Impeachment is the process by which the legislative branch has the authority to remove a sitting public official. The actual trial on those charges, and subsequent removal of an official on conviction on those charges, is separate from the act of impeachment itself.[1]
In Texas, impeachment begins in the state House of Representatives which must cast a majority vote in favor of impeachment. Article 15, Section 1 of the state constitution says, "The power of impeachment shall be vested in the House of Representatives."[2] The state Senate then sits as a "Court of Impeachment to determine whether the official should be removed from office or prevented from holding office in the future.[2] Article 15, Section 3 of the state constitution says, "When the Senate is sitting as a Court of Impeachment, the Senators shall be on oath, or affirmation impartially to try the party impeached, and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the Senators present."[2]
Impeachments have historically been reserved for cases in which a public official committed a criminal act. The United States Constitution provides that the President of the United States shall only be removed from office upon "Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors."[3] In general, impeachments are a rare occurrence. As of May 2023, 21 federal officials had been impeached and the U.S. Senate found eight of those guilty and removed them from office.[4]
In Texas, three officials have been impeached and two were removed from office after impeachment—Governor James Ferguson (D) in 1917 and State District Judge O.P. Carillo in 1975. Ferguson was indicted on charges including embezzlement while Carillo spent three years in jail following his impeachment.[5] The Texas House of Representatives voted to impeach state Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) on May 27, 2023.[6] On September 16, 2023, Paxton was acquitted on all impeachment articles.[7]
In 2013 and 2014, the legislature conducted an investigation into the actions of Regent Wallace Hall. The House Select Committee on Transparency in State Agency Operations considered "whether he failed to disclose key information on his application to be a regent; whether he improperly handled sensitive student information; and whether he exceeded his authority in his private investigations of UT-Austin.[8] On August 11, 2014, that committee voted 6-1 to censure, rather than impeach, Hall.[9]
Laws governing impeachment in Texas are governed by Article 15 of the Texas Constitution. Both elected and non-elected officials can be impeached in Texas.
The following sections are outlined in Article 15 of the Texas Constitution.
Title 6, Chapter 665 of the Texas Government Code addresses the impeachment and removal of public officers by the state house. In order for an official to be impeached, articles of impeachment must be brought by the Texas House of Representatives. If the House adopts articles of impeachment, the Texas State Senate must then sit as the court of impeachment.
If the state legislature is not in regular session during the time of impeachment, a special session can be called specifically to handle impeachments. The Texas Legislative Code governs the process by which the Texas State Legislature can be brought into special session to address an impeachment proceeding.
When the House is not in session, there are three ways that the House may be convened for purposes of impeachment.[10]
If the House adopts articles of impeachment, the Texas State Senate is required to sit as a court of impeachment. If the Senate is not in session, there are four ways by which it may be convened.[10]
Only two Texas public officials have been removed from office in the state's history.
Gov. James Ferguson (D) was the state's only governor to be impeached and removed from office. He was impeached in 1917 and removed from office. Ferguson had vetoed the entire appropriations for the University of Texas in 1916, and was indicted on nine charges which included misapplication of public funds, embezzlement and the diversion of a special fund.[11][5][12]
State District Judge O.P. Carillo was impeached and removed in 1976 for "schem[ing] to take Duval County taxpayers’ money through phony equipment rentals."[13] Carillo spent three years in prison after being convicted of tax fraud.[14]
The Texas House of Representatives voted 121-23 to impeach Paxton on May 27, 2023.[15] The Texas Tribune's Zach Despart and James Barragán wrote that "Many of the articles of impeachment focused on allegations that Paxton had repeatedly abused his powers of office to help a political donor and friend, Austin real estate developer Nate Paul."[16]
The Texas House of Representatives General Investigating Committee unanimously recommended Paxton's impeachment on May 25, 2023, after beginning an investigation in March 2023.[17][18] The Texas Tribune reported that four investigators for the House committee said during a public forum that they believed Paxton "broke numerous state laws, misspent office funds and misused his power to benefit a friend and political donor."[19]
According to the Texas Constitution, Paxton was suspended from office during the impeachment process.[2] Following the House vote that impeached him, Paxton said, "The ugly spectacle in the Texas House today confirmed the outrageous impeachment plot against me was never meant to be fair or just. It was a politically motivated sham from the beginning. … What we witnessed today is not just about me. It is about the corrupt establishment's eagerness to overpower the millions of Texas voters who already made their voices heard when they overwhelmingly re-elected me."[20] A senior lawyer in Paxton's office, Chris Hilton, stated that what the investigators said was "false," "misleading," and "full of errors big and small."[19]
On September 16, 2023, the Texas Senate acquitted Paxton on 16 articles of impeachment, and he resumed serving as attorney general on September 18, 2023.[7][21] After the vote, Paxton issued a statement: "The sham impeachment coordinated by the Biden Administration with liberal House Speaker Dade Phelan and his kangaroo court has cost taxpayers millions of dollars, disrupted the work of the Office of Attorney General and left a dark and permanent stain on the Texas House. The weaponization of the impeachment process to settle political differences is not only wrong, it is immoral and corrupt."[22] The Senate also voted to dismiss the four other articles of impeachment that had been held in abeyance at the start of the trial.[23]
The House Select Committee on Transparency in State Agency Operations conducted an investigation into appointed University of Texas Regent member Wallace Hall in 2013. The Texas Tribune's Reeve Hamilton wrote that State Rep. Dan Flynn (R) "said the committee was considering three allegations against Hall: whether he failed to disclose key information on his application to be a regent; whether he improperly handled sensitive student information; and whether he exceeded his authority in his private investigations of UT-Austin, which have been marked by demands for large volumes of documents."[8] On August 11, 2014, the committee voted 6-1 to censure Hall.[9] The Dallas Morning News wrote that the "panel approved a 27-page censure statement that said “numerous willful actions by Mr. Hall constitute either misconduct, incompetency in the performance of official duties, or behavior unbefitting a nominee for and holder of a state office.”[9]
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