Summary
This Texas Attorney General Opinion addresses whether the Texas Ethics Commission possesses the authority to toll its 120-day jurisdictional deadline for resolving complaints outside of active litigation. Analyzing Chapter 571 of the Texas Government Code, the opinion distinguishes between the Commission’s procedural rulemaking authority and its jurisdictional mandates. Concluding that the statutory language unambiguously limits tolling to litigation scenarios, the opinion advises that any agency rules attempting to extend this deadline for other reasons are facially invalid.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether the Texas Ethics Commission may toll its 120‑day deadline under Government Code §571.1242(g) for reasons other than litigation.
Holdings
- The Commission may not toll the 120‑day jurisdictional deadline outside of litigation.
Key quotations
“The Commission may not promulgate rules that toll its jurisdictional deadline for reasons unrelated to litigation.” (at 5)
“In its verb form, “toll” is commonly understood to mean “to stop the running of” or “abate” a particular “time period, especially a statutory one.”” (at 6)
Factual background
The Texas Ethics Commission is charged with administering Chapter 571 of the Texas Government Code, which includes a 120‑day deadline for the Commission to either propose settlement or dismiss a complaint after a respondent’s response. The Commission has adopted internal rules that toll this deadline for reasons unrelated to litigation, such as when a subpoena is issued or staff workload interferes with response times. The Attorney General was asked to determine whether the Commission may toll the deadline beyond the statutory tolling provision that applies only during litigation.