State AG Opinions
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What did Idaho's AG say about a 2004 ballot initiative to authorize 'video lottery terminals' at horse-racing facilities in counties with population under 100,000?
The AG concluded the proposal was unconstitutional in two ways: (1) the 'video lottery terminals' it would authorize are slot machines under Idaho Const. art. III, § 20 and Idaho Code § 18-3801, just …
After the 2000 Census added portions of eight new counties to the Atlanta Urbanized Area, can a county like Walton County participate in the Atlanta Regional Commission as the federal Metropolitan Planning Organization while remaining a member of its existing Regional Development Center (the Northeast Georgia RDC)?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that a county or municipality can hold limited membership in the ARC as the federal MPO for the urbanized portion of the county while keeping its full RDC membershi…
Are inmates and youth offenders working in Oregon city, county, and state correctional programs covered by Oregon OSHA?
It depends. The 2004 AG opinion concluded that adult jail inmates were covered by OR-OSHA only if the city or county had elected workers'-compensation coverage for them under ORS 656.041(2). Without t…
Does New York's 2004 MTBE gasoline ban prohibit shipping MTBE-blended gasoline through the state in transit?
No. The 2004 MTBE ban prohibits importing, selling, dispensing, or offering for sale MTBE-blended gasoline in New York. The AG read 'import' in its ordinary sense: to bring in for use. Gasoline that o…
Can a New York town set up its own administrative tribunal or hire a hearing officer to handle building code violations?
No. Building code violations are state-law offenses that fall in the trial jurisdiction of local criminal courts. A town cannot create an administrative tribunal to decide them, and cannot hire its ow…
When does federal HIPAA privacy law override Maryland's medical records confidentiality law?
Rarely, according to the opinion. HIPAA only overrides Maryland's medical records law where the two truly conflict, and Maryland's law survives preemption whenever it is at least as protective of pati…
Can the Maryland legislature give medical malpractice defendants an automatic right to move their case to a different court?
The opinion concluded that the Maryland Constitution, as it then stood, barred the General Assembly from giving medical malpractice defendants an automatic right to move their case to a different cour…
After Maine voters approved slot machines at harness tracks, how much could a host municipality regulate the racino, set ballot conditions, or charge fees?
The initiated racino legislation did not preempt traditional municipal regulation like land use and law enforcement, and a town could set conditions like location on the local approval referendum. But…
If I request records shortly before filing a Delaware administrative appeal, can the agency refuse just because it couldn't gather everything right away?
Yes, according to this opinion. The Delaware AG reaffirmed that an administrative appeal before a Planning Board counts as 'litigation' under FOIA's litigation exemption even without formal discovery,…
What can a New York district attorney do with property seized as criminal evidence that is no longer needed and no one has reclaimed?
Four options. If the government chose not to file forfeiture and the property is not contraband per se, the government may return it to the person it was taken from, hold it indefinitely as custodian …
Can a New York town reimburse the legal fees of a town supervisor who pleaded guilty to criminal charges, or of town employees called as witnesses in his prosecution?
No on both counts. Public Officers Law § 18 covers civil defense only, so the town cannot reimburse the supervisor's criminal defense fees, and a guilty plea means the conduct fell outside the scope o…
Can I demand 'all books, checking accounts and papers' a town has kept since a certain year under a public records request?
Mixed, under the law as it stood in 2003. The AG found a request for "all books, checking accounts and papers" a Delaware town kept since 1994 was too broad to honor, but ordered the town to release t…
Can NC electric membership corporations (rural co-ops) restructure their wholesale power purchases by buying less from the statewide co-op (NCEMC) and more from a third-party Energy Supplier, including reselling any excess power back to the Energy Supplier?
Yes. The NC AG concluded that Chapter 117 gives EMCs the authority to enter into these wholesale Purchase Agreements. § 117-18 specifically lets EMCs buy and sell energy by contract with any person. §…
Can a New York town install speed bumps on a town road, and what rules govern that?
Yes, but with caveats. State law doesn't prohibit speed bumps on town highways. They are treated as highway design features rather than traffic control devices, so the Uniform Traffic Control Devices …
Can a New York county issue bonds to acquire land for affordable housing if part of the land will be leased for offices or stores?
Yes, with conditions. A county can issue bonds to buy property for affordable housing development even if part of the parcel is leased to non-residential tenants, as long as most of it is dedicated to…
Can a New York town allow alcohol on town park or community center property, and require a permit to do so?
