State AG Opinions
Free state attorney general opinions with plain-English summaries, full citations, and the original source on every page.
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Can Tennessee's 2011 law restricting red-light cameras be challenged for breaking cities' existing contracts with camera vendors?
Yes, 2011 Public Chapter 425, which restricted the use of unmanned traffic enforcement cameras, is defensible against a Contracts Clause challenge. Compelling arguments support the position that the a…
If two members of a three-member Virginia electoral board talk on the phone about scheduling, agenda items, or draft minutes, is that a 'meeting' under FOIA? What about email?
Phone discussion is a meeting. A two-member conversation by a three-member electoral board about public business is an unlawful 'informal assemblage' meeting under VFOIA. Email, however, lacks the sim…
Does a Virginia locality have to commission an annual audit of its clerk of court, and can the Auditor of Public Accounts (APA) only step in under limited conditions?
The locality must provide for an annual audit of its constitutional officers, but an audit performed by the APA satisfies that requirement. And the APA's authority to audit constitutional officers is …
Can a Virginia gas producer deduct transportation and other costs when calculating gross receipts for a local severance tax, and can the commissioner audit the producer?
Yes to both, with conditions. A producer of gas not in connection with coal mining may deduct value added after the gas leaves the locality. Coal-related gas production may not take these deductions. …
Can a public housing authority created in another state operate as a public housing authority in Connecticut without going through Connecticut's authorization process?
No. The AG concluded that Connecticut's housing authority statutes form a pervasive regulatory scheme requiring a municipality's governing body to formally create any housing authority operating withi…
Can a Maryland code home rule county hold a special election to fill newly created county commissioner seats?
Maryland's Attorney General advised Caroline County that an off-year 2012 vote to fill two newly created county commissioner seats would be a special election, not a general one, even if held on the p…
What does Delaware AG Opinion 2011-08-03-priest-indicted-on-theft-charg (Priest Indicted on Theft Charges) say?
Wilmington – Following a 5- month investigation by the Attorney General’s Senior Protection Initiative, the New Castle County Grand Jury has indicted Father Michael Angeloni with one count of Theft ov…
What does Delaware AG Opinion 2011-08-03-legislation-to-make-delawares- (Legislation to Make Delaware’s Roads Safer Becomes Law) say?
New laws toughen penalties on repeat DUI offenders and criminally negligent drivers Newport – Attorney General Beau Biden joined Governor Jack Markell today as the Governor signed into law two pieces …
What does Delaware AG Opinion 2011-08-03-foia_dispute (Biden Files Suit on Behalf of Citizen in FOIA Dispute) say?
Attorney General’s Office acts to gain access to public information DOVER – Attorney General Beau Biden announced that his office filed a lawsuit today demanding that the Camden-Wyoming Sewer and Wate…
Can a Texas county judge order a city recall election if the city council refuses to?
No. The Attorney General concluded that Texas law does not authorize a county judge to order a municipal recall election. A recall election is a special election, and a special election may be called …
What does Delaware AG Opinion 2011-08-02-coin-salesman-receives-three-y (Coin Salesman Receives Three-Year Sentence for Defrauding Quadriplegic Out of $200,000) say?
Wilmington – Attorney General Beau Biden announced today that Marcus Meehan, age 40, of Buna, Texas, was sentenced on Friday, July 29 to three years in prison and was ordered to repay $200,000 restitu…
Can a Texas county auditor audit a constable's law-enforcement continuing-education (LEOSE) funds?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that a county auditor has general oversight of a constable's books and records, including the funds a constable receives from the state law enforcement officer stan…
Does the broader ADA definition of disability let more Texas homeowners qualify for the homestead property tax freeze?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the federal Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008, which broadened the ADA's definition of 'disability,' does not change who qualifies as 'disa…
Is the Texas Racing Act's 10-year residency requirement for racetrack owners constitutional under the Commerce Clause?
The Attorney General did not answer this question. The chair of the Texas Racing Commission asked whether section 6.06(d) of the Texas Racing Act, which requires the majority ownership of a racetrack-…
What does Delaware AG Opinion 2011-08-01-attorney-generals-office-holds (Attorney General’s Office Holds Police Training to Fight Child Predators) say?
