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Council limits individual access to city attorney to 24 hours per fiscal year
Summary
After months of staff requests and a billing review, the council voted to cap the number of hours each elected official may use city‑attorney time without council approval at 24 hours per fiscal year; staff will provide consolidated legal-expenditure reporting.
La Marque — The City Council approved a cap on how many hours each elected official may outside counsel service from the city attorney without council approval, setting the limit at 24 hours per fiscal year.
The item, presented as follow‑up to previous meetings, grew from council concern about legal fees and billed hours after staff compiled time records since May 2024. City Attorney Gus explained that attorney bills can contain privileged information and said that when public production of bills is required, redactions are common to protect privileged communications.
Council discussion ranged from calls for transparency to caution about restricting necessary legal advice. “We are being asked to consider whether or not we want to put a cap on the number of hours an elected official can access city attorney services without council approval,” the presiding official said as the council opened discussion. Several council members asked staff to produce consolidated billing reports that include outside‑counsel expenditures and department breakout to inform future budget discussion.
After debate the council adopted a motion to cap councilmember access at 24 hours per fiscal year. Staff said councilmembers may request additional legal time for a defined reason and that the council may vote to authorize additional hours in specific cases.
During the discussion counsel also noted the city’s billing practices: the attorney bills in tenths of an hour, partner and associate hourly rates, and that some services are currently handled by outside counsel in addition to the city attorney. Staff said they would provide a clearer, consolidated report of total legal expenditures — including outside counsel costs — for future budget review.
No changes were made to billing rates; the action restricts unscheduled use of the city attorney’s time without council authorization but allows the council to approve additional hours for specific needs.