Yes. State liquor law preempts the sale and distribution of alcohol but not its consumption. A town may allow consumption on its property and may set up a permit system to regulate it, so long as the …
When a legislative appointee to NC Centennial Authority holds over past his term and then resigns, who fills the vacancy?
The remaining Authority members. The AG concluded the legislature divided two powers in § 160A-480.3(b). Appointment of members went to the General Assembly. Vacancy-filling went to the remaining boar…
Does the U.S. Supreme Court's Hoffman Plastic decision stop the New York Department of Labor from collecting unpaid wages for undocumented workers?
No. Hoffman Plastic stopped the NLRB from awarding backpay for time an undocumented worker did not actually work because his employer fired him before discovering his status. That ruling does not reac…
Does a New York fire district have to provide fire protection to a national seashore that sits outside its boundaries?
No. General Municipal Law § 209(1) makes outside-district fire response permissive, not mandatory, and the fire district's governing board can restrict or end the service by resolution. The fact that …
Does a New York city police officer who is hurt while moonlighting as a security guard at a city recreation center get General Municipal Law § 207-c benefits?
Generally no. General Municipal Law § 207-c benefits are reserved for injuries sustained in the performance of heightened-risk police duties tied to the criminal justice process. An off-duty officer h…
If a school board adjourns its meeting and later reconvenes in executive session, does it need a fresh public vote to go back into closed session?
Yes, under the law as it stood in 2003. The AG found Sussex Technical School District violated FOIA because it adjourned its meeting, then went back into executive session twenty minutes later without…
Can the Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission (GSFIC) enter into reverse repurchase agreements as part of its short-term cash management?
Yes. The Attorney General read O.C.G.A. § 50-17-2(a) as authorizing both directions of the transaction: a state agency may sell securities under an agreement to repurchase them at a future date (a 're…
Can a New York village ban OTB betting facilities in all zoning districts, and what zoning rules can be applied to simulcast theaters and branch offices?
No to a blanket ban. The village could not zone OTB simulcast or non-simulcast branch offices out of all districts, nor could it prospectively ban simulcast theaters everywhere. It could withhold cons…
If Maine voters approve the Tribal Gaming Act by citizen initiative, what would the casino look like, who would regulate it, and could the Legislature change it later?
AG Rowe gave eight detailed answers but could not give clean ones. Many provisions are ambiguous or in tension with the federal Settlement Act, the Maine Implementing Act, and Maine constitutional lim…
Can a school board add a last-minute construction change order to its meeting agenda by just voting to amend the agenda that day?
No, under the law as it stood in 2003. The AG found Woodbridge School District violated FOIA by approving a $30,373 construction change order added to the agenda the same day, without giving the six h…
Are the names of insurance carriers that cover a Delaware county's public officials public records?
Usually yes, according to this opinion, since routine policy details like the insurer's name and coverage terms relate to how public funds are spent. But the AG found this specific request was exempt …
Can Anne Arundel County let its Planning Advisory Board, instead of a formal 'Planning Commission,' review development rights and responsibilities agreements with developers, and can the county require developers to submit one of these agreements as part of every concept plan?
Yes on the review board, no on making it mandatory. The opinion concluded state law lets any local entity familiar with the county's land use plan, not just one titled 'Planning Commission,' review de…
Can NC let waterfront homeowners lease the water under their docks to grow oysters for personal use?
No, not under existing statutes. The AG concluded that the Division of Marine Fisheries and the Marine Fisheries Commission have no authority to grant exclusive leases of the bottom or water column fo…
When must a child turn 5 to enter North Carolina public kindergarten, and can a principal admit a younger child?
The AG concluded a child had to reach age 5 on or before October 16 of the kindergarten year to be entitled to initial entry. A principal had no discretion to admit a younger child unless the child ei…
If Emerald Isle moves the Bogue Inlet navigational channel and creates new land by dredging or accretion, who owns the new beach: the State or the adjoining property owners?
The adjoining property owners. Under G.S. § 146-6(a), land raised above the high water mark by accretion vests in the owner of the land that immediately adjoined the navigable water. Under § 146-6(d),…
Can a city use a zoning rule against 'adult businesses' to keep video lottery machines out of certain establishments?
No. The Oregon AG concluded that ORS 461.030 preempts the City of Grants Pass's adult-business ordinance to the extent the ordinance would block the placement and sale of video lottery in establishmen…
Can a NC county social worker doing a child protective services assessment legally test a parent's urine for drugs if the parent consents?
