Texas Department of Transportation v. Roger Sefzik

At issue in this case is whether sovereign immunity bars Roger Sefzik’s lawsuit seeking declaratory relief under the Uniform Declaratory Judgments Act (UDJA) against the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). In City of El Paso v. Heinrich, we dismissed claims seeking declaratory and injunctive relief against governmental entities as barred by sovereign immunity. 284 S.W.3d 366, 380 (Tex. 2009). The court of appeals relied on our pre-Heinrich ultra vires precedent to conclude that declaratory judgment actions do not implicate sovereign immunity. We reverse and hold that state agencies, like TxDOT here, are immune from suits under the UDJA unless the Legislature has waived immunity for the particular claims at issue. However, because Sefzik’s claim was filed pre-Heinrich, we remand the case to the trial court so that Sefzik has a reasonable opportunity to assert an ultra vires claim against state officials.

In March 2005, Sefzik filed a permit application with TxDOT to erect an outdoor advertising sign along Interstate 30. A few weeks later, another company filed a similar application, seeking to create a sign in the same area. After reviewing the conflicting applications, TxDOT found that Sefzik’s permit was invalid. Under former section 21.142 of the Texas Administrative Code, applicants for sign permits were required to verify that a sign would be near adjacent commercial or industrial activities that had been open for at least ninety days. See 43 TEX. ADMIN.