Can a Mississippi city give money to a private citizen to buy playground equipment for a city park?

Plain-English summary

The Mayor of Bruce wanted to know whether the city could give money to citizens (presumably civic volunteers) to buy playground equipment for a park on city property. The intuition: a private group is willing to take care of the procurement, the equipment ends up on city property, the city is just providing the funds.

The AG said no. Mississippi has a clear public-purpose rule for city funds. A city cannot give money to a private citizen, even when the eventual benefit returns to the city. The 2017 Mallette AG opinion is the supporting authority: "without specific statutory authority, a municipality cannot direct funds to individual citizens for housing transition expenses." The same reasoning applies to playground equipment funds.

The good news: the AG explicitly noted the city has authority to buy the playground equipment itself. Section 21-17-5(1) gives city governing authorities "the care, management and control of the municipal affairs and its property and finances," which includes purchasing playground equipment for a city park. Bruce is a code charter municipality, so the procurement decision should follow Sections 21-3-1 et seq. (the code charter provisions for municipal decision-making).

So the path forward is clear: the city makes the purchase. If volunteers want to be involved, they can help select the equipment, write the specifications, organize fundraising for the city to use, advise on installation. What they cannot do is be the conduit for city funds.

What this means for you

If you are a Mississippi mayor or city council member with civic volunteers offering to help with city projects

Volunteers can do a lot, but they cannot be a pass-through for city money. Structure the project so:

1. Volunteers raise private money. They can solicit donations from individuals, businesses, and foundations. The donations go to the city (as restricted-purpose donations for the park) or to a 501(c)(3) friends-of-the-city group.

2. The city makes the purchase. Once funded, the city itself buys the equipment, installs it on city property, and owns it. The city handles procurement, contracting, and contract management.

3. Volunteers help with non-financial work. Selecting equipment, writing specs, attending vendor demos, organizing volunteer installation days. None of that requires city funds going to private hands.

If you are a civic volunteer wanting to help your city upgrade a park

Talk to the city about how to be useful without becoming a financial conduit. Most cities welcome volunteer-driven projects when they are structured cleanly. Form a friends-of-the-park nonprofit or work through an established civic group. Raise private money. Then either donate the funds to the city for purchase, or have the nonprofit purchase the equipment and donate it to the city as a charitable contribution.

If you are a Mississippi city attorney

Build a written policy for civic-led projects. The 2017 Mallette opinion (housing transition) and the 2024 Hubbard opinion (playground equipment) both stand for the same principle: city funds cannot flow through individual citizens. Any volunteer-financed structure has to keep city funds and private hands separate.

If you operate a Mississippi nonprofit that supports municipal projects

Your nonprofit can be the right vehicle for civic-led projects. Donations from private donors go to your nonprofit; you then either grant funds to the city for the project (which is allowed under various statutory frameworks for accepting donations) or directly purchase items and donate them to the city. Either structure complies with the AG's framework.

If you are a state legislator hearing complaints about this rule

The AG's reasoning is statutory, not constitutional. The legislature could create authorization for cities to give funds to citizens for specific public-purpose projects. As of now, no such authority exists for the playground-equipment scenario.

Common questions

Q: Why can't the city just reimburse the citizen after the equipment is bought?
A: Same legal problem. The reimbursement is a transfer of city money to an individual citizen, even if it is in exchange for receipts. Without specific statutory authority for the reimbursement, it is barred for the same reason a direct cash advance would be.

Q: What about a contractor relationship? Could the city contract with a citizen to purchase and install playground equipment?
A: That is structurally different. A contractor relationship has consideration on both sides: the city pays for goods and services, and the contractor delivers. If the citizen wants to act as a contractor (selecting, purchasing, delivering, installing playground equipment for a fee), municipal procurement laws apply (often requiring bidding for purchases over thresholds). But that is not the same as "giving funds to a citizen to purchase equipment."

Q: Can a city accept a donation from a citizen who buys playground equipment for the city park?
A: Yes. A citizen can buy playground equipment with their own money and donate it to the city. The city accepts the donation and the equipment becomes city property. No cash flow from the city to the citizen, no problem.

