House Bill 4081 (2023) proposes that the commissioners court of a county may submit a request to the Texas Judicial Council for reimbursement of all or part of the salary paid to an associate judge. This would apply to visiting judges who have been appointed for cases constituting the offense of criminal trespass by an illegal alien. The reimbursement would be from money appropriated to the council for the purposes of border security.
Local Government
When Government Lobbies Itself: Why Texas Should Ban Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying
Texas local governments use taxpayer dollars to hire lobbyists to influence state legislation—creating conflicts of interest, distorting democratic accountability, and undermining the interests of Texas taxpayers. Key points: Taxpayer-funded lobbying expenditures more than doubled from the 85th to the 89th Legislature, now reaching as high as $111.5 million. Taxpayer-funded lobbyists consistently opposed legislation involving property...
April 6, 2026