Legislature has little appetite to fund Ken Paxton’s settlement with whistleblowers

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, shown speaking in the Senate chamber during his January swearing-in ceremony, was accused of improperly firing top deputies after they accused him of misconduct. (Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune)

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Texas lawmakers are facing a choice: approve $3.3 million in state funds to end a lawsuit accusing Attorney General Ken Paxton of improperly firing four whistleblowers or reject an out-of-court settlement — potentially adding millions of dollars in costs while leaving the outcome of the lawsuit to fate in a long-shot attempt to make Paxton pay.