Texas Attorney General’s weekly roundup
Staff Report
The responsibilities, of the Office of the Attorney General, are to serve as legal counsel to all boards and agencies of state government, issue legal opinions when requested by the Governor, heads of state agencies, and other officials and agencies as provided by Texas statutes.
The Texas AG sits as an ex-officio member of state committees and commissions and defends challenges to state laws and suits against both state agencies and individual employees of the State.
Many Texans look to the Office of the Attorney General for guidance with disputes and legal issues. The agency receives hundreds of letters, phone calls, and visits each week about crime victims’ compensation, child support, abuse in nursing homes, possible consumer fraud, and other topics.
To find out more about the Texas Attorney General, visit the official website at https://texasattorneygeneral.gov/.
Paxton Successfully Sues Vaccine-Mandating School District
AUSTIN – Last Thursday, August 19, Attorney General Paxton sued the San Antonio Independent School District and its superintendent for mandating all district employees receive a COVID-19 shot in violation of Governor Abbott’s Executive Order 38, which bans public entities from requiring individuals to receive COVID-19 vaccines administered under the Federal Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) “emergency use authorization.”
The next day, the District’s superintendent issued a District-wide “clarification”, saying that he “will not compel any staff members to be vaccinated until the vaccines are fully approved by the FDA.”
“State law could not be clearer: ‘No governmental entity can compel any individual to receive a COVID-19 vaccine administered under an emergency use authorization.’ But San Antonio ISD tried to play by its own set of rules. Thankfully, we stopped them,” said Attorney General Paxton. “The law states that ‘receiving a COVID-19 vaccine under an emergency use authorization is always voluntary in Texas and will never be mandated by the government.’ I will always fight to support the rule of law.”
AG Paxton Commends Court’s Decision to Uphold Texas’ Ban on Live-Dismemberment Abortions
AUSTIN – Attorney General Paxton applauded the decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to uphold a Texas law prohibiting live-dismemberment abortions.
In a 9-5 decision, the court reversed the district court’s judgment that prevented Texas from forbidding this type of violent second-trimester abortion in which a doctor rips an unborn child apart with forceps while the child is still alive in her mother’s womb.
These abortions are carried out on unborn babies as old as 22 weeks, and Texas put on evidence at trial that they may feel pain while being dismembered.
“Texas is a national leader in protecting and fostering respect for human life, including unborn life. I will defend the state’s lawful authority to protect the dignity of unborn children by prohibiting these barbaric dismemberment abortions,” Attorney General Paxton said. “During the trial, we demonstrated that this law is constitutional and consistent with acceptable medical ethics.”
Read the Court’s Order here.
Paxton Wins Again Against Biden Administration, Reinstating Texas’s Medicaid Waiver Extension
AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton commends a federal district court’s decision to issue a preliminary injunction after the Biden Administration capriciously revoked Texas’s Medicaid waiver extension.
In January, the federal government approved Texas’s extension, which benefited the millions of Texans receiving Medicaid. But just a few months later, Biden wrongly and unilaterally rescinded the agreement.
The court agreed that the Administration’s decision violated federal law, keeping Texas’s sound waiver extension in place.
“The Biden Administration continues to believe they can violate federal law again and again. Here, their disgusting power grab would have ripped a $30 billion hole in Texas’s budget, as well as sacrificed the well-being of many vulnerable Texans, on top of this move is a flagrant violation of the fundamentals of a constitutional republic,” Attorney General Paxton said. “This deplorable attempt to force our state into expanding Medicaid—the Biden Administration’s ultimate goal—was illegal, and we will continue to fight against every political ploy this Administration throws at us.”
Read the preliminary injunction here.
Paxton Sues San Antonio ISD and Superintendent Pedro Martinez for Employee Vaccine Mandate
AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a complaint asking for a temporary restraining order against San Antonio ISD after it refused to follow Executive Order GA-38.
GA-38 prohibits governmental entities and officials from mandating COVID-19 vaccinations. It has the force and effect of state law and preempts local rules and regulations.
“Executive Order GA-38 clearly states that government entities in Texas cannot impose mandates for vaccines with only an emergency use authorization,” Attorney General Paxton said. “The Texas Legislature gave the Governor the authority to create and enforce executive orders during a statewide emergency – not a hodgepodge of county judges, city mayors or superintendents. If other governmental entities continue to blatantly disregard state law, I will sue every single one of them.”
Read the complaint here.
Paxton Victorious Again in Latest Immigration Battle with the Biden Administration
AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton is pleased with the district court’s decision to issue a nationwide preliminary injunction against the Biden Administration after they failed to detain dangerous criminal aliens.
This is the latest series of immigration wins against the federal government for the state of Texas.
Federal law requires the Department of Homeland Security to take control of illegal aliens convicted of certain crimes after they serve their sentence.
But the Biden Administration rashly decided to stop detaining illegal aliens convicted of crimes relating to drugs or moral turpitude—despite federal law—forcing Texas to sue.
Today, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas ruled that the Biden Administration’s policies violated federal law.
In the ruling, the court also ordered the federal government to disclose important information about its practices “[t]o ensure compliance with this Preliminary Injunction.”
“The district court sided with the great state of Texas, granting us some much-needed relief—a preliminary injunction,” Attorney General Ken Paxton said. “The court saw the blatant irresponsibility from the Biden Administration that has caused tremendous harm to the safety of all Texans. It’s time for the federal government to wake up and address the chaos that they caused—and in the meanwhile, we will fight tooth and nail to protect Texans from their carelessness.”
Read the preliminary injunction here.
Notification of Opinion
Official Request Summary RQ-0416-KP
Whether a peace officer is prohibited from forcing entry into a residence or dwelling to enforce a parole revocation warrant for the arrest of a releasee.
Official Opinion Summary KP-0381
Chapter 508, subchapter H, of the Government Code authorizes the issuance of parole revocation warrants if a parolee violates a condition of a parole or in other specified circumstances. Under article 15.24 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, an officer executing a parole revocation warrant is authorized to use reasonable force to effectuate the warrant (like any other valid arrest warrant). If an officer has a reasonable belief that the suspect resides at the place to be entered and is present, the officer has authority to use reasonable force to enter the residence in order to execute the warrant.
Notification of Opinion
Official Request Summary RQ-0418-KP
Whether Texas law allows for a determination that a legislator has vacated office
Official Opinion Summary KP-0382
Texas courts recognize that a vacancy may occur by abandonment of office. Whether a specific legislator abandoned his or her office such that a vacancy occurred will be a fact question for a court and is beyond the scope of an Attorney General opinion.Through a quo warranto action, a district court may determine that a legislator has forfeited his or her office due to abandonment and can remove the legislator from office, thereby creating a vacancy.
Request for Opinion
Official Request Summary RQ-0426-KP
Whether certain medical procedures performed on children without medical necessity constitute child abuse
Date Received
Monday, August 23, 2021
Official Requestor
The Honorable Matt Krause
Chair, House Committee on General Investigating
Texas House of Representatives
Post Office Box 2910
Austin, Texas 78768-2910
Request for Opinion
Official Request RQ-0425-KP
Whether the Lone Star Infrastructure Protection Act prohibits a Texas transmission service provider from entering into interconnection agreements with entities owned by citizens of China or headquartered in China or with entities who lease assets from such an entity.
Date Received
Wednesday, August 18, 2021
Official Requestor
The Honorable Donna Campbell, M.D.
Chair, Committee on Veterans Affairs & Border Security
Texas State Senate
Post Office Box 12068
Austin, Texas 78711-2068
