AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office issued a warning Tuesday to Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt and Austin Mayor Steve Adler, saying the local "Stay Home, Work Safe" orders contain what the AG's office considers to be "unlawful and unenforceable requirements."
The letters were issued Tuesday. In addition to Austin and Travis County, letters were also issued to Bexar County, Dallas County, and the City of San Antonio.
"Unfortunately, a few Texas counties and cities seem to have confused recommendations with requirements and have grossly exceeded state law to impose their own will on private citizens and businesses," Paxton said in a statement. "These letters seek to avoid any public confusion as we reopen the state. I trust that local officials will act quickly to correct any orders that unlawfully conflict with Texas law and Governor Abbott’s Executive Orders."
The letter from Paxton's office takes issue with the following points in the local orders:
- Restrictions on houses of worship. Local orders say that houses of worship "shall comply" with certain restrictions, including not making employment decisions based on sexual orientation, creating and implementing an infectious disease response plan, and minimizing or canceling in-person meetings or conferences. The AG's office also says the local orders trample religious freedoms guaranteed by the federal and state Constitutions.
- The definition of essential services and businesses, specifically mentioning law offices as businesses identified as essential under the federal government's CISA guidance.
- "Encouraging" restaurants to keep track of those who have dined in to help with contact tracing. The letter raises privacy concerns with what it calls the "Orwellian" order.
- Continuing to mandate face coverings, even without a civil or criminal penalty. The letter cites a CNN interview Adler gave, saying "Here in Austin we've kept face masks mandatory with the understanding that the penalty for not wearing a face mask in Austin is that more people are going to get sick and some of them are going to die." The AG's letter says continuing the mandate purports to "strip Texans of their agency."
- Both Ausitn and Travis County continue to, according to the AG's letter, "require all residents to shelter in place, close all businesses that are non-essential or not reopened services, and prohibit all gatherings except as permitted by the orders." The letter says Abbott's order "only requires Texans to minimize social gatherings and in-person contact with people who do not live in the same household," with no mandatory shelter-in-place order.
- Finally, per Abbott's orders on May 7, confinement is no longer a punishment for violating state or local orders. The local orders continue to attempt to impose a criminal penalty of 180 days in jail, which the letter says is invalid.
The complete letter is available online at the Attorney General's website.
Travis County and Mayor Adler both disagreed with the letter from Paxton's office. Travis County says they are reviewing the AG's letter and "disagree" with the assertions made. Mayor Adler issued a statement calling the AG's letter a "naked politicization" of the virus. "The City's Order complements, incorporates, and does not conflict with the Governor's Order. We will continue working to keep our community safe to the fullest extent allowed by law."
