If a quorum of a governmental body deliberates about public business within the jurisdiction of the body outside of a meeting authorized by the Texas Open Meetings Act, through multiple communications each involving fewer than a quorum, the governmental body violates the Act.
Action taken by a governmental body in violation of the Act is voidable. In addition, any interested person may bring an action by mandamus or injunction to stop, prevent, or reverse a violation or threatened violation of the Act by members of a governmental body.
The sheriff’s “exclusive control” of commissary funds under subsection 351.0415(b)(1) of the Local Government Code and his or her authority under subsection 351.0415(c) to “use commissary proceeds only” for statutory purposes gives the Hunt County sheriff the authority to initially determine whether an expenditure is authorized, subject to administrative review by the Commission on Jail Standards and judicial review under an abuse of discretion standard.
A court likely may, without a hearing, order a defendant’s rearrest to secure the defendant’s presence at a bond-revocation hearing, based on an officer’s sworn affidavit showing probable cause that the defendant has violated bond conditions.
Chapter 76 of the Property Code requires the county treasurer to sell abandoned property subject to its provisions at a public sale conducted in the county’s jurisdiction. If the county treasurer determines the highest bid from the public sale is insufficient, then the property may be sold through a public or private sale, including an online auction.
By operation of section 223.2012(b) of the Transportation Code, the Legislature granted the Department of Transportation authority to enter into facility agreements under the North Tarrant Express Comprehensive Development Agreement when the Department considers it advantageous to do so.
A court would likely conclude that the Department may use a change order to expand the scope of work within a facility agreement as long as that work is encompassed in the scope of work under the comprehensive development agreement.
Government Code subsection 661.063(b) provides that vacation leave pay for an employee who separates from state employment while holding a position that does not accrue vacation time is computed using the "employee's final rate of compensation in the last position held that accrues vacation." In the hypothetical scenario you describe, the administrative position is the last position held that accrues vacation, so the compensation used for the calculation for payment of vacation leave is only the compensation paid for the administrative position.
Courts following U.S. Supreme Court precedent would conclude that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment incorporates the Eighth Amendment protection against excessive fines.
Courts recognize article I, section 13 of the Texas Constitution as a constitutional protection against excessive fines. A court would not enforce an unconstitutionally excessive fine. Depending on the statute, a Texas court would be obligated to follow Texas law that requires it to separate the unconstitutional fine and uphold the portion of the statute that is constitutional, if possible.