Q: What is a code charter municipality and why does it matter?
A: Mississippi cities operate under one of several charter forms: code charter (the default, governed by Sections 21-3-1 et seq.), commission, mayor-council, council-manager, or special charter. Bruce is a code charter municipality, so its decision-making procedures follow the code charter provisions. The AG noted this to direct Bruce to the right procedural framework for the city-as-purchaser approach.

Q: Can the city use grant money to give to citizens for park improvements?
A: Not directly. Even when the funds originate from a federal or state grant, they become city funds when the city receives them, and the same prohibition on giving funds to individual citizens applies. Grant programs often have their own additional restrictions on use, which would also need to be satisfied.

Q: What about reimbursing volunteers for actual expenses (paint, tools)?
A: That gets into smaller-scale questions. Strictly applying the AG's rule, even small reimbursements would be problematic without statutory authority. Many cities handle this practically by having volunteers buy materials from a city-account vendor (so the city pays the vendor directly), or by having the city's own staff pick up materials.

Background and statutory framework

Section 21-17-5(1) gives municipal governing authorities general management authority:

The governing authorities of every municipality of this state shall have the care, management and control of the municipal affairs and its property and finances.

That authority includes purchasing equipment for municipal parks, but the AG has long held that "a public entity can only spend money for an appropriate public function." The 2017 Mallette AG opinion held that "without specific statutory authority, a municipality cannot direct funds to individual citizens for housing transition expenses." The same principle bars giving funds to individual citizens for park equipment.

The procedural framework for code charter municipality decisions runs through Sections 21-3-1 et seq.

The constitutional backdrop is Article IV, Section 66 of the Mississippi Constitution and § 21-17-5(2), which together prohibit municipal donations except as specifically authorized by statute. The 2024 Giddy opinion (also in this series) discusses the donation framework and the "good and valuable consideration" exception. A grant of funds to a private citizen with no consideration in return is the donation pattern.

Citations

• Miss. Code Ann. § 21-17-5(1)
• Miss. Code Ann. §§ 21-3-1 et seq.
• MS AG Op., Mallette (Feb. 24, 2017)

Source

• Landing page: https://attorneygenerallynnfitch.com/divisions/opinions-and-policy/recent-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://attorneygenerallynnfitch.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/J.Hubbard-July-31-2024-Municipalitys-Ability-to-Provide-Funds-to-Citizens-to-Purchase-Playground-Equipment.pdf

Original opinion text

July 31, 2024
The Honorable Jimmy Hubbard
Mayor, City of Bruce
Post Office Box 1326
Bruce, Mississippi 38915
Re: Municipality's Ability to Provide Funds to Citizens to Purchase Playground Equipment

Dear Mayor Hubbard:
The Office of the Attorney General has received your request for an official opinion.

Question Presented
May a municipality provide funds to citizens to purchase playground equipment for a park on city property?

Brief Response
The governing authorities may make the decision to purchase playground equipment for a park on city property pursuant to Mississippi Code Annotated Section 21-17-5(1). However, a municipality may not provide funding to a private citizen to purchase playground equipment for a park on city property.

Applicable Law and Discussion
Section 21-17-5(1) provides that "[t]he governing authorities of every municipality of this state shall have the care, management and control of the municipal affairs and its property and finances." A public entity can only spend money for an appropriate public function, and providing money to a private citizen is not an appropriate expenditure. See MS AG Op., Mallette at *2 (Feb. 24, 2017) (opining that without specific statutory authority, a municipality cannot direct funds to individual citizens for housing transition expenses). Because state law provides no authority for a municipality to provide funds to citizens to purchase playground equipment, regardless if it is for a park on city property, a municipality may not take such action. However, a municipality may make the decision to purchase playground equipment itself for a park on city property. Bruce is a code charter municipality; therefore, such decision shall be made as set forth in Sections 21-3-1, et seq.

If this office may be of any further assistance to you, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Sincerely,
LYNN FITCH, ATTORNEY GENERAL
By: /s/ Maggie Kate Bobo
Maggie Kate Bobo
Special Assistant Attorney General