BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 992

By: Nichols

State Affairs

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Under current law, state agencies must receive approval from the attorney general for contracts involving outside legal services, but there is no set timeframe for when the attorney general is required to approve or deny a request for approval. S.B. 992 aims to address this issue by setting a fixed 25-day timeline for the attorney general to approve or deny these requests. Additionally, if a contract is denied, the bill requires the attorney general to provide a written explanation for the denial so that the agency can understand the reasons behind the decision and address any issues with the contract before resubmitting or selecting alternative legal counsel.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

S.B. 992 amends the Government Code to require the attorney general to approve or deny approval of a contract for legal services between an attorney, other than a full-time employee of the agency, and a state agency in the executive department, other than an agency established by the Texas Constitution, not later than the 25th day after the date the contract is received by the attorney general from the submitting agency. If the attorney general denies approval of the contract, the attorney general must provide the submitting agency a written explanation of the reason the attorney general denied approval.

S.B. 992 applies only to a contract for legal services submitted for approval to the attorney general on or after the bill's effective date. A contract submitted for approval to the attorney general before the bill's effective date is governed by the law in effect immediately before the bill's effective date, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2025.