State AG Opinions
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Was a Kentucky machine selling phone cards with free sweepstakes plays an illegal gambling device?
The AG concluded that the Pot of Gold phone-card sweepstakes machine was an illegal gambling device because the phone card sale was incidental to its chance games and prizes. A genuine product-sale…
Does the Florida Transportation Commission oversee the Florida Statewide Passenger Rail Commission?
No, not over the authorities the rail commission monitors. In informal comments, the Attorney General's office concluded the 2009 law creating the Florida Statewide Passenger Rail Commission carved…
Did South Carolina Advisory Council on Aging members need Secretary of State commissions?
The AG said yes. Even though the council’s creating statute did not expressly mention commissions, the AG read the state constitution and general office-holding rules as requiring a commission when…
Could the Irmo Fire District issue its own summons or become a certified police agency?
The AG found no authority for the fire district to create its own summons forms or certify its investigation unit as a police agency. It said the fire chief or designee could possibly use a uniform…
Do the State Water Control Board's sewage sludge permits have to comply with the statute that authorizes them?
Yes. Any permit the Board issues for land application of sewage sludge must comply with the applicable requirements of § 62.1-44.19:3. An administrative agency can only act within its statutory authority.
What happens to a Virginia Pollution Abatement permit while an appeal of the permit is pending in court?
The permit stays valid and enforceable unless the court stays, suspends, or sets it aside. If no one appeals at all, the permit becomes final.
Can a Virginia town give a nonprofit free water, sewer, and trash service as a charitable donation?
Yes. Va. Code Ann. § 15.2-953(A) authorizes Virginia localities to make appropriations or donations to charitable institutions or associations that serve their residents, and a 2007 amendment…
If Tennessee counties form a metropolitan (city-county consolidated) government, can smaller cities still annex unincorporated territory under prior annexation reserve agreements?
No. The Tennessee AG concluded in 2010 that once a county forms a metropolitan government under Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 7-1-101 et seq., the metropolitan government takes in the entire county, and…
Can a Tennessee county legislative body file a special-use exception application on behalf of a private property owner, and can it challenge a zoning board's denial of one?
The Tennessee AG concluded in 2010 that a county legislative body could not apply for a special use exception on behalf of a private property owner; the proper applicant is generally the property…
Do Tennessee bailiffs and court officers have to be POST-certified peace officers?
Outside Davidson County, a bailiff or court officer must be a deputy sheriff, must obtain POST certification within one year of employment, and, if newly assigned to courts after July 1, 2008, must…
Does Virginia or federal law require an officer of election to be stationed outside every Virginia polling place for the full day so curbside voting is available on demand?
No. Neither state nor federal law requires an officer to stand outside the polling place at all times. Virginia's curbside voting duty is triggered when an eligible voter (or someone on the voter's…
Can Tennessee reject your Social Security disability claim just because you are also drawing unemployment?
No. The AG concluded that DDS cannot categorically reject a Social Security disability claim based solely on the applicant's receipt of unemployment compensation. Receiving those benefits alone does…
Can a Texas school district stop a parent from bringing an advocate to deal with their child's education?
The Attorney General could answer only in general terms, because the request did not define 'advocate' or give any context. Where the law specifically allows an advocate, a school district cannot…
Could a South Carolina coroner issue a cremation permit when a death might become a criminal case?
The AG said a coroner could issue the permit after fully complying with the Preservation of Evidence Act and making a best effort to preserve required evidence. It did not read the Act as requiring…
Could Holly Springs Fire District keep its deficit-related property-tax millage in 2009 without a new vote?
The AG said the district could not carry a 2008 exception to the millage cap automatically into 2009. To exceed the general cap again, the commission had to establish a qualifying exception for 2009…
If a voter casts an absentee ballot and then dies before Election Day, does that vote get counted?
When the registrar knows the voter died before Election Day, the registration must be canceled and an absentee ballot that can still be set aside must not be counted. If the ballot was already cast…
Could South Carolina’s Savannah River commission control comments or DHEC water-quality certification?
The AG said the commission could speak for South Carolina on the harbor project but could not require others to route comments through it. It also said DHEC alone decided whether to issue the…
Could one person serve on South Carolina’s Indigent Defense Commission and Charleston County Aviation Authority?
The AG said the combination did not violate South Carolina’s dual-office-holding rule. It thought Indigent Defense Commission membership likely was a public office, but the aviation authority’s…
Could Maine constitutionally require people to live in Maine for a certain period of time before becoming eligible for TANF or Medicaid?
No. The AG concluded a durational residency requirement for state-administered TANF and Medicaid would violate the Fourteenth Amendment under Shapiro v. Thompson (1969) and Saenz v. Roe (1999).…
Are bingo eight-liner machines that pay out cards or gift certificates legal in Texas?
No. The Attorney General concluded these machines were gambling devices, not the kind of exempt 'noncash merchandise prize.' The opinion explained that an award of a bingo card, paper, card-minding…
Can someone get Virginia's local property tax relief for the permanently disabled while working full-time at a $44,000 salary?
