Austin/ Politics & Govt
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Published on October 01, 2024
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton Sues Travis County Over Alleged Secret Meeting and Misuse of Funds for DA's SecuritySource: Texas Attorney General's Office

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed a lawsuit against the Travis County Commissioners Court, alleging a violation of the Texas Open Meetings Act. The complaint released by the Texas Attorney General's office accuses the officials of holding an unauthorized private session on March 19, where they discussed and subsequently approved $115,000 in taxpayer funds for the personal home security of Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza.

According to the details of the lawsuit, the Travis County Commissioners Court did not provide appropriate notice or allow for public observation of the discussions labeled as "security issues." They then quickly moved to vote in favor of the budget allocation for Garza's residence. This sequence of events was deemed a breach of the state's open meetings law, as the public was not given the chance to comment on the matter.

In a statement obtained by the Attorney General's news release, Paxton criticized the Commissioners Court, saying, "Travis County has illegally abused procedure to conceal self-serving decision-making, to hide from scrutiny, and to prevent citizens from knowing exactly what is being done with their money." The nature of the executive session, as outlined in the lawsuit, is not among those permitted under the act, which strictly limits closed-door discussions to a narrow set of topics – personal security enhancements, it argues, do not meet the criteria.

Attorney General Paxton highlights the irony of the situation given Garza's policies which Paxton describes as "pro-crime", arguing that these policies have led to an increased need for safety among Austin residents and now, the District Attorney himself is seeking taxpayer-funded security measures. No response from Garza or the Travis County Commissioners Court was available at the time of reporting.