MUNICIPAL OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES |
A city employee providing staff support for two municipal commissions is not a local public official subject to Local Government Code chapter 171 | KP-0105 |
Advisory board members are municipal officers for purposes of state law if they exercise a sovereign governmental function largely independent of the control of others | DM-0218 |
Airport security personnel, proper title for | LO90-081 |
All actions of a city manager in a general-law municipality are subject to control by the city council. As a result, the city manager will not be considered to hold an office, and conflicting-loyalties incompatibility will not apply to prevent the city manager from holding another public office | GA-0766 |
Appointment as member of City of Lubbock Civil Service Commission, executive director of Housing Authority of City of Lubbock is not an "officer" and there is no obstacle to | LO98-034 |
Appointment of municipal waterworks system employee as municipal housing authority commissioner | KP-0223 |
Assistant municipal judge, unless court finds holding second office benefits the State of Texas, member of board of directors of river authority may not also serve as | LO97-027 |
Authority granted to peace officers from adjoining states under article 2.124 of the Code of Criminal Procedure includes the authority to use deadly force and is limited to the municipal limits | GA-0690 |
Automatic resignation of city council member pursuant to article XI, section 11 of the Texas Constitution, vacancy must be filled by special election rather than by appointment | JC-0318 |
Automatic resignation of city council member, city that fails to hold a special election within 120 days after the date of the automatic resignation as required by article XI, section 11 of the Texas Constitution may not avoid holding a special election u | JC-0318 |
Automatic resignation, city commissioner whose term exceeds two years who runs for trustee of consolidated school district board resigns from office by operation of article XI, section 11 of the Texas Constitution | JC-0403 |
Automatic resignation, municipal officer charged with initiating special elections must act to initiate an election to fill a vacancy so that the vacancy is filled within 120 days | JC-0403 |
Budget officer, city council may not delegate to another person mayor's or city manager's statutory authority as | JC-0544 |
Candidate for city commissioner, a municipal fire department employee may become without resigning from present position | LO97-034 |
Chief executive, whether mayor or city manager of De Soto has duties or powers of for purposes of chapter 143 of Local Government Code | LO95-057 |
City attorney and city administrator - applicability of conflict of interest provision in Local Government Code section 171.004 to particular agreement | KP-0244 |
City commissioner may serve as director of nonprofit, no-share corporation provided he or she receives no compensation or other remuneration | DM-0194 |
City commissioner, article XVI, section 40 bars teacher employed by Texas State Technical College from serving as if he or she receives a salary from city for doing so | LO93-037 |
City commissioner, municipal fire department employee may not serve simultaneously as | LO97-034 |
City council member for a city located within the school district's boundaries - A school board trustee, whose powers have been suspended by the Texas Education Commission under subsection 39.112(b), Education Code, may run and serve as a city council member for a city located within the school district's boundaries. | KP-0014 |
City council member is disqualified from voting on a resolution approving city's payment of costs of defending council member in criminal prosecution arising out of performance of public duties (Tex. Att'y Gen. Op. No. DM-488 (1998) modified) | JC-0294 |
City council member may not be reimbursed for attorney's fees to defend criminal prosecution for violating Open Meetings Act if he or she is convicted (Tex. Att'y Gen. Op. No. DM-488 (1998) modified) | JC-0294 |
City council member simultaneously serving as school district chief of police, incompatibility of offices | GA-0688 |
City Council member's son with four years continuous service in his position before her election to the council may be promoted to police chief of city | JC-0546 |
City council member, eligibility to run for state legislature after resigning | LO95-069 |
City council members, whether telephone conversations between contravene Open Meetings Act | LO95-055 |
City council terms of home-rule city that exceed four years are contrary to Texas Constitution article XI, section 11(a) | GA-0985 |
City council, municipal charter recall election provisions impose a ministerial duty, subject to compulsion by mandamus, upon the | GA-0870 |
City councilman holds office of trust under the state | GA-0057 |
City manager form of government may only be adopted by vote of residents pursuant to statute | JC-0544 |
City manager of a home-rule city is not an officer within the common-law doctrine of incompatibility if he is subject to appointment and removal by city council | GA-0849 |
City planning and zoning commission members are local public officials within conflict of interest statute | DM-0309 |
Commissioned peace officers who are employees of the state or of a political subdivision of the state who are also employed off-duty as private security officers do not violate acceptance of honoraria prohibition in section 36.07 of Penal Code | GA-0256 |