Child Predator Task Force holds first statewide course for law enforcement Dover – At the start of a two-day training course designed to enhance Delaware police agencies’ ability to combat technology-…
Can a Delaware public university charge employee labor costs for filling a records request?
No, the AG found. Delaware State University violated FOIA by including two senior employees' salaries in a $5,500 estimate to copy records, because a public body can only charge the actual cost of rep…
What evidence and which labs can the Texas Forensic Science Commission investigate?
The Attorney General drew three lines around the Texas Forensic Science Commission's investigative power. First, the 2005 law that created the Commission applies only to evidence tested or offered int…
Can Connecticut's blind-vendor program place vending machines in quasi-public buildings like transit-district stations or the Metropolitan District Commission's offices?
The AG concluded that the Board of Education and Services for the Blind's vending-machine priority under § 10-303 covers state and traditional municipal buildings (cities, towns, boroughs) but not the…
If a Connecticut teacher elected to the State Teachers' Retirement Board as an active teacher then retires partway through her term, can she finish her term, or does it create a vacancy?
The AG concluded that the seat became vacant. An active teacher elected to one of the active-teacher seats on the State Teachers' Retirement Board could not finish out her term after retiring; the Boa…
Does the State Teachers' Retirement Board pick its own chair, or does Connecticut law require the Governor to appoint that person?
The Governor must appoint the chair. The AG concluded that Conn. Gen. Stat. § 4-9a, enacted in 1977, required the Governor to appoint the chair of every executive branch board and commission not liste…
When does the deadline start for a Texas county officer to file a salary grievance?
The Attorney General confirmed that two earlier opinions, GA-0051 (2003) and GA-0620 (2008), correctly read sections 152.013 and 152.016 of the Local Government Code: a commissioners court must notify…
When does a Texas restrictive covenant or club-fee requirement run with the land and bind future owners?
The chair of the Sunset Advisory Commission asked seven questions about whether certain restrictive covenants, especially ones requiring property owners to pay fees to a private for-profit club, are v…
Does the Texas Ethics Commission have to send a complainant's residency proof to the person they complained about?
Probably not. The Texas Ethics Commission asked whether the document a complainant must attach to a sworn complaint to prove Texas residency or property ownership, such as a paycheck or property tax b…
Is West Virginia's matching-funds system for publicly financed Supreme Court of Appeals candidates constitutional after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Arizona's similar law?
No. The AG concluded that the matching-funds provisions in W. Va. Code §§ 3-12-11(e)-(i), which gave extra public money to certified candidates whenever a privately financed opponent or independent gr…
Does a 'local improvement' funded by a special assessment have to be a capital project, or can it cover services like garbage collection?
It does not have to be a capital project. The AG's informal comments concluded that a special assessment can fund a service, not just construction, as long as the service gives the assessed property a…
Can an attorney in the Tennessee General Assembly's Office of Legal Services be forced to reveal which legislator asked for particular language in a bill?
No. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 3-12-106(a), the director and legal staff of the Office of Legal Services must maintain the attorney-client relationship with each member of the General Assembly with respe…
Does Virginia's $25 jail processing fee under § 15.2-1613.1 apply to anyone who got booked before trial, or only to defendants jailed after conviction?
Only after conviction. The AG concluded that § 15.2-1613.1 authorizes the fee only when a person is admitted (or re-admitted) to jail following conviction. A defendant who spent pretrial time in jail …
Can a Virginia locality enact an ordinance letting a volunteer fire department bill an individual's home or auto insurance for responding to a fire?
No. The AG concluded that § 27-14 (general locality power to make ordinances about fire/EMS departments) does not authorize a locality to permit volunteer fire departments to bill insurance policies f…
When a Virginia clerk receives a letter between opposing lawyers that's been filed in the court file, does it count as a 'proceeding' that keeps a dormant lawsuit alive?
Not by itself. The AG concluded that filing a letter between counsel is not a 'proceeding' under § 8.01-335. But if the letter's contents show that other proceedings (like a deposition notice) are und…
Can a Florida water management district ban outdoor smoking on its property and bar employees from using tobacco on the clock?
