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Texas ALJ Statistics

Social Security Disability hearing statistics for 7 hearing offices and 72 administrative law judges in Texas.

State Approval Rate

57.3%

vs 58.3% national

Hearing Offices

7

in Texas

ALJs

72

active judges

Avg Wait Time

7.1 months

vs 8 months national

Hearing Offices in Texas

Office ALJs Approval Rate Wait Time Processing Pending
Dallas Downtown 9 62.5% 8 months 272 days 1,810
Dallas North Oho 11 65.1% 7 months 250 days 3,280
Fort Worth 8 54.6% 8 months 266 days 1,803
Houston North 10 56.6% 6 months 216 days 2,262
Houston West 12 56% 6.5 months 248 days 2,141
Rio Grande Valley TX 4 57.8% 8 months 291 days 766
San Antonio 18 52.3% 7 months 258 days 3,564

About Texas Disability Hearings

The Social Security Administration operates 7 hearing offices in Texas, falling under SSA Region 06. These offices are staffed by 72 ALJs who preside over disability appeals from claimants throughout the state.

The average approval rate across Texas hearing offices is 57.3%, which is close to the national average of 58.3%. This rate aggregates decisions from all judges across the state's hearing offices. Within the state, office-level approval rates range from 52.3% at the San Antonio hearing office to 65.1% at the Dallas North Oho hearing office, a 13-point difference.

Wait times across Texas offices range from 6 months at the Houston North hearing office to 8 months at the Rio Grande Valley TX hearing office.

Across all offices, there are 15,626 cases currently pending in Texas, averaging approximately 217 pending cases per judge. Click on any hearing office below to see detailed judge-level statistics and individual approval rates.

Texas Hearing Landscape

With 7 hearing offices spread across the state, Texas's disability hearing landscape offers multiple points of comparison for attorneys and claimants. Case assignment is determined by residential address, so the specific office — and the judges at that office — depends on where the claimant lives. All statistics on this page are weighted by individual judge caseloads to accurately reflect the volume of cases processed.

With 7 hearing offices, Texas provides multiple venues for disability hearings. Office sizes vary from 4 judges at the Rio Grande Valley TX hearing office to 18 judges at the San Antonio hearing office. Cases are assigned to offices based on the claimant's residential address, so hearing location is determined by geography rather than preference.

For attorneys practicing disability law in Texas, understanding the local hearing landscape is an important part of case preparation. The data on this page provides a starting point for evaluating office-level patterns, though individual judge statistics offer more granular insight into decision-making tendencies. Visit individual office pages for judge-level data.

Texas Disability Hearing FAQ

How often are cases approved in Texas?
The average ALJ approval rate in Texas is 57.3% for FY 2025. This includes both fully favorable and partially favorable decisions. The national average is 58.3%, putting Texas below the national benchmark. Office-level rates within the state range from 52.3% to 65.1%.
Where are the disability hearing offices in Texas?
Texas has 7 SSA hearing offices with a total of 72 administrative law judges. The largest office is the San Antonio hearing office with 18 judges, while the Rio Grande Valley TX hearing office has 4. The SSA assigns cases to offices according to claimant geography, and judges receive cases through rotation rather than selection.
Where in Texas can I get a disability hearing fastest?
The Houston North hearing office currently has the shortest wait time at 6 months. The longest wait is at the Rio Grande Valley TX hearing office at 8 months, a gap of 2.0 months. Wait time averages reflect the most recently reported SSA data and will evolve as new disposition reports are released.
How is state data calculated?
Texas has 7 offices serving 72 judges across the state. State averages are calculated by aggregating data from all hearing offices within the state. See our methodology page for details on data sources and calculations. Source data comes from the Social Security Administration's public reporting on ALJ decisions, which we incorporate as updates are released.
How do Texas's hearing statistics compare nationally?
Texas is in SSA Region 06. Its average approval rate of 57.3% is below the national average of 58.3%. For a full comparison of approval rates and wait times across all states, visit the states overview page.
Why do approval rates vary across offices in Texas?
Hearing outcomes in Texas are influenced by several factors including the strength and completeness of medical evidence, vocational factors such as the claimant's age, education, and work history, the quality of legal representation at the hearing, and individual judge decision-making patterns. With 72 active judges across 7 offices, outcomes in Texas reflect a broad range of judicial decision-making patterns.

While all ALJs apply the same federal disability standards, these case-level factors can lead to variation in outcomes across offices and judges.
Is it possible to change hearing offices within Texas?
Your hearing office is determined by where you live, and the specific judge is assigned through the office's rotational calendar — neither is chosen by the claimant. While transfers between offices are generally not possible based on preference, a change of address that moves you into a different office's service area may result in case reassignment. Texas has 7 hearing offices, each serving a defined geographic area within the state.

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