Author Archives: Carl R. Allred
Rescheduling Open Meetings in Texas Across a Range of Catastrophes
What do you do if you cannot hold your properly posted City Council meeting at the scheduled time? This is an issue many municipality’s face in Texas at some point, and more so than ever now that we are in the midst of a global pandemic. Anyone that has lived in Texas for more… Read More »
Government Employment in the Age of Covid
As of June 3, GA-26 (Governor Greg Abbott’s latest executive order implementing Phase III of his plan to re-open Texas) allowed most businesses to increase their occupancy limits from 25 percent to 50 percent. There is no occupancy limit, however, on local government operations, both county and municipal. With those restrictions lifted, many local… Read More »
Elections Ahead: How Will Texas Governments Hold Certain Elections in 2020?
Since the arrival of Covid-19 in the state of Texas, local governments have repeatedly found themselves in uncharted waters. One particularly hot topic for local governments right now has been the subject of general and special elections. Due to the need to social distance, the Governor’s office allowed local governments with an election date… Read More »
Fighting the Pandemic: Serological Testing For Essential Employees
Unprecedented. This is the most fitting term that can be used to describe what the world is experiencing due to the Covid-19 pandemic. As we sit in our homes doing anything we can come up with to keep cabin fever at bay, we stay glued to the most recent updates hoping for some glimmer… Read More »
What Are They Requesting? The Difference Between Public Information and a Judicial Record
If you work in local government anywhere in the State of Texas, you are all too familiar with the open records request. Most of the time it is simple to determine what legal authority to turn to in responding, but every now and then a request comes in that leaves us scratching our heads… Read More »
Where Did All the Water Go? Dealing with Drought in Texas
Drought is a major concern in the State of Texas, and for good reason. The last severe drought that our State experienced was back in 2011, and due to a lack of preparation, a lot of regions throughout the State felt the negative impact of that drought more than ever before. To be fair,… Read More »
Eminent Domain in the Lone Star State
The subject of Eminent Domain is coming up more and more frequently for Texas municipalities due to the rapid growth in population that Texas has been experiencing over the last decade. While the wave of people moving to the Lonestar State has started to recede thanks to the decline in unemployment across this great… Read More »
Small Estate Affidavit: How To Probate A Small Estate Without A Will
Losing a loved one is one of the hardest things we go through in our lives but losing a loved one who didn’t make the proper preparations before they passed can make the grieving process significantly more difficult. When a person passes away without a valid will this is called “intestate,” and the law… Read More »
What… This Old Thing? Texas Hotel Occupancy Tax and Historic Preservation
As most Texans already know, the population in our great state has grown by leaps and bounds in the last decade. In 2017, it was estimated that Texas was growing by more than 1,000 people per day, which was the largest number of any state in the country. This unprecedented growth in population is… Read More »
Texas Public Information Act Requests During Times of Catastrophe: Senate Bill 494
Many new laws that impact Texas cities will be taking effect come September 1, 2019. Some of these new laws have a positive impact on our municipalities, and naturally some have a negative impact. One new law that will be very helpful for Texas cities is Senate Bill 494. This Bill addresses emergency situations… Read More »