Common-law doctrine of incompatibility does not bar member of governing board of metropolitan transit authority from simultaneously serving as acting city manager for city within
authority’s jurisdiction
| GA-0000 |
Common-law doctrine of incompatibility does not bar member of governing board of metropolitan transit authority from simultaneously serving as acting city manager for city within
authority’s jurisdiction
| GA-0538 |
Conflicts of interest of city council members, home-rule city may regulate consistent with Local Government Code chapter 171 | GA-0068 |
Conflicts of interest, dual office holding, and common-law incompatibility doctrine, firefighter simultaneously holding office of city council member | GA-0826 |
Continuous employment under nepotism law, janitorial services performed for city under agreement prior to election of janitor's spouse as mayor | LO95-015 |
Council member conflict of interest, eligibility to vote on matter affecting subdivision in which member resides | LO96-049 |
Council members, nepotism and conflict of interest statutes, authority to vote on appointment and removal of industrial development corporation director | LO96-010 |
County attorney, employment as attorney to city located within county | JC-0054 |
De facto status of elected officer who did not file signed oath of office statement | LO96-056 |
Determination whether city charter requires city council member to abstain from voting is beyond purview of attorney general opinion | KP-0231 |
Director of Mountain Peak Special Utility District need not disclose his interest in or abstain from voting on matters involving City of Midlothian, of which he serves as an employee | GA-0195 |
Eligibility to serve in the legislature, article III, section 19 of the Texas Constitution does not render ineligible a city council member whose current term is uncompensated; "term" is not synonymous with "tenure" | GA-0421 |
Employment with the state, city commissioner who accepts does not automatically forfeit his or her position and may continue in both positions if he or she renounces salary, and monies that city commissioner receives as expenses do not exceed actual expen | LO93-037 |
Exemption for property under tax-abatement agreement is lost when owner assumes office as member of city council (Clarifies Tex. Att'y Gen. Op. No. JC-0155 (1999)) | JC-0236 |
Grievance, discipline, and evaluation proceedings, employee subject to has right to open meeting but no right to insist upon closed meeting | JM-1191 |
Handheld laser speed enforcement device equipped with a video camera and GPS technology, under section 542.2035 of the Transportation Code a municipality is prohibited from using a | GA-0846 |
Hold over provision of Texas Constitution overrides city charter provision presumption of automatic vacation of office | LO96-014 |
Home-rule municipality may not change city council terms from three years to four years without charter amendment | GA-0985 |
Housing commissioner, it is for city commission of City of Brownsville to determine whether mayor or city manager has authority to remove | LO98-051 |
Incompatible offices, offices of county commissioner and council member of a city located in the county are incompatible as a matter of law; officer would automatically vacate office by accepting and qualifying for the second office | GA-0015 |
Incumbent officer whose term of office is set by charter at more than two but no more than four years holds over in office despite receiving a plurality of the vote in reelection attempt (assuming incumbent's term of office has not yet expired) | JC-0293 |
Investigation of crime that occurs outside city limits but within county, city marshal is authorized to conduct | LO98-077 |
Licensed plumbing inspector must be city employee, not independent contractor | JC-0382 |
Mayor does not hold over where charter provides that, in event of vacancy, mayor pro tem immediately assumes office of mayor | LO96-014 |
Members of the Beaumont Planning and Zoning Commission and the Beaumont Historical Landmark Commission are local public officials subject to Local Government Code chapter 171 | KP-0105 |
Military leave of absence, authority of civil service commission, when a police officer or fire fighter returns from a military leave of absence, to demote officers who had advanced in rank because of the military leave of absence | GA-0325 |
Municipal building officer may rely on the engineer's seal pursuant to section 1001.402 of Occupations Code and receive a plat or plan as having been prepared by a professional engineer who endeavored to comply with all federal, state, and local requirements | GA-0439 |
Municipalities with both a paid police department and a paid fire department, chapter 143 of the Local Government Code (civil service law) applies only to | LO93-006 |
Neither article XVI, section 40, Texas Constitution nor doctrine of common-law incompatibility bars municipal employee from serving as director of Mountain Peak Special Utility District | GA-0195 |
Nepotism statutes, members of the governing board of a home-rule municipality that has, in its city charter, delegated authority to its city manager to appoint department heads "subject to consultation with the" board are public officials subject to the | GA-0226 |
Office of municipal judge, county attorney automatically vacated position when he became county attorney | LO98-044 |
Peace officer not as a matter of law prohibited from serving as elected commissioner of another city in same county (Affirmed by Tex. Att'y Gen. LO-95-048) | LO93-027 |
