"Am I required to tell you my name?" The honest answer in Texas is: it depends on whether you have been arrested, whether you were driving, and whether you are telling the truth. Brian Foley explains in this video.
Penal Code § 38.02 — Failure to identify
Subsection (a): A person commits an offense if they intentionally refuse to give their name, residence address, or date of birth to a peace officer who has lawfully arrested them and requested the information. Class C misdemeanor.
Subsection (b): A person commits an offense if they intentionally give a false or fictitious name, address, or date of birth to a peace officer who has lawfully arrested them, lawfully detained them, or has good cause to believe they are a witness to a crime. Class B misdemeanor — Class A if the person is a fugitive.
The asymmetry is the whole rule. A detained person may stay silent about their identity. A detained person may not lie about it.
Drivers are different
Transportation Code § 521.025 requires a driver to display a license on demand. Since 2023, the Legislature also made it an offense under § 38.02 to refuse to provide a name, address, and date of birth when lawfully detained while operating a motor vehicle. If you are behind the wheel, identify yourself.
Passengers and pedestrians
If you are not driving and not under arrest, you may decline to identify. You may also decline to answer any other question. Refusing to identify is not, by itself, grounds for arrest — though officers sometimes treat it that way, and the resulting arrest is then challenged.
The practical advice
Unless you have a specific reason to refuse, providing your true name and date of birth is rarely harmful and often ends the encounter faster. What you should not provide is anything beyond identity: where you were, what you did, whether you have been drinking. Identify, then invoke. See do you have to give your name or ID to the police, or call or text (713) 703-1718.