Two answers. The AG concluded that section 386.209 preempts smoking regulation to the state, so the St. Johns River Water Management District could not ban outdoor smoking by everyone on district prop…
Can a member of a local board be disqualified from an agency proceeding for bias or interest in Florida?
The AG declined to issue a formal opinion, because the question turned on local ordinance procedures the office cannot interpret. As informal guidance, it pointed to section 120.665, part of the Admin…
Must a New York town issue a fireworks display permit when an applicant meets the statutory requirements, and can the town tack on extra requirements of its own?
The AG concluded that approval of a fireworks display permit under Penal Law § 405.00 was discretionary, not ministerial; failure to act by the display date functioned as a denial; and a town could no…
Is a slot-style electronic game run by a Florida veterans' club an illegal slot machine?
Yes, as described. The AG concluded that a card-operated electronic game at a veterans' organization, where chance determines whether the player wins points convertible to money on a card, is an illeg…
Can someone serve on a housing finance authority if their spouse's law firm represents developers seeking financing?
Yes. The AG concluded that section 159.606, Florida Statutes, does not prohibit someone from serving on a housing finance authority just because the member's spouse is a partner in a law firm that rep…
What can a Florida hospital-district board member do under a 'non-interference' charter clause, and what happens if they violate it?
An individual North Broward Hospital District commissioner could ask questions of or request information from staff supervised by the President/CEO, but could not otherwise direct or interfere with th…
Can a small Tennessee K-12 school that opened before 1961 build a new high school building even though it has fewer than 300 high school students?
No. Greenback Public School opened in 1921 and has maintained a high school continuously since then. The 300-pupil minimum daily attendance requirement in Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-6-403(b)(2)(A) was enact…
Can a Tennessee state legislator also serve as a paid mediator or arbitrator under the state's Rule 31 ADR program?
Yes. Serving as a Rule 31 dispute resolution neutral (including as a mediator) is not holding a 'lucrative State office' under Article II, § 26 of the Tennessee Constitution, so a member of the Genera…
Who qualified for Virginia's 100% disabled veteran property tax exemption after the 2010 constitutional amendment, and could spouses, trusts, or relocations qualify?
The exemption took effect January 1, 2011 (statute retroactive to that date). Veterans who died before that date and their spouses did not qualify. The exemption covered land and dwelling (one-acre ca…
Does a Tennessee county have to charge the same archives and records management fee for every type of filed record?
No. Tenn. Code Ann. § 10-7-408(b) authorizes a county legislative body to charge an archives and records management fee on filed public records, but the only constraint it imposes is that the fee not …
Does Florida law allow a person to lawfully possess a federally registered destructive device?
Yes. The Attorney General's office told the ATF that Florida law allows the lawful possession of destructive devices as defined in section 790.001(4). Sections 790.161 and 790.1612 criminalize unlawfu…
How can a Tennessee county capture sales tax from a state park it develops, and what does the county owe if the project loses money?
Campbell County may receive an allocation of state and local sales and use tax revenues equal to the taxes generated within the leased state park property under Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-6-103(h)(1), but o…
Can a pharmacy's contract with an insurance company override Tennessee sales tax collection rules?
No on both counts. Tennessee retailers, including pharmacists, are statutorily required to collect sales tax from purchasers of taxable tangible personal property at the point of sale. Neither the Sta…
Can a Virginia county board of supervisors give a 5% salary supplement to constitutional officers and their staff out of county funds?
Yes. Section 15.2-1605.1 expressly authorizes a county or city governing body to supplement the compensation of constitutional officers and their deputies or employees above the Compensation Board-app…
Can a Virginia planning commission member also serve on a school board to which they were elected?
Yes. Section 22.1-30(A) prohibits certain local officers from being 'appointed' to the school board, but not from being 'elected' to it. A 1993 amendment deleted the words 'or serve,' confirming that …
Can a Florida local agency pay an official's legal fees for defending an ethics complaint that was dismissed?
Maybe. Under Florida common law a local board can pay an official's legal fees for defending an ethics complaint only if the agency's governing body finds the conduct both arose from the official's du…
Does an Arizona medical-marijuana dispensary have to pay state sales tax, and can it refuse to file returns by claiming the Fifth Amendment?
