Texas AG Slams 'Sneaky' Travis County Commissioners Over Secret DA Funding

Oh boy, grab your popcorn, folks! Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is on the warpath again, this time suing the Travis County commissioners court for allegedly breaking the Texas Open Meetings Act. The sneaky bunch reportedly approved a cool $115,000 to fortify District Attorney Jose Garza's home, all hush-hush.

The American-Statesman spilled the beans in August, revealing that Garza had privately asked commissioners for the cash earlier this year. They acted on a vague agenda item that transparency experts say was legally insufficient to keep taxpayers in the loop.

Paxton, along with Travis County residents Doug Keenan and Cleo Petricek, filed the suit last week, stating that "the posted agenda failed to give adequate notice to the public" due to the unique and interesting nature of the action.

In a delightfully snarky news release, Paxton quipped, "After the Travis County DA’s pro-crime policies have created such dangerous conditions for Austin residents, it is especially ironic that he secretly sought taxpayer-funded security measures for his home." Mic drop.

County commissioners fired back with a joint statement, vowing to protect officials and employees "despite the deliberate attacks by state leadership."

Politics aside, five government transparency experts weighed in, and boy, did they have some thoughts:

• Daxton "Chip" Stewart, an attorney and professor at Texas Christian University, admitted it was "rich for Paxton to file suit" given his own history, but noted that "it is good for citizens in a democracy when public bodies are required to do their business in public."

• Thomas Leatherbury of SMU's First Amendment Clinic hoped the AG's efforts were "systemic" rather than "situational", stressing that "partisan politics has no place where government transparency is concerned."

• Jim Hemphill, an Austin-based First Amendment attorney, expects the AG's office to monitor and enforce potential violations going forward.

• Paul Watler, a Dallas attorney and open meetings specialist, believes the case could reach the Texas Supreme Court, which might rule that the commissioners needed to provide greater specificity in their agenda notice.

• John Bussian, a Texas media lawyer, praised the suit for emphasizing government transparency principles embedded in the Texas Constitution and the Public Information Act.

So there you have it, folks. Stay tuned for more thrilling episodes of Paxton: Texas Justice!

Sources:

• American-Statesman
• Texas Attorney General's Office