No. Working full-time and earning a substantial salary is itself 'substantial gainful activity,' which disqualifies a person from the § 58.1-3210 disability-based tax relief, even if a doctor has…
If a regional jail agreement doesn't match the statute's minimum board membership, which controls?
The statute controls. Section 53.1-106 sets a floor of the sheriff plus one representative from each political subdivision, and contrary provisions in the agreement must yield. The county can still…
If Oregon voters approved Ballot Measure 75 to authorize a privately owned casino with 3,500 slot machines and Keno, would the State Lottery have to operate those games, and could the constitutional ban on casinos still apply?
The AG concluded the State Lottery would have to operate Keno and electronic games based wholly or predominantly on chance. Even if Measure 75 passed, the Lottery could not place games at a facility…
Could Dorchester County charge road impact fees to school construction and exempt selected developers?
The AG said school districts, churches, and nonprofits were generally subject to the Development Impact Fee Act. Dorchester County could not create its own exemptions for them or small businesses;…
Do federal HUD Section 8 voucher regulations override Tennessee's Administrative Procedures Act when a tenant fights a voucher termination?
No. The Tennessee AG concluded in 2010 that HUD's Housing Choice Voucher regulations did not preempt the Tennessee Administrative Procedures Act. The state APA gave voucher participants extra due…
Can a Virginia 'free spin parlor' sell a $5 phone card mainly to give customers a chance to win prizes on a slot-style game?
No. On the facts described, the purported product served as a pretext for paid chances to win prizes. The AG concluded that the operation had the three elements of illegal gambling: prize, chance…
Did a South Carolina parent still have to support a 17-year-old who moved out?
The AG said parents generally had to support an unmarried minor until 18, but a court could find the duty ended if the child was married, self-supporting, emancipated, or within the incorrigibility…
Could Holly Hill’s police chief also serve on its airport commission?
The AG said the proposed separate appointment would violate South Carolina’s dual-office rule because both posts counted as public offices. It qualified the answer: if the airport seat was actually…
Could a Clearwater Water and Sewer District employee run for commissioner and keep her paid job if elected?
The AG said the district secretary could run for commissioner. If elected, however, she could not simultaneously serve as secretary and commissioner because the board supervised the paid position,…
Could South Carolina require an existing sex offender registrant to register every ninety days after a 2010 law change?
The AG said a registrant who fell within the federal Tier III category could be required to register every ninety days even if the prior schedule was twice a year. It concluded that applying the new…
Can a Florida city exempt state-licensed professionals who work for someone else from its local business tax?
No. A Florida municipality does not have to levy a local business tax, but if it does under section 205.042, it must apply the tax to all businesses, professions, and occupations and may use only…
Could Montgomery County authorize police to arrest and detain a child solely for truancy?
The Attorney General concluded that State education law would preempt a proposed Montgomery County ordinance authorizing police to arrest or detain a child solely for truancy. Local government could…
Can a Tennessee metropolitan government charter say that the urban services district can grow only when the area to be annexed votes yes by referendum?
The AG concluded that a Tennessee metropolitan charter could restrict urban services district expansion to referendum-approved annexation only. § 7-2-108(a)(6) requires charter limitations to be…
Did a South Carolina coroner owe compensation if evidence rules delayed returning a decedent’s belongings?
The AG said no when the Preservation of Evidence Act required the belongings to be retained longer. It read the specific evidence-preservation duty as prevailing over the general instruction to…
Could a South Carolina coroner disregard a court order to release a specimen over evidence-preservation concerns?
The AG said no. A court order to release a decedent’s biological specimen for paternity testing had to be obeyed unless reversed, modified, or vacated through proper judicial proceedings. The…
Can a journalist get a sheriff's DUI prosecution file from Delaware's Attorney General after he's already pleaded guilty and been sentenced?
No, the AG found. Delaware's public records law draws a line between a person's own 'criminal record,' which anyone can get a copy of, and a prosecutor's 'criminal file,' which stays closed to the…
Could school officials face child endangerment or reporting duties for sending children to an unsafe private facility?
The AG said the administrator who owned the facility could conceivably face a child-endangerment issue depending on the facts, while other school administrators did not appear to fit that offense’s…
Could a South Carolina town submit a boating ordinance to DNR for special local vessel rules?
The AG agreed a municipality could enact an ordinance about vessel operation on its waters and send it to DNR with reasons special rules were needed. DNR could then confirm by letter that the…
What recording fee applied to a South Carolina certificate of trust that did not affect real estate?
The AG said Horry County used the correct appointment-related fee if the certificate or memorandum only identified trustees and their powers and had nothing to do with real estate. Its answer was…
Are teachers at Georgia commission charter schools required to be members of the Teachers Retirement System?
Maybe. The Attorney General concluded that the General Assembly likely intended commission charter school teachers to be TRS members because Article 31A repeatedly calls these schools 'public…
Could Maryland's Lottery Commission stop a slots licensee from funding opposition to a gaming referendum?