Persons arrested by deputy constables for state-law violations, city council may prohibit the use of the municipal jail as a holding facility while arrested persons wait to appear before a magistrate, to post bond, or to be transported to a county facilit | GA-0166 |
Pleasure Island Commission, members of are officers of the City of Port Arthur and may not be appointed to Board of Park Commissioners of Jefferson County | LO98-048 |
Police officer employed by municipality, service on city council of another city | LO95-048 |
Police officers, whether constitutional oath of office must be taken by; validity of arrests by city police officer who did not file written statement required by Texas Constitution | DM-0381 |
Political speech of elected city council members, home-rule city may restrict only for a compelling governmental interest | GA-0068 |
Precinct chair of a political party is not a public office, and accordingly candidacy for by city official does not trigger resign-to-run provisions of Texas Constitution | JC-0562 |
Proper prosecutorial entity to prosecute a violation of a water control and improvement district ordinance under chapter 51 of the Water Code will generally depend on the court in which the citation or complaint is filed | GA-0923 |
Recall election, existence of challenges to the sufficiency of a recall petition does not relieve a city council of duty to order if the city charter so requires | GA-1043 |
Recall petition, individual officeholder who is the subject of, would generally have standing to file a declaratory action to establish the sufficiency of | GA-1043 |
Reservations and assignments in deeds executed by a member of a city council, whether they operate to exclude property from tax increment financing | GA-0725 |
Reserve peace officer employed by a municipal police department may not wear his official uniform and display the insignia of an official law enforcement agency while working as a private security officer licensed by the Texas Private Security Board | GA-0435 |
Reserve police force, a city that has adopted chapter 143 of the Texas Local Government Code may create and maintain a | GA-0893 |
Resign to run, authority of home-rule city to provide in city charter for automatic resignation of mayor or council member who runs for another office | GA-0217 |
Resignation of city council member of type A general-law city creates vacancy when accepted by city council or eight days after submission, whichever is earlier | GA-0046 |
School trustee may not serve as city council member where school district and city share overlapping geographical jurisdiction | LO93-022 |
School trustee may not simultaneously serve as mayor of type A general-law municipality wholly located within boundaries of school district | GA-0808 |
School trustee, chief of police of Type A municipality not prohibited from simultaneously serving as, where geographical boundaries overlap | GA-0393 |
Structural pest control license, whether municipal employee must obtain | DM-0190 |
Substitute teacher may receive compensation for serving as member of city council | GA-0394 |
Tax Abatement Act does not make the owner of tax-abated property ineligible for election to city council; rather, it removes property owned by city council member from eligibility for new tax abatement agreement (Clarified by Tex. Att'y Gen. Op. No. JC-02 | JC-0155 |
Tax increment reinvestment zone, council member of creating city not barred from simultaneous service on board of | GA-0169 |
Term limits provisions may be applied to service before effective date | GA-0356 |
Under Local Government Code subsection 22.077(a), a Type A general-law municipality may remove a municipal officer for incompetency, corruption, misconduct, or malfeasance at a regular meeting by a majority vote of those present and voting | KP-0061 |
Under Local Government Code subsection 22.077(b), a Type A general-law municipality may remove a municipal officer for a lack of confidence if two-thirds of the elected aldermen vote in favor of a resolution declaring the lack of confidence | KP-0061 |
Utility system employees are employees of municipality subject to municipal employment policies, compensation, and benefits unless municipality has delegated authority to utility system board | DM-0444 |
Vacancy on municipal governing body where officers hold terms longer than two year must be filled under article XI, section 11(b) of the Texas Constitution, which prevails over inconsistent city charter provisions | GA-0585 |
Veterinarian may be employed by municipality | LO95-003 |
Voluntary resignation from council position, city of Cockrell Hill, as general-law city, may not adopt resolution declaring that dual service as council member and volunteer fire fighter acts as | JC-0564 |
Volunteer fire fighter, city of Cockrell Hill, as general-law city, may not adopt resolution declaring that city council member may not simultaneously serve as | JC-0564 |
Volunteer fire fighter, member of city council barred from simultaneously serving as | JC-0199 |
Water supply corporation established under Water Code chapter 67, in accordance with Local Government Code section 171.009 a director may not serve simultaneously on a city council unless the director receives no compensation or other reimbursement from the water supply corporation | GA-0597 |
Whether a civilian advisory committee may review information maintained in a police department personnel file under Texas Local Government Code section 143.089(g) will depend on specific facts | GA-0818 |
