Legal Services

	"Our county clerk recently submitted his resignation effective in two weeks. We have someone in mind to appoint, but she can't start until next month. That's two weeks without a county clerk! What do we do until then?"

What can the county do when an elected official resigns before another can be appointed?

To maintain the functioning of government, Article XVI, §17 of the Texas Constitution provides that in most cases an elected public official continues to perform the duties of office (or "hold over") until his or her successor takes office. While a holdover, the resigned officer retains all the duties and responsibilities of office and continues to receive the same salary and benefits while the office continues to function normally under the resigned officer's authority. For more information about vacancies and holdovers, see our publication Pitfalls and Perils of Public Office.