Government salary transparency for Texas — how we built it

JUDGE

Texas state employees in the role of JUDGE. We have 8 employee records on file, spread across 1+ state agencies.

8Employees
$238,875Average pay
$210,000Lowest pay
$252,000Highest pay
Found at: COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS

About this role

The JUDGE classification is used across multiple Texas state agencies. In the OpenPayrolls dataset, 8 employees hold this title, with annualized pay ranging from $210,000 to $252,000 and an average of $238,875. The spread between the highest and lowest paid in this role is $42,000.

Pay variation within a single Texas state classification is normal and expected. The State of Texas operates a position classification plan in which most titles correspond to a salary group with a defined minimum, midpoint, and maximum. Agencies are free to set individual pay anywhere within that band based on the employee's experience, prior agency service, market conditions for the specialty, and any agency-specific salary supplements. Universities, certain regulatory boards, and elected officials' offices are not bound by the standard classification plan at all and set pay independently — which is why the same job title can show very different numbers depending on the employer.

This role appears most often at COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS. Click any agency to see its full payroll, or scroll down for the complete list of employees who hold this title in our dataset.

Geographically, the JUDGE role concentrates in Austin. Cost-of-living, agency funding source, and tenure all contribute to the city-by-city variation in posted pay. For full context, read our methodology and browse comparable Texas roles in the job titles index.

JUDGE by city

City-specific salary breakdowns for the JUDGE role. Each page includes local averages, top earners, and the agencies hiring locally.

Employees holding this title

Page 1 of 1 · Showing 8 of 8 records, sorted by annual pay.

NameAgencyAnnual payHire date
Mary Keel COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS $252,000 January 1, 2017
Robert Richardson COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS $252,000 January 1, 2015
David Newell COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS $252,000 January 1, 2015
Richard Walker COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS $252,000 January 1, 2017
Kevin Yeary COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS $252,000 January 1, 2015
Jesse Mcclure COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS $231,000 January 1, 2021
Gina Parker COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS $210,000 January 1, 2025
Lee Finley COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS $210,000 January 1, 2025