Could Kentucky cities keep staggered city council elections after the 1992 amendment?

Plain-English summary

In 1993, Kentucky's Attorney General concluded that cities could no longer stagger city council elections after voters amended the state Constitution in 1992. The amended section 167 required covered city officers to be elected at November general elections in even-numbered years. The AG said KRS 83A.110, which had allowed annual elections for half the council seats, was unconstitutional under the amendment.

The opinion applied a transition rule to seats scheduled for election in 1993: those winners would serve a single three-year term, with all council seats on the ballot in 1996. The official HTML's quoted transition sentence says "1986," while the opinion's own conclusion says "1996." The original text below retains both as printed.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1993. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Historical summary

City council members and candidates

The AG said the amendment ended the option to elect part of a council in odd years and part in even years. It concluded that members elected in 1993 would have three-year terms so the next regular election for all seats would be in 1996.

City election officials

The opinion read the new section 167 as requiring the city's elected officers to appear at even-year November general elections. It treated the earlier referendum authority in KRS 83A.110 for staggered annual elections as inconsistent with that constitutional requirement.

Common questions

Could a city keep electing half its council every year after the 1992 amendment?

The AG said no. Its 1993 opinion concluded that the amended Constitution required the relevant city elections in even-numbered years.

What happened to council seats scheduled for election in 1993?

The opinion said those elected in 1993 would serve a one-time three-year term, putting all city council seats up in 1996.

Did a prior local referendum preserve staggered elections?

The AG said KRS 83A.110, the statute that had permitted referendums on annual staggered elections, was unconstitutional after the amendment. The opinion did not describe a surviving exception for a city that had used that statute.

Background and statutory framework

Patricia M. Summe asked whether cities could continue staggered council elections. The AG compared the previous wording of section 167 and KRS 83A.110 with the 1992 amendment, then applied the transition schedule for two-year local offices scheduled for a 1993 election. The official page contains conflicting years in the transition quotation and conclusion; the conclusion identifies 1996.

Citations and references

• Section 167 of the Kentucky Constitution: even-year city election requirement as quoted in the opinion.
• KRS 83A.110: earlier statutory authority for staggered elections, found unconstitutional by the AG.
• Section 19, paragraph 4 of the transition schedule: one-time three-year terms for affected 1993 elections.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.ky.gov/Resources/Opinions/Opinions/OAG93-041.htm

Original opinion text

OAG 93-41

May 6, 1993

Patricia M. Summe

Summe & Summe

The Old Stonehouse

3384 Madison Pike

Fort Wright, Kentucky 41017

Dear Ms. Summe:

You have asked whether a city may continue to conduct staggered elections for city council members in light of the constitutional amendment adopted in 1992.

Before the 1992 regular election, section 167 of the state constitution said that “members of municipal legislative boards [] may be elected either in the even or odd years or part in the even years and part in the odd.” The legislature, in KRS 83A.110, permitted cities to conduct referendums to determine whether city elections should be held every year, with half of the legislative seats (which are two-year terms) up for election each year.

In 1992 the voters approved a change to section 167 so that it now reads:

All officers required to be elected in cities, urban-counties, and towns by this Constitution, or by general laws enacted in conformity to its provisions, shall be elected at the general elections in November in even-numbered years.

The transition schedule incorporated into the constitutional amendment (section 19, paragraph 4) says, “The term of office for local officers who regularly serve a two-year term and who are scheduled to be elected in 1993 shall be for a single term of three years. The regular election for those offices shall then be held in 1986 and every two years thereafter.”

Based on the language of the constitutional amendment, we conclude that cities may no longer conduct staggered elections; that KRS 83A.110, which purports to authorize staggered elections, is now unconstitutional; and that city council members elected in 1993 will be elected for three-year terms, so that all city council seats will be up for election in 1996.

Sincerely,

Chris Gorman

Attorney General

Ross T. Carter

Assistant Attorney General