Yes. The AG concluded that medical-marijuana sales are taxable as retail sales of tangible personal property under A.R.S. § 42-5061, and no statutory exemption applies. The Fifth Amendment privilege a…
Can a corporation or labor union donate money to an Arizona recall committee, and do recall committees follow the same rules as ballot-measure committees?
AZ law does prohibit corporate and labor union contributions to recall committees, but the prohibition cannot be enforced after Citizens United against committees that do not coordinate with a candida…
Does Tennessee's 2011 law guaranteeing secret-ballot union elections conflict with federal labor law?
No. 2011 Tennessee Public Chapter 502, which gives employees and employers the right to designate an exclusive bargaining representative by secret ballot when an election is held, does not conflict wi…
Is a Florida property appraiser limited to making findings of fact on governmental-leasehold tax exemptions?
Yes. The Attorney General's office read section 196.199 by its plain terms: on a governmental-leasehold exemption application, the property appraiser reviews it and 'make[s] findings of fact' that go …
Can Delaware make a water and sewer authority follow open-records law even though it's funded only by user fees?
Yes, the AG found. After a new law (Senate Bill 36) added water and sewer authorities to FOIA's definition of "public body," the Camden Wyoming Sewer & Water Authority had to disclose employee and con…
Could the University of Virginia legally bar visitors from carrying firearms in University buildings, and did its policy reach concealed carry permit holders?
It could bar open carry through its policy, because the right to openly carry can be limited in sensitive places. But its policy could not reach concealed carry permit holders, because § 18.2-308(O) o…
Can a Virginia county board of supervisors put a mixed-beverage-sales referendum on the ballot, or does the petition have to come from voters?
The board cannot. Section 4.1-124(A) requires a petition signed by qualified voters (10 percent of the locality's voters, or 100, whichever is greater). The AG concluded that neither individual superv…
When did a Virginia state contractor have to use E-Verify under § 2.2-4308.2, and did it cover crop pickers, delivery drivers, subcontractors, or returning seasonal workers?
Only contracts primarily for services triggered E-Verify, not contracts primarily for goods like tomatoes. The duty did not extend to subcontractors. Seasonal workers were 'newly hired' for E-Verify o…
Can a Tennessee county water and wastewater authority extend service into Georgia or into other Tennessee counties outside its original service area?
Yes. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 68-221-607(a)(2), a water and wastewater treatment authority created under Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 68-221-601 et seq. is authorized to plan, operate, and own treatment works wi…
Did Ulster County dedicate flood-buyout properties as public parkland just by signing the deed assurances required by the Greater Catskills Flood Remediation Program?
The AG concluded that the deed-assurance language required by the Greater Catskills Flood Remediation Program (use 'compatible with open space, recreation, flood mitigation or wetlands management') di…
After Vermont voters amended the state constitution to let people who turn 18 by general election day vote in 'the primary election,' does that include both the presidential primary in March and the state primary in August?
Yes. Although the constitutional language uses the singular 'the primary election,' both the presidential primary and the state primary are nominating processes preceding the general election. The Ver…
When a Florida district raises its tax rate by supermajority, is the vote counted against all seats or only the members currently serving?
Against all seats. The Attorney General's office concluded that a supermajority vote 'of the membership of the governing body' under section 200.065(5)(a) is measured against the board's total members…
When does an out-of-state online retailer have to collect Tennessee sales tax because it uses an in-state warehouse or distribution center?
Yes, an out-of-state seller can be required to collect Tennessee sales tax when its goods are stored or shipped from an in-state distribution center, even when the center is owned by a separate affili…
If a sheriff was elected after his son was already working as a deputy in the office, and three layers of supervision separate them, does Wyoming's anti-nepotism statute force the sheriff to fire his son?
No. Attorney General Gregory Phillips concluded that Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 9-13-104 reads on its plain language: it bars an official from causing or advocating a family member's hiring, supervising or man…
Can the same attorney serve as a code-enforcement special magistrate for more than one Florida city at the same time?
No. The Attorney General's office held to its position that a special magistrate or code-enforcement hearing officer holds an 'office' under the Florida Constitution, so serving in that role for one l…
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