Yes, if consent is truly voluntary. The AG concluded a CPS urine test is a Fourth Amendment search and requires a warrant, but voluntary consent is an established exception. Social workers must avoid …
Can a New York village pass a local law impounding any motor vehicle parked on a public street or village parking area for more than 24 hours, when state law defines an 'abandoned' vehicle differently?
Yes, with caveats. If the village does not treat the impounded vehicles as 'abandoned' (a term that VTL § 1224 defines and reserves to itself), if local conditions warrant prompt removal, and if the o…
If a town labels an executive session 'personnel' but actually discusses a volunteer board candidate, is that a FOIA violation?
Yes but harmless, under the law as it stood in 2003. The AG found South Bethany invoked the wrong FOIA exemption when it labeled a closed session on a Board of Adjustment candidate as "personnel," but…
Could the New York State Police lawfully add rear-facing blue lights to patrol cars under the 2003 vehicle code?
No. Under Vehicle and Traffic Law § 375(41) as it stood in 2003, blue lights on emergency vehicles were reserved by statute for vehicles owned or operated by volunteer firefighters. The proposed rear-…
Can Maine's state business-loan agency insure or extend a loan to build a church?
No. FAME's Small Business and Veteran's Insurance Programs and Economic Recovery Loan Program target commercial enterprises. Churches don't fit, and direct state subsidy of church construction would l…
Can a NC Parks and Recreation Authority member who is also a community college trustee also hold an elective town office?
Yes. The AG concluded N.C. Gen. Stat. § 115D-16 specifically lets a community college trustee hold offices 'in addition to and concurrently with' those permitted by § 128-1.1. Because § 128-1.1 lets a…
Can the NC State Treasurer use money in the Escheats Fund to pay for newspaper ads listing the names of people who may have unclaimed property, beyond the bare-minimum notices the statute specifically requires?
Yes. § 116B-6(h) authorizes the Treasurer to expend Escheats funds for 'costs of notice and publication,' and the statutory language is not limited to the specific publications required by § 116B-62(b…
Can a Minnesota county refuse to record a land conveyance document on the ground that the underlying transaction does not comply with the county's zoning, subdivision, or sewage-treatment regulations, or that county-imposed fees are unpaid?
Mostly no. The AG concluded that under Minn. Stat. § 394.37 a county may not prevent recording of a land conveyance just because the conveyance violates county subdivision or zoning ordinances. The co…
Are bank overdraft fees charged on bounced checks 'interest' subject to Georgia usury law, or are they ordinary checking-account fees governed by the Banking Law?
Generally not interest, with one important exception. The Attorney General concluded that flat-fee overdraft programs (where the bank may, but is not required to, honor an overdraft and charges a flat…
Can a Delaware town hold a special meeting on only three days' notice to switch contractors on a road project?
Yes, according to this opinion, as long as there's a genuine reason the normal seven-day notice couldn't be met. The AG found a town's three-day notice for a special meeting to fire an unresponsive ro…
Can a Maine sheriff use Community Corrections Program account funds to pay the local match on a federal grant funding juvenile prosecutor positions?
It depends on the facts. Community Corrections Program account funds may pay the local match on a federal juvenile prosecutor grant only to the extent the prosecutor positions actually deliver 'commun…
When a Georgia lender makes a non-real-estate loan under $3,000 (a small consumer or business loan not under the Georgia Industrial Loan Act), can it charge a loan or origination fee in addition to the 16% statutory interest cap, or does the fee count as 'interest' that pushes the loan over the usury limit?
If the fee is supported by documented services or costs (origination work, title search, coupon books, credit checks) and is not based on a time-value-of-money calculation, it is not interest. Origina…
Can a town council vote to remove a member from office under a vague 'New Business' agenda item?
No, under the law as it stood in 2003. The AG found Odessa violated FOIA by voting to declare a councilman's office forfeited and appoint his replacement under a bare 'New Business' agenda label, inva…
If cockfight operators draw blood or tissue samples from some of the gamecocks and send them to a poultry laboratory for disease testing, does that 'scientific research' angle defeat a cruelty-to-animals prosecution under O.C.G.A. § 16-12-4(b)?
No. The Attorney General concluded that cockfighting is cruelty to animals, full stop, and the § 16-12-4(e) exemption for 'scientific' or 'research' practices does not save it. The exemption preserves…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2003 ballot initiative requiring all Idaho schools to be funded above the bottom 5% of school districts nationwide?
The AG concluded the proposal was likely unconstitutional. It mandated school funding 'at a per pupil level greater than that of the lowest five percent (5%) of public school districts in the entire U…
Can a New York part-time assistant town attorney whose duties are limited to one town board represent private clients before other town boards?
