaty between the Republic of Texas and the Lipan Apaches still a binding agreement?
A state senator asked whether the 1838 Live Oak Treaty, signed by the Lipan Apaches and the Republic of Texas, is still binding. The Attorney General concluded it likely is not. After Texas joined…
Do the Texas Recreational Use Statute's liability limits for cities and counties apply to bike facilities, or only skating areas?
A state representative asked whether two subsections of the Texas Recreational Use Statute (Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 75.002, subsections (f) and (g)) applied to a state, county, or…
Can a Texas water district director who owns a real estate, development, or construction business have a conflict of interest?
The board of the Bandera County River Authority and Groundwater District asked whether directors who own (or whose close relatives own) real estate, property-development, or construction businesses…
Can a Texas justice of the peace use a standing pool of volunteers to fill juries when summoned jurors don't show up?
A district attorney asked whether a justice of the peace could set up a standing pool of qualified volunteers for jury duty, after only four of seventy-five summoned citizens showed up for a recent…
Can a Texas bar or restaurant with a liquor license legally host a Texas Hold'em poker tournament?
An Ector County district attorney asked whether a business with an on-premises alcoholic beverage permit could host a Texas Hold'em poker tournament under two setups. The Attorney General drew a…
If a board member has to abstain over a conflict of interest, can they still sit in on the closed meeting about it?
A state senator asked, in connection with a groundwater conservation district, how conflict-of-interest law and the Open Meetings Act apply to a water board whose member also ran a company seeking a…
Do lawn sprinkler and landscape lighting installers in Texas need a criminal background check?
A county attorney asked whether the background-check requirement that Texas imposes on 'in-home service companies' and 'residential delivery companies' (Civil Practice and Remedies Code chapter 145)…
Can a Texas county put its criminal-fine collections under the county treasurer instead of the county clerk?
A county attorney asked whether the commissioners court could create a collections department, staffed by the county treasurer's deputies acting as cashiers, to collect criminal fines, costs, and…
Does federal law override Texas's law that fines railroads for blocking a crossing for more than 10 minutes?
A group of Texas county and district attorneys asked whether federal law overrides section 471.007 of the Transportation Code, which makes it a misdemeanor (a fine of $100 to $300) for a railway…
How much can a Texas court clerk charge to file a nondisclosure petition after deferred adjudication?
The Office of Court Administration asked the Attorney General two things: what fee a court clerk could charge to file a petition for an order of nondisclosure (a petition that seals certain criminal…
Can a Texas sheriff take money from a jail inmate's commissary account to pay for damage they caused?
The Texas Commission on Jail Standards asked whether a county sheriff may deduct the cost of damage to jail property from the commissary (trust) account of a prisoner who has been found liable for…
Can a Texas county sheriff also serve on the school board of a district in the same county?
State Representative Dennis Bonnen asked whether the Sheriff of Chambers County could also serve as a trustee of the East Chambers Independent School District, which sits in the same county. The…
Does the Texas Insurance Code apply to a county's self-funded employee health plan?
The Harris County Attorney asked whether the county's self-funded employee medical plan (set up under Local Government Code section 157.101, administered by a third party) is governed by the Texas…
Can Texas officials get around the Open Meetings Act by discussing business in small groups instead of a full quorum?
A district attorney asked the Attorney General to interpret section 551.143 of the Open Meetings Act, which makes it a crime for members of a governmental body to knowingly conspire to circumvent…
When a Texas police officer returns from military leave, can the officers who moved up be returned to their old ranks?
State Senator Troy Fraser asked, for the City of League City, what happens to a chain of police promotions once an officer comes back from military leave. A lieutenant deployed to Afghanistan on…
Can Texas's Treasury Trust Company accept cash as collateral in a repurchase agreement?
The Texas Comptroller asked whether the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company, which invests state funds and the TexPool local-government investment pool, may enter into repurchase agreements…
Can the Texas Lottery Commission sell its promotional merchandise to the public?
The Texas Lottery Commission hands out branded promotional goods (koozies, T-shirts, scratch-off coins, ornaments, towels, sports bags) to lottery players and retailers, and it asked whether it…
Can a Texas county official suspend an employee with pay?
A Brooks County official (the sheriff, who also served as tax assessor-collector) suspended a deputy with pay after the deputy was indicted, even though the office had no written policy on paid…
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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.