On September 10, 2021, Williamson County Attorney Dee Hobbs requested an “expedited” ruling from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in response to his question of whether executive orders issued by Abbott in response to the...more
On September 1, 2021, more than 650 new Texas laws went into effect. As businesses ensure compliance with several of the new laws, Jackson Walker provides a summary below of a number of newly effective and upcoming laws....more
9/9/2021
/ Business Codes ,
Concealed Carry Permit ,
Concealed Weapons ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer No-Weapons Policies ,
Firearms ,
Governor Abbott ,
Gun Laws ,
Labor Code ,
New Legislation ,
Public Schools ,
Remote Working ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Vaccinations
At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, on March 16, 2020, at the Attorney General’s request, Governor Greg Abbott utilized Section 418.016 of the Government Code to suspend certain requirements of the Texas Open Meetings Act...more
Of the approximately 150 bills and resolutions related to COVID-19 that were filed, only 20 were passed by the 87th Texas Legislature and sent to Governor Abbott for signature. This article summarizes three pandemic-related...more
On Monday, June 7, Governor Greg Abbott signed into law a bill that prohibits any business operating in Texas from requiring what has been referred to as a “vaccine passport.” SB 968 by State Senator Lois Kolkhorst prevents...more
On January 28, 2021, Travis County Judge Andy Brown and Austin Mayor Steve Adler announced that the eviction moratorium in Austin and Travis County will be further extended....more
On October 8, 2020, Governor Greg Abbott issued Executive Order GA-32 to reopen certain venues to 75% capacity and allow resumption of elective surgeries in certain counties, with the exception of counties that reside...more
The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) has advised that two additional Trauma Service Areas (TSAs) now have COVID-19-related hospitalization rates high enough to trigger capacity reductions under Governor Greg...more
On Monday, December 21, 2020, Congress passed a new stimulus bill that will extend the nationwide eviction moratorium by one month, with an updated expiration date of January 31, 2021. The moratorium, which was first enacted...more
On November 25, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) gave hospitals facing another surge in COVID-19 patients more flexibility to care for Medicare patients outside of the walls of their hospitals. In...more
Update: On the evening of October 29, 2020, El Paso County Judge Ricardo Samaniego issued Order No. 13 “Stay Home/Stay Safe.” Order No. 13 supersedes all prior orders unless referenced in Order No. 13. Order No. 13 went into...more
10/31/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Abbott ,
Hospitals ,
Operators of Essential Services ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Rollbacks ,
Shelter-In-Place ,
State and Local Government ,
State of Emergency ,
Texas ,
Trial Court Orders
On October 14, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expanded the list of telehealth services that Medicare Fee-For-Service will pay for during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) public health...more
On October 7, 2020, Governor Greg Abbott issued an Executive Order, GA-32, that will begin to reopen bars up to 50% capacity—with the approval of relevant county officials.
Texas bars were initially ordered to close...more
Austin Mayor Steve Adler signed an updated order on Wednesday, September 30, 2020, which extended and updated the restrictions related to eviction notices through December 31. This extension is consistent with the expiration...more
10/5/2020
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eviction ,
Landlords ,
Moratorium ,
Notice to Vacate ,
Relief Measures ,
Rent ,
Rental Property ,
Residential Leases ,
Residential Property Owners ,
Tenants
On September 25, 2020, Governor Greg Abbott announced via press release that Texas’ major health insurers have agreed to continue reimbursing network healthcare providers for telehealth appointments at the same rate which...more
The Supreme Court of Texas has issued a new order intended to offer guidance to tenants who face residential evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On September 17, 2020, the Court issued its 25th emergency order of the...more
10/1/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Orders ,
Eviction ,
Landlords ,
Moratorium ,
Notice to Vacate ,
Relief Measures ,
Rental Property ,
Tenants ,
TX Supreme Court
On September 25, 2020, the Texas Supreme Court issued an emergency order that establishes the Texas Eviction Diversion Program. The release of the Court’s order coincided with Governor Greg Abbott’s public commitment to...more
10/1/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Orders ,
Eviction ,
Governor Abbott ,
Landlords ,
Relief Measures ,
Rent ,
Rental Assistance Programs ,
Rental Property ,
Tenants ,
TX Supreme Court
Yesterday, Governor Greg Abbott announced plans to continue Texas’ reopening process after the coronavirus pandemic brought public activity in much of the state to a halt earlier this year.
Executive Order GA-30 allows...more
9/18/2020
/ Assisted Living Facilities (ALFs) ,
Caregivers ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Rule ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Abbott ,
Health and Safety ,
Hospitals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Long Term Care Facilities ,
New Rules ,
Nursing Homes ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Public Health ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Social Distancing ,
State and Local Government
As part of a broader Trump administration announcement made on August 25, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued sweeping oversight changes in the form of an Interim Final Rule with Comment Period...more
9/4/2020
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Clinical Laboratories ,
Comment Period ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Hospitals ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Long Term Care Facilities ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
New Guidance ,
New Rules ,
Noncompliance ,
Nursing Homes ,
Physician Medicare Reimbursements ,
Physicians ,
Public Comment ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sanctions ,
Skilled Nursing Facility ,
Virus Testing
On Tuesday, September 1, the Trump administration announced an order, put forward by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, that claims to suspend residential evictions through the end of the year for many tenants...more
9/3/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eviction ,
Executive Orders ,
Forbearance Agreements ,
Grace Period ,
Landlords ,
Low Income Housing ,
Moratorium ,
Notice Requirements ,
Notice to Vacate ,
Relief Measures ,
Rent ,
Rent Caps ,
Rent Control ,
Rental Property ,
Residential Leases ,
Residential Property Owners ,
Right To Cure ,
Rules of Civil Procedure ,
State and Local Government ,
Tenants ,
Trump Administration ,
TX Supreme Court
Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo has extended the county’s face mask order, which requires all businesses within the county to require employees and customers to wear face coverings. The previous order, issued on June 19th,...more
On August 25th, the City of Austin and Travis County announced that the area has been moved down from Stage 4 to Stage 3 of the Austin Public Health (APH) COVID-19 Risk-Based Guidelines.
APH published this color-coded...more
The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission has approved emergency amendments to Rule §33.5 that will enable retailers who sell alcoholic beverages for on-premises consumption to more easily qualify for a food and beverage...more
8/27/2020
/ Alcohol Beverage Control ,
Amended Rules ,
Bars ,
Beer ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Rule ,
Executive Orders ,
Governor Abbott ,
Health and Safety ,
Public Health ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Retailers ,
Wine & Alcohol
On August 14th, the City of Austin and Travis County extended their “Stay Home, Mask, and Otherwise Be Safe” orders through December 15, 2020. The previous orders were set to expire on August 15, 2020. City health officials...more
The Texas Supreme Court has extended the moratorium on residential eviction procedures for CARES Act applicable residences until September 30, 2020, offering a few more weeks of relief to certain renters as the economic...more
8/12/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Eviction ,
Executive Orders ,
Forbearance Agreements ,
Grace Period ,
Landlords ,
Low Income Housing ,
Moratorium ,
Notice Requirements ,
Relief Measures ,
Rent ,
Rent Caps ,
Rent Control ,
Rental Property ,
Residential Leases ,
Right To Cure ,
Rules of Civil Procedure ,
State and Local Government ,
Tenants ,
Trump Administration ,
TX Supreme Court