The Attorney General concluded that the Lottery Commission could enforce its license request's conflict and cooperation terms, but could not order a licensee to stop funding opposition to an Anne…
Does the 2010 Tennessee law raising the drug-testing fee on Drug Control Act convictions apply statewide, or only to the few counties named in § 39-17-420(d)?
The AG concluded the $250 drug-testing fee added by 2010 Public Chapter 1004 applies statewide to convictions, pretrial diversion under § 40-15-105, and judicial diversion under § 40-35-313 for any…
Can a Florida county charge water utilities a per-well fee to fund its wellfield protection program, or is that really a tax?
Probably not as a 'fee.' The Attorney General's office could not conclude that Palm Beach County's proposed per-well charge was a user fee or impact fee. Because it would fund an existing,…
Does Tennessee's 100-yard hunting buffer around dwellings apply when someone is hunting on private property, or only on public land?
The AG concluded no. The plain language of Tenn. Code Ann. § 70-4-108(b) makes it unlawful to hunt 'on public lands and waters within one hundred yards (100 yds.) of a visible dwelling house'…
Can the Tennessee Department of Children's Services overturn a child protection team finding that a child has been sexually abused?
The AG concluded yes. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 37-1-612(f)(1) the legislature required DCS to adopt due-process procedures for reviewing files, and the resulting rules at Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. ch.…
Can someone be both a volunteer FWC reserve officer and a full-time city police officer without breaking Florida's dual office-holding ban?
It depends, and an agency policy also matters. Florida's constitution bars holding two public offices at once, but courts recognize a narrow exception (Vinales/Rampil) when both offices relate to…
How did South Carolina’s 2010 assault reform change juvenile-code references to aggravated assault?
The AG predicted that old juvenile-code references to assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature should be read as assault and battery with intent to kill under the 2010 Act. It said the…
Can Virginia's Governor accept and spend federal education grant funds without an appropriation from the General Assembly?
No, an appropriations act is required to spend revenues of the Commonwealth, including federal grant funds. But where the General Assembly has already provided for the appropriation of those funds,…
What counts as a 'normal course load' for funding Texas virtual school courses?
The Attorney General could not say the definition had to be a four-hour-per-day course load. Education Code section 42.159 pays school districts and charter schools different amounts depending on…
Can a Texas school district change its trustee election date and adjust term lengths?
A court would likely conclude yes. The Attorney General determined that under Election Code section 41.0052, a school district could move its general election for trustees to the November uniform…
How is a hurricane-damaged Texas home reappraised for property taxes after repairs?
It depended on whether the home had been rendered uninhabitable or unusable. The Attorney General explained that if a residence homestead was rendered uninhabitable or unusable by the storm, Tax…
Is a charity Super Bowl squares game illegal gambling in Texas?
No, on the specific facts described. A state representative described a charitable 'squares game': donors buy squares on a grid tied to a major game like the Super Bowl, each square names a charity,…
Could Cayce Public Safety charge lawyers for responding to court discovery requests?
The AG said no: Cayce’s department could not apply its public-records fee schedule to discovery requests. It said the responding party bore reasonable discovery costs, although the department could…
Could a Fort Lawn council member vote to fund roof repairs for a nonprofit whose board they served on?
The AG said the council member had a conflict in the described roof-funding vote because the nonprofit had an economic interest. It said the member should disclose the conflict in writing, have it…
When did Elgin have to file its liquor-permit referendum ordinance for a February town election?
The AG said the specific alcohol-permit referendum law controlled: Elgin had to submit the ordinance to its election commission at least sixty days before its February 2011 general election. The…
Does a Delaware zoning board's meeting agenda have to name a property by its 911 street address instead of just its rural road number?
No, under the law as it stood in 2010. The AG found Sussex County's Board of Adjustment could describe properties on its agenda by rural road number rather than 911 street name, since the agenda's…
When does a Tennessee creditor have to pay the clerk's and sheriff's fees for a garnishment, at the time of filing or only after the service is performed?
The AG concluded that the timing depends on the fee statute. Under Tenn. Code Ann. § 8-21-401, court clerks may collect the twenty-five-dollar post-judgment garnishment fee at the time the service…
Can a Florida CRA spend redevelopment money on festivals, tourism grants, or grants to charitable nonprofits?
Partly. Promoting a redeveloped area itself (festivals, street parties, advertising for the area) appears to fit the community redevelopment act's purposes. But using redevelopment funds for grants…
Does a Texas facility need a license to provide medication abortions?
Two answers. First, the Attorney General concluded that chapter 245 of the Health and Safety Code requires abortion facilities to be licensed, with limited exceptions, and that a 'medical abortion'…
Can a Texas abortion facility give the required 24-hour informed-consent information with a prerecorded phone message or a one-way recorded call?
Probably not. The Attorney General concluded that, although the statute's wording is ambiguous, a court would more likely than not read Health and Safety Code section 171.012 to require a live…
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