Without requirements from state statute or city charter, home-rule city council has discretion to determine what constitutes a council member's absence | KP-0231 |
Authority and Duties |
Peace officers' duty to prevent and suppress crime generally does not conflict with local law enforcement agency's "no-chase" policy | KP-0249 |
Civil Service |
Appeal of personnel action, third party hearing examiner appointed pursuant to section 143.057 of Local Government Code is not necessary or indispensable defendant, but may be joined as a defendant in a proper case | LO92-017 |
Appointment of member of Fire Fighters' and Police Officers' Civil Service Commission, power to make belongs to chief executive of municipality | JC-0347 |
Appointment of member to Fire Fighters' and Police Officers' Civil Service Commission by chief executive of municipality requires confirmation by governing body | JC-0347 |
Assistant Chief of Police in City of League City does not hold civil service position
| GA-0536 |
Citizenship requirement, authority of civil service commission to impose for beginning fire fighters | JC-0143 |
Collective bargaining agreement between fire fighters and municipality, whether terms may prevail over statute | LO95-019 |
Confirmation of member to Fire Fighters' and Police Officers' Civil Service Commission by governing body of municipality is discretionary rather than ministerial act | JC-0347 |
Constitutionality of sections 143.088 and 143.1041, Local Government Code | GA-0670 |
Eligible for appointment to commission, interim officeholder and postmaster are; tax-appraisal-review board member is not | LO97-070 |
Entrance examination for same eligibility list for beginning positions in police department, municipal civil service commission may not hold at different locations or on different dates | LO98-095 |
Fire and police employees, application of position classification system in municipality that has not adopted civil service system | LO96-027 |
Fire department member entitled to civil service protection if position requires substantial knowledge of fire fighting and work in the fire department | GA-0041 |
Frequency of elections to certify representatives of police officers | KP-0044 |
Hearing, examiner's authority to close to public | LO96-018 |
Hours of labor and vacation of members of fire and police department in certain municipalities applies only to a "member of the fire department" or to a "member of the police department" | GA-0027 |
Local civil service commission may not adopt rules that awards additional points to applicants on the basis of residency within the municipality | GA-0586 |
Local Government Code chapter 143 defines "department head" as "the chief or head of a fire or police department or that person's equivalent, regardless of the name or title used." | GA-1029 |
Municipal police department positions subject to Local Government Code chapter 143 must generally be filled by competitive examination process; section 143.014 provides exception to general rule and allows police department head to appoint if specific criteria is met. | GA-1029 |
Noncivil service fire fighters, city may not appoint to fire fighting duties at race track | LO98-012 |
Number of persons department head may appoint under 143.014(c) Local Government Code may not exceed number of positions, plus one, in classification "immediately below that of department head" on January 1, 1983, irrespective of the particular title used | GA-1029 |
Police officer's or fire fighter's confidential file may be released to city manager and city attorney with consent of chief executive and governing body of municipality | JC-0283 |
Prohibition against certifying a person 45 years or older for a beginning position in a police department, no case or statute indicates that it applies to a police officer who voluntarily resigns and then is reappointed to a department
| GA-0741 |
Promotional examination for sergeant, Police Officers II and Police Officers III with two years continuous service with City of San Benito eligible to take | JC-0340 |
Required appearance as witness before civil service commission, police officers and fire fighters are not entitled to payment from municipality for | GA-0612 |
Resignation from civil service position in police department may not be withdrawn after acceptance by commission | DM-0248 |
Retirement benefit under section 143.073(b) of the Local Government Code for fire fighters and police officers injured or becoming ill in the line of duty is available only if pension fund is exclusively for fire fighters or police officers rather than al | JC-0310 |
Right to demand or petition for changes in contract, clause waiving does not violate Fire and Police Employee Relations Act | LO90-029 |
Rules adopted by fire and police civil service commission, authority of city to approve, reject, or review | DM-0447 |
Second consecutive term, municipal civil service commissioner may not be reappointed to | GA-0246 |
Seniority rights, police officer does not waive by accepting voluntary demotion | LO98-121 |
Term of member of Fire Fighters' and Police Officers' Civil Service Commission, expiration of does not constitute "vacancy" | JC-0347 |
Term of office, commissioner's runs with the office, not the appointee | LO97-070 |
Terms of office, commissioners' are properly staggered if starting and ending years overlap | LO97-070 |
Compensation and Benefits |
