MS 2024-12-A-Bullard-November-1-2024-Maintenance-of-Rivers-Outside-Municipality November 1, 2024

Can a Mississippi city contribute funds to maintain rivers and drainage outside city limits?

Short answer: A Mississippi city may contribute public funds to maintain rivers and drainage outside its corporate limits only if the city makes a factual finding that the work promotes the health, comfort, and convenience of city inhabitants, prevents erosion within city limits, or addresses erosion outside city limits caused by drainage ditches, creeks, or channels within city limits.

Disclaimer: This is an official Mississippi Attorney General opinion. AG opinions are persuasive authority but not binding precedent. This summary is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Consult a licensed Mississippi attorney for advice on your specific situation.

About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official AG opinion. The original opinion (linked at the bottom of this page, or PDF in the sidebar) is the authoritative source for any reliance.

View original AG opinion (PDF)

Plain-English summary

The City of Corinth wanted to contribute money to the Tuscumbia Water Management District for work on the Tuscumbia River Canal and its tributaries, which sit entirely outside Corinth's city limits. Corinth operates under a special charter. The question was whether the city could spend public money on out-of-limits drainage maintenance.

The AG started with the basic principle that a Mississippi municipality's authority generally does not extend outside its corporate limits, with limited statutory exceptions. Any expenditure of municipal funds must be for a proper municipal purpose. The AG then walked through Section 21-19-13, which authorizes municipalities to alter waterways and to clean drainage ditches and prevent erosion "whether on public or private property."

Putting it together, the AG identified three pathways under which Corinth could lawfully fund out-of-limits river maintenance:
1. The work promotes the "health, comfort and convenience of the inhabitants of such municipality," per Section 21-19-13(1).
2. The work prevents erosion within the municipal limits.
3. The work addresses erosion outside the municipal limits that is caused by drainage ditches, creeks, or channels within the municipal limits.

If none of those is satisfied, the city cannot spend money on the project. Whether any specific project fits within these parameters is a factual determination for the city, subject to judicial review. The AG also flagged that as a special charter city, Corinth's charter controls if it speaks to the question; the opinion proceeds on the assumption that the charter is silent.

What this means for you

For boards of aldermen and city attorneys

The opinion gives you a three-pronged factual test for an out-of-limits drainage contribution. Any project the city wants to fund needs to fit within at least one of the prongs. The cleanest documentation pattern: a board resolution that recites the project, identifies which prong applies (health/comfort/convenience of inhabitants, in-limits erosion prevention, or out-of-limits erosion caused by in-limits drainage), and lays out the factual basis. Spread the resolution on the minutes. Keep an engineering or technical record supporting the factual determination so a later audit or judicial challenge has documentation to evaluate.

For special charter cities like Corinth, the first step is always to check the charter. The AG cannot interpret special charters. If the charter speaks to out-of-limits expenditures, that controls. If silent, the general statutes and the three-prong test apply.

For water management districts seeking municipal contributions

When you ask a Mississippi city to contribute, structure the ask in terms one of the three prongs can support. A flood-control project that protects the city's water supply, sewer system, or downtown drainage from upstream flooding fits "health, comfort and convenience of the inhabitants." A project that addresses erosion within or caused by city drainage fits the erosion prongs. A project that has no nexus to the city other than geographic proximity will be hard to fund.

For city engineering and public works staff

Document the connection between the in-limits drainage system and the proposed out-of-limits work. If a project addresses erosion outside the city that is being caused by city ditches, creeks, or channels, the documentation linking cause and effect is the key element. If the work is more general river maintenance with no in-city causal link, you need to fall back on the "health, comfort, and convenience" prong, which is broader but still requires a factual finding tied to municipal inhabitants.

Common questions

Can a Mississippi city spend money on a project outside its city limits?

Generally not, but Section 21-19-13 creates specific authority for drainage and erosion work even outside the city limits, subject to factual findings. Other narrow exceptions exist for specific subjects (utilities under Section 21-27-39, for example), but the general rule is that municipal authority and spending stay within the corporate limits.

What does Section 21-19-13(1) authorize?

Section 21-19-13(1) gives municipal governing authorities the power "to establish, alter and change the channels of streams or other water courses, and to bridge the same, whenever so to do will promote the health, comfort and convenience of the inhabitants of such municipality."

What does Section 21-19-13(2) authorize?

Section 21-19-13(2) authorizes municipalities to incur costs and pay expenses for labor, materials, and supplies to clean drainage ditches, creeks, or channels (on public or private property) and to prevent erosion caused by such drainage features. It also includes a no-new-duty / no-new-rights clause.

So can a city pay for downstream work outside its limits if the city's drainage caused the problem?

Yes. MS AG Op., Adams (July 30, 2004), supports that approach. If the city makes the factual finding that erosion outside the limits is caused by city drainage, Section 21-19-13(2) authorizes the city to fund the corrective work.

What if the city is a special charter city?

The special charter controls if it addresses the question. Corinth, the city in this opinion, operates under a special charter. The AG's opinion proceeds on the assumption that the charter is silent on the specific question of out-of-limits drainage contributions; if the charter speaks, it controls.

Does the city have a duty to do this work?

