What does 'adequate' mean when North Carolina law requires county commissioners to provide 'adequate' funding to a community college?

Plain-English summary

Halifax Community College's president asked what "adequate" means in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-32(a). That provision made an institution's tax-levying authority responsible for providing adequate funds for identified budget items, including a plant fund, certain current expenses, and certain support services. The statute and the surrounding community-college chapter did not define the word.

The Attorney General looked to an ordinary meaning used by the North Carolina Supreme Court in State v. Clark: "sufficient to meet specific requirements." It also quoted similar dictionary definitions. The opinion predicted that North Carolina courts would give "adequate" a similar meaning in § 115D-32(a).

For this funding provision, the opinion says adequacy depends on the degree to which the funds provided meet the particular college's financial needs for the budget items the statute identifies. That is a fact-intensive inquiry. The Attorney General expressly declined to decide whether Halifax Community College was actually receiving adequate funds.

The opinion defines a term and explains the factual nature of applying it. It does not decide whether a college may sue over an appropriation, what remedy would be available, or whether a county may exclude a disputed program from its funding calculation.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2000. 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.

For a current budget question, check the present funding statutes and the budget items they identify.

Common questions

Q: Did the Attorney General give a dollar amount that counts as adequate funding?
A: No. It said adequacy depends on how well the funds meet a college's financial needs for the listed statutory budget items.

Q: Did the opinion find Halifax Community College was underfunded?
A: No. The Attorney General said it could not decide the adequacy of the funds actually provided to Halifax because that would require a fact-intensive inquiry.

Q: Can a college use this opinion to establish a right to sue its county?
A: The opinion does not address lawsuits, remedies, or burdens of proof. It supplies an interpretation of the word "adequate" in the funding provision.

Q: Did the opinion decide whether a county can exclude a college program from funding?
A: No. It identifies the statutory budget-item categories and explains the adequacy standard, but does not decide a dispute over any particular program.

Background and statutory framework

N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-32(a) directed an institution's tax-levying authority to provide adequate funds, under G.S. 115D-33 or 115D-34 as appropriate, for specified college budget items. The opinion says Chapter 115D did not define "adequate." It drew an ordinary meaning from State v. Clark and two dictionaries, then left application to the financial facts of a particular college.

Citations from the opinion

• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-32(a)
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-33
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-34
• N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-2
• State v. Clark, 234 N.C. 192, 194, 66 S.E.2d 669 (1951)
• Black's Law Dictionary 38 (6th ed. 1990)
• The American Heritage College Dictionary 16 (3d ed. 1993)

Source

• Landing page: https://ncdoj.gov/opinions/definition-of-adequate/

Original opinion text

VIA FACSIMILE – (252) 536-4144 AND REGULAR U.S. MAIL

Dr. Ted H. Gasper, Jr., President, Halifax Community College

P.O. Drawer 809, Weldon, North Carolina 27890

Re: Advisory Opinion; Definition of Term "Adequate;" N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-32

Dear Dr. Gasper:

Our office has been informed by Ms. Clay Hines of the North Carolina Community College System of your request for an opinion from our office on the meaning of the word "adequate" as used in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-32(a). This statute provides: "The tax-levying authority of each institution shall be responsible for providing, in accordance with the provisions of G.S. 115D-33 or 115D-34, as appropriate, adequate funds to meet the financial needs of the institutions for the following budget items." N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-32(a) (1999). The statute then identifies these budget items as a plant fund, certain current expenses, and certain support services. Id.

Unfortunately, neither N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-32 (the particular statute in question), Article 3 of Chapter 115D of the General Statutes (which pertains to financial support for community colleges), nor Chapter 115D (which pertains generally to community colleges) defines the term "adequate" as used in § 115D-32(a). Compare, e.g., N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-2 (1999) (defines certain other terms used in Chapter 115D). In another context, however, the North Carolina Supreme Court has defined "adequate" as meaning "sufficient to meet specific requirements." State v. Clark, 234 N.C. 192, 194, 66 S.E.2d 669 (N.C. 1951). Other secondary sources and references provide a similar definition. Black's Law Dictionary defines "adequate" as "sufficient; commensurate; equally efficient; equal to what is required; suitable to the case or occasion; satisfactory." Black's Law Dictionary 38 (6th ed. 1990). The American Heritage College Dictionary defines "adequate" as "sufficient to meet a need." The American Heritage College Dictionary 16 (3d ed. 1993).

In our opinion, the term "adequate" as used in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-32(a) would be given a similar definition by the North Carolina courts. The adequacy of the funds provided to a community college pursuant to § 115D-32(a), in our opinion, would be determined by the degree to which these funds meet the financial needs of that college for the budget items identified in the statute, which is necessarily a fact-intensive inquiry. Consequently, please note that this office does not — indeed, cannot — opine on the adequacy of the funds actually being provided to Halifax Community College pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-32(a).

We hope that this advisory opinion is of assistance.

Signed by:

Grayson G. Kelley, Senior Deputy Attorney General

Thomas J. Ziko, Special Deputy Attorney General

Donald R. Esposito, Jr., Assistant Attorney General

cc: Clay T. Hines, Esq. (via facsimile and regular U.S. mail)