Weekly News Round Up Of The State’s Top Law Enforcement Officer – Texas Attorney General
Requests and Opinions, Travis County and Texas Child Support Division Conducts Child Support Roundup
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
NOTIFICATION OF OPINION
Opinion: KP-0225 Applicability of Education Code section 44.043 to a school district’s consideration of a vendor’s or person’s relationship with a charter school
Request for Opinion: RQ-0227-KP
Summary of Opinion: A court would likely conclude that Education Code section 44.043 prohibits a school district, in its procurement efforts, from taking into account a vendor’s or person’s relationship with an organization. The scope of subsection 44.043(b) includes a business relationship between a vendor and an organization, and the term “organization” in subsection 44.043(b) includes charter schools.
With respect to a procurement or construction for a public work or public improvement, a court would likely determine that section 44.043 applies to all aspects of the procurement process from the beginning of the process to any subsequent contracts or agreements. Outside of the public work or improvement project, a .court would likely find that section 44.043 applies to each procurement of goods or services or award of contract.
Section 44.043 applies to procurement activities authorized by any statute authorizing a school district’s procurement.
NOTIFICATION OF OPINION
Opinion: KP-0224 Authority and process for removing historical plaques in the Texas Capitol Complex
Request for Opinion: RQ-0226-KP
Summary of Opinion: The Legislature authorized installation of the Children of the Confederacy plaque inside the Capitol in 1959, and it likewise possesses authority to remove or relocate the plaque by adopting a resolution directing its removal or relocation.
Alongside the Legislature, section 2166.5011 of the Government Code authorizes the State Preservation Board and the Texas Historical Commission to remove or relocate monuments or memorials such as the plaque. Board rules establish a procedure for requesting a change to contents of the Capitol.
Whether and how to address a request for removal or relocation of the plaque is a discretionary function of the Legislature, the Board, or the Commission, and a court is unlikely to grant mandamus relief in such circumstances.
NOTIFICATION OF OPINION
Opinion: KP-0222 Whether recreational vehicle park guests are licensees or tenants
Request for Opinion: RQ-0222-KP
Summary of Opinion: An agreement between a recreational vehicle park and a guest staying on the premises in a recreational vehicle may establish a landlord-tenant relationship, a license, or other legal relationship depending on its terms.
NOTIFICATION OF OPINION
Opinion: KP-0223 Whether an employee of the Eagle Pass Water Works System is a municipal employee for purposes of section 392.031 of the Local Government Code, which prohibits a municipal officer or employee from being appointed a commissioner to a municipal housing authority
Request for Opinion: RQ-0224-KP
Summary of Opinion:: Absent facts and circumstances establishing that the City of Eagle Pass possesses an express or implied contractual right of control over the work of a person employed by the Eagle Pass Water Works System, a court would likely determine such a person is not an employee of the City of Eagle Pass for purposes of section 392.031 of the Local Government Code.
AG Paxton Praises Texas Appellate Court Decision to Toss Out Austin’s Unlawful Paid Sick Leave Ordinance
AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton today issued the following statement after the Court of Appeals for the 3rd District of Texas blocked the city of Austin’s paid sick leave ordinance, concluding that it violates the Texas Constitution and Texas law.
“Today’s appellate decision affirms that the Texas Minimum Wage Act expressly preempts cities like Austin from passing a different law simply because they disagree with the judgment of our state’s elected representatives,” Attorney General Paxton said. “The Legislature has established the minimum amount of compensation for workers, and the Texas Constitution prohibits local municipalities from ignoring the Legislature’s decision.”
Attorney General Paxton intervened in a lawsuit filed by the Texas Association of Business, National Federation of Independent Business, American Staffing Association, LeadingEdge Personnel, Staff Force, HT Staffing and Burnett Staffing Specialists against city of Austin’s sick leave ordinance. Austin is the first Texas city to pass such a law. It was scheduled to take effect October 1.
When the Legislature enacted the Texas Minimum Wage Act, it intended to set a single, uniform policy for the entire state. The policy it set made no mention whatsoever of requiring employers to provide paid time off from work.
Approved by the Austin City Council in February, the sick leave ordinance broadly applies to a variety of employers – including companies, nonprofits, individual households, churches and charitable foundations.
It mandates that small businesses with 15 or fewer employees provide workers with up to six days of paid sick leave per year. All other private employers are required to allow up to 64 hours of paid sick leave.
View a copy of today’s opinion here: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/images/admin/2018/Press/2018.11.16%20–%20Opinion%20(Paid%20Sick%20Leave).pdf.
AG Paxton Asks 5th Circuit to Uphold Constitutionality of Texas Law on the Humane Disposition of Fetal Remains
AUSTIN – Attorney General Ken Paxton today asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit to review and reverse a lower court’s decision blocking Texas from implementing laws requiring the humane disposition of fetal remains.
“Texas values the dignity of the unborn. Texas law prevents fetal remains from being tossed out in landfills or sewers,” Attorney General Paxton said. “We established during a week long district court trial in July that the law is constitutional and does not impact the abortion procedure or the availability of abortion in Texas. We’re hopeful the 5th Circuit will uphold the Texas law and reverse the lower court’s misguided ruling.”
A provision of Senate Bill 8, enacted by the Texas Legislature in 2017, requires health care facilities to provide a dignified disposition for fetal remains from miscarriages or abortions through interment or the spreading of ashes. Previous law permitted fetal remains to be discharged into a sewer system or incinerated and sent to a landfill.
The U.S. Supreme Court has consistently held that states may express their respect for the unborn as long as they do not impose a substantial obstacle to a woman’s right to a pre-viability abortion. Senate Bill 8 imposes no such obstacle.
During the week long district court trial, a legal team from Attorney General Paxton’s office presented evidence and expert testimony to bolster Texas’ case against challenges to Senate Bill 8. Among other things, they demonstrated that if the law takes effect, women will continue to have the same access to abortion that they previously had and it will not violate any patient’s constitutional rights.
View a copy of the brief here: https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/images/admin/2018/Press/AppellantsBrief_FM.pdf
