By Tony Plohetski
Austin American-Statesman
Originally published Oct. 9, 2024
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing the Travis County commissioners court, alleging that the five-member board violated the Texas Open Meetings Act when it secretly approved $115,000 in funding to help District Attorney Jose Garza secure his home.
The allotment – which came to light when the American-Statesman began reporting on the issue in August – followed Garza privately asking commissioners for the funding earlier this year. Commissioners acted on a broad and vague agenda item that government transparency experts say was legally insufficient to inform Travis County taxpayers.
Paxton, joined by Travis County residents Doug Keenan and Cleo Petricek, made the same claim in their suit last week. …
Legal experts say the case stands out: They are not familiar with Paxton previously using the weight of his office to enforce potential Texas Open Meetings Act violations. The suit also comes as Paxton is in a frenzy of filing lawsuits against local governments in progressive communities.
Read the experts’ comments in the full story here.