Weekly News Round Up Of The State’s Top Law Enforcement Officer – Texas Attorney General
Sets New Nationwide Record by Collecting $4.378 Billion in Child Support, Launches New Crime Victims’ Compensation Portal, Court Ruling Upholds Texas’ System of Statewide Judicial Elections…
Texas Attorney General, Ken Paxton is the lawyer for the State of Texas and is charged by the Texas Constitution to:
- defend the laws and the Constitution of the State of Texas
- represent the State in litigation
- approve public bond issues
To fulfill these responsibilities, the Office of the Attorney General serves as legal counsel to all boards and agencies of state government, issues 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/.
WEEKLY NEWS ROUND-UP OF THE STATE’S
TOP LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER…
THE TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL
AG Paxton Commends U.S. District Court Ruling That Upholds Texas’ Time-Honored System of Statewide Judicial Elections
AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton today applauded a decision by the U.S. District Court in Corpus Christi upholding the well-established practice of statewide judicial elections for the Texas Supreme Court and Court of Criminal Appeals. The court ruled that the system fully complies with voting rights’ laws.
“Texans have been choosing the courts’ highest appellate judges in statewide elections for 142 years, and this system supports the state’s interest in maintaining judicial accountability and independence,” Attorney General Paxton said. “The system was enshrined in the Texas Constitution in 1867 and allows every Texas voter to vote for every candidate seeking a seat on the state’s two highest courts.”
A lawsuit against the state of Texas sought to divide the two highest courts into single-member judicial districts. But such a change would mean voters would only be able to vote for one seat on each high court instead of casting a ballot for all 18 seats.
The court concluded that the plaintiffs that had standing “have not satisfied their burden to show that the voting methodology results in a denial or abridgement of the right of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race or color.”
View a copy of the U.S. District Court ruling here: https://bit.ly/2QjOpeF.
AG Paxton’s Child Support Division Sets New Nationwide Record by Collecting $4.378 Billion in Child Support
AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton today announced that the Office of the Attorney General’s Child Support Division set a new nationwide record by collecting more than $4.378 billion in child support for the state fiscal year that ended August 31.
The collections benefited nearly 1.5 million Texas children and surpassed the previous year’s record by four percent.
“I’m immensely proud of the hard work and dedication of our Child Support Division to improve the lives of Texas children and ensure that children receive the support they need and deserve,” Attorney General Paxton said. “This success is particularly remarkable in light of the challenges the division faced as a result of Hurricane Harvey. Courts in affected areas were shut down completely for prolonged amounts of time, but that didn’t stop the hard-working men and women of the Child Support Division from achieving another record-setting year in collections.”
The division’s performance improves each year, despite a growing caseload and increasing demands. Collections in fiscal year 2018 grew by four percent over collections the previous fiscal year, for total growth of over $160 million.
Serving one in four Texas children, the Child Support Division handles over 1.5 million cases annually and collects $10.33 for every $1 spent to operate the program.
According to the most recent report from fiscal year 2016, the division’s efforts saved taxpayers $1.65 billion by keeping families off government assistance programs and helping them achieve economic self-sufficiency.
For more information about the attorney general’s office and the child support services it offers, visit www.texasattorneygeneral.gov.
AG Paxton’s Office Launches New Crime Victims’ Compensation Portal
AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office today launched a new portal within the agency’s official website that enables victims and claimants to apply online for Crime Victims’ Compensation and Emergency Medical Care Compensation for sexual assault exams.
The Crime Victims’ Compensation portal makes it easier for crime victims, claimants and their advocates to submit applications, upload crime-related bills, and follow each step of the claim and bill review process with near real-time updates.
Created by the Legislature in 1979, the Crime Victims’ Compensation program is administered by the attorney general’s office and reimburses victims and claimants for certain crime-related expenses not paid by other sources, such as funeral and burial, mental health care, loss of wages, loss of support, child care, and medical care.
The Crime Victims’ Compensation portal is intended to provide Texans with better, faster access that streamlines the application process while providing current information regarding application status.
“This portal will make the application process easier to navigate and help victims and claimants understand every step of the compensation process,” First Assistant Attorney General Jeff Mateer said. “This is a very effective solution to simplify and expedite getting victims and claimants financial help when they need it.”
The Crime Victims’ Compensation program receives criminal court costs, fees and fines from convicted offenders to reimburse victims and their families for crime-related expenses of up to $50,000. No Texas taxpayer dollars are involved.