No. Section 21-19-13(2) states explicitly that "[t]his paragraph shall not impose any obligation or duty upon the municipality and shall not create any additional rights for the benefit of any owner of public or private property."

Background and statutory framework

Section 21-17-5 gives municipalities care, management, and control of municipal affairs, property, and finances.

Section 21-19-1(1) authorizes municipal regulations to secure general health.

Section 21-17-7 authorizes municipal expenditures for municipal expenses.

Section 21-27-39 is one of the narrow statutory exceptions to the general rule that municipal authority stops at the corporate limits, allowing utility services to consumers up to five miles outside city limits.

Section 21-19-13 is the central statute for this opinion. Subsection (1) lets cities alter and change stream channels to promote inhabitants' health, comfort, and convenience. Subsection (2) authorizes drainage cleaning and erosion-prevention work on public or private property, with a no-duty / no-rights clause.

Citations

Miss. Code Ann. § 21-17-5
Miss. Code Ann. § 21-17-7
Miss. Code Ann. § 21-19-1(1)
Miss. Code Ann. § 21-19-13
Miss. Code Ann. § 21-27-39
MS AG Op., Carouthers (June 28, 2019)
MS AG Op., Adams (July 30, 2004)

Source

Original opinion text

November 1, 2024
Arch Bullard, Esq.
Attorney, City of Corinth
Post Office Box 1613
Corinth, Mississippi 38835
Re:

Maintenance of Rivers Outside Municipality

Dear Mr. Bullard:
The Office of the Attorney General has received your request for an official opinion.
Background
According to your request, the Mayor and Board of Aldermen for the city of Corinth ("City") have
requested that you seek an Attorney General's Opinion regarding the authority of the City to
contribute funds toward the cost of maintaining the Tuscumbia River Canal and its tributaries,
which are wholly located outside the jurisdiction of the City. Corinth operates under a special
charter.
Question Presented
Can the City contribute money to the Tuscumbia Water Management District towards the cost of
work conducted on the rivers and streams outside the boundaries of the City, in order to maintain
proper drainage [outside the City]?
Brief Response
The City may only contribute public funds to maintain proper drainage of rivers and streams
outside the City's corporate limits if it makes the factual determination that this work will promote
the health, comfort and convenience of the inhabitants of such municipality, prevent erosion within
the municipal limits, or that there is erosion outside the municipal limits that is caused by drainage
ditches, creeks, or channels within the municipal limits.

Applicable Law and Discussion
As a special charter municipality, the governing authority's powers flow directly from the City's
charter. MS AG Op., Carouthers at 1 (June 28, 2019). Thus, the specific provisions of that charter
should be used to answer any questions regarding the authority of the municipality; however, if
the charter is silent on a particular matter, general statutory provisions would apply. Carouthers at
1 (internal citations omitted). Assuming the special charter of the City is silent on your question,
this opinion will apply general statutory provisions.
Generally, "[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." Miss. Code Ann.
§ 21-17-5. With respect to health, safety, and welfare, municipal governing authorities "have the
power to make regulations to secure the general health of the municipality." Miss. Code Ann. §
21-19-1(1) (emphasis added). Further, municipal governing authorities have the power pursuant
to Mississippi Code Annotated Section 21-17-7 to appropriate municipal funds for the expenses of
the municipality. (emphasis added). With limited exceptions, such as a municipality's ability to
provide utilities to consumers residing five miles outside the municipal limits under Section 21-27-39, a municipality's authority generally does not extend outside its corporate limits. In
accordance with the above cited statutory authority, any expenditure of municipal funds must be
related to a proper municipal purpose.
To your specific question, Section 21-19-13 provides, in relevant part:
(1) The governing authorities of municipalities shall have the power to establish,
alter and change the channels of streams or other water courses, and to bridge the
same, whenever so to do will promote the health, comfort and convenience of the
inhabitants of such municipality.
(2) The governing authorities of any municipality shall also have the power and
authority to incur costs and pay necessary expenses in providing labor, materials
and supplies to clean or clear drainage ditches, creeks or channels, whether on
public or private property, and to incur costs and pay necessary expenses in
providing labor, materials and supplies in order to prevent erosion where such
erosion has been caused or will be caused by such drainage ditches, creeks or
channels. This paragraph shall not impose any obligation or duty upon the
municipality and shall not create any additional rights for the benefit of any owner
of public or private property.
Accordingly, it is the opinion of this office that a municipality may only contribute funds towards
the cost of work conducted on the rivers and streams outside the boundaries of the City if it will
promote the health, comfort and convenience of the inhabitants of such municipality, if it is to
prevent erosion within the municipal limits, or if it is to prevent erosion outside the municipal
limits that is caused by drainage ditches, creeks, or channels within the municipal limits. See MS
AG Op., Adams at *2 (July 30, 2004) (opining that if a municipality makes the factual
determination that work performed pursuant to Section 21-19-13 caused damage to property
downstream, the municipality may pay necessary expenses to prevent erosion located inside or
outside the municipal corporate). Whether providing funds to the Tuscumbia Water Management
District for the specific project referenced in your request fits within the parameters of Section 21-19-13 is a factual determination to be made by the City, subject to judicial review.
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/ Beebe Garrard
Beebe Garrard
Special Assistant Attorney General