Texas Governor Greg Abbott has been busy — very busy. In a sweeping round of appointments spanning more than a dozen state boards, commissions, and advisory bodies, Abbott this week stacked key positions across state government with new and returning faces, signaling an active hand in shaping the bureaucratic machinery that keeps the Lone Star State running.
The announcements, dated from mid- to late March 2026 and originating from Austin, cover everything from criminal justice to oyster farming — which is either a testament to the breadth of Texas governance or proof that no regulatory niche is too obscure to require a gubernatorial stamp. “This week, Governor Greg Abbott selected multiple qualified candidates to serve on behalf of Texans,” the official release stated, in the kind of clipped, institutional language that belies just how many moving parts were actually involved.
Law, Order, and a New District Attorney
Among the more consequential individual appointments: David Broom has been named District Attorney of the 2nd Judicial District in Cherokee County, a term that runs through December 31, 2026. District attorney appointments tend to carry real weight at the local level — whoever holds the job shapes prosecutorial priorities in ways that touch residents directly, from how drug cases are handled to how aggressively white-collar crime gets pursued.
On the corrections side, Abbott also moved to fill seats on the Texas Board of Criminal Justice, appointing Martin Garza and reappointing Faith Johnson and Sichan Siv to terms expiring February 1, 2031. That board oversees the Texas Department of Criminal Justice — one of the largest prison systems in the country — so the appointments are anything but ceremonial, as reported in coverage of the announcement.
Public Safety and the Professionals Who Oversee It
Abbott moved to shore up the Public Safety Commission by reappointing Nelda Luce Blair to a term expiring January 1, 2032. The Commission provides oversight of the Texas Department of Public Safety — the agency that runs the state troopers, among other functions — so continuity there matters. Blair’s return signals Abbott isn’t looking to rock that particular boat.
Meanwhile, two new members are joining the Texas Physician Assistant Board: Shane Bailey, M.D. and Jennifer Wegenhoft, both appointed to terms through February 1, 2029. The board regulates PA licensure and practice standards statewide — a role that’s grown in importance as Texas, like much of the country, grapples with healthcare access challenges in rural communities.
The Podiatric Medical Examiners Advisory Board also saw action. Jose Ayala, D.P.M. and Rahul Patel were appointed as new members, while Joe E. Martin, Jr., D.P.M. was reappointed — all serving terms through February 1, 2031. It’s not glamorous work, but someone has to make sure the people treating your feet actually know what they’re doing.
Agriculture, Animals, and the Texas Jobs Machine
The Texas Animal Health Commission received one of the larger reshuffles in this batch. Ben Scholz joins the commission as a new appointee, while Jimmie Ruth Evans, Barret J. Klein, Joe Leathers, and Thomas “Tommy” Oates were all reappointed — each to terms running through September 6, 2031. The commission plays a central role in disease control and livestock regulation, issues that hit Texas ranchers and farmers in the wallet.
Then there’s the Commercial Oyster Mariculture Advisory Board. Abbott reappointed Eric Davis to a term expiring February 1, 2031, and named Bradley “Brad” Lomax as chair for a second term. Oyster mariculture — the cultivation of oysters in controlled marine environments — is a growing industry in Texas coastal waters, and it doesn’t run itself.
Perhaps the most ambitious item in the bunch, at least in scope, is the newly configured Texas Jobs Council. Abbott appointed Brent Taylor and Megan Mauro as Co-Chairs, then stacked the council with a roster that includes Tony Bennett, Todd Staples, Hector Rivero, Scott Norman, Robert Mele, Robert Wayne, Alan Robb, Lacy Wolf, Mark Maher Jr., and Bryan Edwards. That’s a lot of firepower aimed at economic development — a signature Abbott priority heading into the back half of the decade.
Education, Inclusion, and Memory
Not every appointment is about regulation or economics. The Texas Holocaust, Genocide, and Antisemitism Advisory Committee received two new members — Larry Levine and LeElle Slifer — while Sandra Hagee Parker was reappointed, all through February 1, 2031. The committee advises on education and awareness efforts, a mission that’s taken on renewed urgency as antisemitic incidents have climbed nationally in recent years.
Abbott also appointed Dakota Marks to the Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities for a term expiring February 1, 2031, and named Terry Zrubek to the State Employee Charitable Campaign Policy Committee through September 1, 2027.
Rounding out the week: Tycom Wright was appointed to the Texas Board of Professional Geoscientists through February 1, 2029 — a board that oversees the licensure of geoscientists working in everything from oil and gas exploration to environmental remediation. In Texas, that’s not a small job.
The Bigger Picture
Taken individually, each appointment is a line item. Taken together, they paint a portrait of a governor methodically filling out the infrastructure of state authority — planting allies and allies-of-allies into positions that will outlast any single news cycle. Some of these terms run to 2031 and beyond, meaning whoever sits in the Governor’s Mansion next will inherit this particular roster whether they like it or not.
That’s how appointments work, of course. Quietly, persistently — and with consequences that tend to show up long after the press release has been forgotten.