For more information about the Texas Crime Victims’ Compensation program, including eligibility requirements, visit the attorney general’s website at https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/cvs/crime-victims-compensation.
You can access the online application feature of the new Crime Victims’ Compensation portal at https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/cvs/crime-victims-compensation-how-to-apply.
AG Paxton Thanks Scott Keller for an Incredible Record of Success as Texas Solicitor General, Names Kyle Hawkins as his Successor
AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton today announced that he has appointed current Texas Assistant Solicitor General Kyle Hawkins to serve as Solicitor General. Hawkins succeeds Scott Keller, who accepted an offer to join Baker Botts as a partner in the law firm’s Washington D.C. office.
“Since joining the attorney general’s office in 2017, Kyle Hawkins has used his legal expertise to fight federal overreach, uphold the rule of law and defend Texas in a number of important cases impacting our state and citizens,” Attorney General Paxton said. “Kyle’s experience as assistant solicitor general and his background in private practice and as a law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito have fully prepared him to continue the great work Scott Keller has done as Texas Solicitor General.”
Hawkins previously practiced law in the Washington, D.C. and Dallas offices of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, where he was a member of the appellate and constitutional law practice group. Besides serving as a law clerk to Justice Alito, Hawkins also clerked for the Hon. Edith Jones of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit. Hawkins is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Law School and Harvard College.
“I’m deeply grateful to Attorney General Paxton for giving me the opportunity to serve as Solicitor General,” Hawkins said. “I’m grateful to Scott for his leadership and mentorship, and I am excited to continue to represent the interests of the State of Texas.”
Appointed solicitor general by Attorney General Paxton in January 2015, Keller has argued 11 times before the U.S. Supreme Court. During his time as Solicitor General, Keller obtained major legal victories for Texas on the unlawful Obama-era immigration policy known as DAPA, Texas’s redistricting maps, Texas’s voter-ID law, illegal Environmental Protection Agency Clean Power Plan and Regional Haze rules, the Texas law banning sanctuary cities, and the state’s public school-funding system. In just this past year at the Texas Supreme Court, Keller argued five cases and won them all.
“Scott Keller has handled some of the most important and complicated litigation our state has seen in recent years, and achieved a career’s worth of incredible success in just over three years as solicitor general,” Attorney General Paxton said. “Scott is a brilliant legal mind who could work anywhere, but fortunately he chose to serve the state of Texas and its citizens. We should all be grateful to him for his superlative record of public service.”
Prior to becoming solicitor general, Keller served as U.S. Senator Ted Cruz’s chief counsel. He clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, was a Bristow Fellow in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of the Solicitor General, and clerked for Chief Judge Alex Kozinski of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. Keller received a bachelor’s degree in political science and philosophy from Purdue University and a law degree from The University of Texas School of Law.
“It has been a distinct honor to serve as Solicitor General, and I will be forever grateful that Attorney General Paxton trusted me with representing 28 million Texans in courts throughout our nation. The dedicated and talented lawyers and staff serving in the Office of the Solicitor General are in great hands with Kyle.”
The solicitor general’s office has its share of notable alumni, including U.S. Senator Ted Cruz and current 5th Circuit Judges James C. Ho, Kyle Duncan and Andy Oldham. Current Deputy Solicitor General Cam Barker is awaiting Senate confirmation to become a judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.
Request For An Opinion: Whether a city attorney and the city administrator are local public officials subject to chapter 171 of the Local Government Code
See original request: RQ-0249-KP
Received: Monday, September 10, 2018
Re: Whether a city attorney and the city administrator are local public officials subject to chapter 171 of the Local Government Code
Requestor: The Honorable J. D. Lambright
Montgomery County Attorney
501 North Thompson, Suite #300
Conroe, Texas 77301
Request For An Opinion: Whether members of the Physician Health and Rehabilitation Advisory Committee are entitled to legal representation by the Office of the Attorney General and indemnification under the Civil Practice and Remedies Code.
See original request: RQ-0248-KP
Received: Wednesday, September 5, 2018
Re: Whether members of the Physician Health and Rehabilitation Advisory Committee are entitled to legal representation by the Office of the Attorney General and indemnification under the Civil Practice and Remedies Code
Requestor: Sherif Zaafran, M.D., President
Texas Medical Board
Post Office Box 2018
Austin, Texas 78768-2018