Article I, section 32 of the Texas Constitution, political subdivisions, including municipalities, are prohibited from creating a legal status of domestic partnership and recognizing that status by offering public benefits based upon it, pursuant to | GA-1003 |
Article XVI, section 40(b)(1) allows public schoolteachers to receive salary for city council service | KP-0211 |
Article XVI, section 40(b)(1) prohibits current public school district employees who are not schoolteachers from receiving salary for city council service | KP-0211 |
Economic development corporation may obtain benefits for its employees through a risk pool. To the extent permitted by Local Government Code section 501.067, an | GA-0990 |
Provision of health insurance benefits to surviving spouse of municipal fire fighter under Government Code section 615.073 | KP-0214 |
Compensation, Benefits, and Reimbursement of Expenses |
A civil service commission may not grant a pay raise to municipal employees effective from the date of their last evaluation where no policy for such pay raise was in place prior to the evaluation, pursuant to Article 3, Section 53 of the Texas Constitution | GA-0368 |
Benefits under chapter 615 of the Government Code, we will not speculate on the meaning a court would give to the phrase "continued health insurance benefits" given the latent ambiguity in section 615.073 and the circumstances by which a surviving spouse becomes eligible for | GA-0822 |
Death benefits, entitlement of widow of retired city employee to | LO95-026 |
Disability benefits that a retirement system determines are no longer payable under the terms of the retirement system as those terms existed on the date the retirement system began paying the disability benefits, article XVI, section 66 of the Texas Cons | GA-0227 |
Fire fighter's pension plan changes, whether they violate article III, section 53 of the Texas Constitution | LO97-113 |
Fire fighters' pension plan merger with Statewide Volunteer Fire Fighters' Retirement Fund, "unfunded prior-service cost" does not include benefits received by retired fire fighters | LO95-075 |
Fire fighters, municipality's lump sum payment to must include full compensation and benefits | LO90-072 |
Fixed monthly expense allowance, payment to city commissioners without regard to expenses actually incurred | LO93-042 |
Health insurance benefits and car allowances, payment of, constitute "compensation" | GA-0449 |
Health insurance, provision of as compensation for city officers and employees | GA-0130 |
Longevity pay system, no express or implied authority for general law city to establish | LO90-014 |
Mayor may receive salary from city despite being independent contractor with private corporation that receives state funds | JM-1165 |
Merit raise for city commissioner's sibling, whether city commissioner may participate in deliberation regarding | JC-0558 |
Military duty of whatever nature entitles employee to 15 days of paid leave of absence | LO94-007 |
Payroll deduction under the Fire and Police Employee Relations Act, general-law city with population below 10,000 has implicit authority to provide | GA-0625 |
Pension, Municipal Retirement System must calculate base updated service credit using number of months of credited service | LO96-121 |
Political subdivision of state required to provide workers' compensation coverage for employees | DM-0180 |
Required appearance as witness before civil service commission, police officers and fire fighters are not entitled to payment from municipality for | GA-0612 |
Retired teacher may be compensated for service on city council | LO93-041 |
Retirement benefits, limit on increases on earnings to determine compensation for calculation of retirement benefits of vested employees, constitutionality of | GA-0615 |
Retirement system in which dispatchers may be enrolled | LO98-090 |
Salary advances to employees not ordinarily within city's authority | JM-1194 |
Salary attached to position of municipal judge, county attorney's refusal to accept does not remove position from category of "office of emolument" | LO98-044 |
School district chief of police is not a “schoolteacher” for purposes of proviso of article XVI, section 40(b) of the Texas Constitution, and thus may not be compensated for service on a city council | GA-0874 |
Sick leave pool, city's creation of | DM-0129 |
Spouses of city council members and city employees attending convention, article III, sections 51 and 52 of Texas Constitution prohibits paying of expenditures in most circumstances | LO90-031 |
State employee may not receive compensation for serving as member of city council | LO90-106 |
Terms of a person's disability retirement plan in effect when the person began receiving disability payments continue even when the application of those terms reduces or terminates disability benefits | GA-0227 |
Utility system employees subject to municipal rules regarding compensation and benefits unless municipality has delegated authority to utility system board | DM-0444 |
Vacation days, eligibility of fire fighters and police officers in city of greater than 30,000 population to | DM-0270 |
Incompatibility of Offices |
Individual may not simultaneously serve as Forest Hill city council member and Forest Hill library district trustee when the city and library district have overlapping taxation authority | KP-0125 |
Liability |
Law enforcement officers likely qualify for official immunity when discretion is exercised under a no-chase policy | KP-0249 |
Procedural Rules |
"No-chase" policies generally do not conflict with local law enforcement officers' duty to prevent and suppress crime | KP-0249 |