Yes, but only with strict guardrails. Compensation must reflect the reasonable value of services rendered, not a contingency tied to agency action. The attorney also has to avoid common-law conflicts …
Is a New York school district employee on non-active military reservist status entitled to military leave when he voluntarily attends funerals of retired military personnel and veterans?
No. Voluntary attendance at military funerals does not constitute 'ordered military duty' under Military Law § 242 (the duty must be performed pursuant to orders from competent state or federal author…
Can a New York town highway superintendent also serve on the board of a public hospital jointly owned by two towns including his own?
Yes. The town highway superintendent of Fine could simultaneously serve on the board of managers of the Clifton-Fine Hospital, jointly owned by the towns of Clifton and Fine. The offices were compatib…
When a Maine state hospital replaces a predecessor facility, can it use the new legislatively chosen name and take over the old statute's functions even before the statutes are formally rewritten?
Yes on both counts. The Attorney General concluded the Department of Behavioral and Developmental Services could rely on 2001 Resolves ch. 79 to name the new facility Riverview Psychiatric Center, and…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2003 ballot initiative to repeal Idaho's Right to Work law?
The AG cleared the proposed initiative as raising no significant legal issues. Initiative legislation is on equal footing with bicameral-passed legislation and so can repeal a statute. The substantive…
What rules apply when a Maine legislative advisory council uses a university staffer for fundraising, and what records and gift-solicitation rules apply to the legislators on the council?
The Attorney General concluded the Muskie School had to staff the Legislative Youth Advisory Council from existing resources or grants under 3 M.R.S.A. § 168-A(10); Muskie's records relating to that w…
If the Lead/Deadwood School District received Deadwood gaming proceeds in January 2003 for the 2002 calendar year, but did not qualify for state school aid during 2002 and only qualified for partial aid in January-June 2003, could the Department of Education and Cultural Affairs offset the entire gaming payment against the partial 2003 aid? How far across fiscal or calendar years could that offset reach?
Yes to the offset, and the offset was not capped by the year boundary. The AG read SDCL 42-7B-48.2 literally: gaming receipts reduce 'any general state aid otherwise payable' dollar-for-dollar, with n…
When non-lawyers (especially third-party pension administrators) advise NC employers on what kind of pension plan to set up and help draft ERISA plan documents, can the NC State Bar prosecute that as unauthorized practice of law, or does federal law block the prosecution?
Mixed. The NC AG concluded that NC's UPL statutes (§ 84-8 is a criminal statute) probably are NOT preempted by ERISA itself, because ERISA's preemption clause (29 U.S.C. § 1144(a)) has a savings claus…
When the South Dakota Parole Board counts how many felony convictions an inmate has for purposes of computing parole eligibility, does it look at the date of conviction, the date of offense, or the date of sentence? And how should it count a suspended imposition of sentence that was later revoked because of a new felony?
Date of conviction, in most cases. The AG concluded that SDCL 24-15-5 and 24-15A-32 turned on whether the trial court entered separate judgments under SDCL 23A-27-4 or specifically used 'separate tran…
What did Idaho's AG say about the original 2003 'Idaho Judicial Accountability Act of 2004' ballot initiative?
The AG concluded the proposal would create the 'Idaho Judicial Accountability Commission' as a fourth branch of government, independent of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, which is p…
When most of a Georgia professional licensing board's seats are vacant, how many people does it take to make a quorum, and how many votes does it take to act?
A quorum is a majority of the total number of statutory positions, not a majority of those currently appointed and serving. So a board with eight statutory positions needs five members present to do b…
Can the Maine Legislature pass a law that tells voters which municipal decisions they're not allowed to overturn through a citizen initiative or referendum?
No. The Attorney General concluded LD 389, both in original text and as amended, would violate Article IV, Part 3, § 21 of the Maine Constitution because it tried to limit the substantive areas of mun…
Is a 15-business-day response to a public records request too slow under Delaware's FOIA?
No, under the law as it stood in 2003. The AG found New Castle County's 15-business-day response to a records request wasn't unreasonable given a legitimate legal review, clarified that the 10-day gui…
What happens to a Georgia gubernatorial appointee when the Senate adjourns sine die without confirming the appointment, and can the Governor reappoint someone whose nomination was simply not voted on?
Three rules: First, an unconfirmed appointee whose appointment was subject to Senate confirmation does NOT hold over after the Senate adjourns sine die. The office becomes vacant immediately. Second, …
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