State AG Opinions
Free state attorney general opinions with plain-English summaries, full citations, and the original source on every page.
No opinions match these filters
Try a different search term or clear the filters.
Can a citizen file a FOIA complaint against a state agency like the Department of Transportation?
No, under the law as it stood in 1999. The AG dismissed a citizen's complaint against the Delaware Department of Transportation because FOIA bars complaints against any state department the Attorney G…
How much does a Texas county have to pay its county court-at-law judges?
The Attorney General concluded that a county opting to collect the extra court costs and fees under section 51.702 of the Government Code must set its county court-at-law judges' pay under section 25.…
Can a Texas county pay county court-at-law judges from the court fees it collects?
The Attorney General concluded that sections 25.0005 and 25.0016 of the Government Code do not conflict, so a county can comply with both. Section 25.0016 says the excess court fees the state sends ba…
When does a Texas county 'initially' start collecting court fees for the judge salary rule?
The Attorney General concluded that, for the alternative county court-at-law judge salary formula in section 25.0005(e), a county 'initially begins collecting fees and costs under section 51.702' in t…
Does a Texas county clerk have to record a domestic partnership declaration?
The Attorney General concluded that a county clerk is not required to accept for recording a 'declaration of domestic partnership,' a document in which two unmarried people who live together swear the…
Can the NC legislature constitutionally give direct cash grants and low-interest loans to homeowners, farmers, and small businesses devastated by a hurricane?
Yes, in the AG's view. After Hurricane Floyd flattened eastern North Carolina, Senate leader Basnight and Speaker Black asked whether direct grants and below-market loans to individual victims would v…
Could Idaho voters legalize 'small stakes' video bingo, keno, blackjack, and poker machines in liquor-licensed establishments by initiative?
No. The proposed Idaho Code 23-929 would have allowed up to five video bingo, keno, blackjack, draw poker, or 'reel' machines in liquor establishments. The AG concluded this was casino gambling barred…
Does a closed-door kickoff meeting between city staff, state officials, and a hired consultant violate Delaware's open-meetings law?
No, under the law as it stood in 1999. The AG found that a meeting between City of Newark employees, state transit officials, and a private engineering consultant to review a parking study contract aw…
Can a city council member keep a tax abatement on property they own?
The Attorney General concluded that the Tax Abatement Act does not stop a property owner from being elected to the city council that granted the abatement, but section 312.204(d) of the Tax Code makes…
Can a Texas mayor or city manager sign a lease that binds the city?
The Attorney General concluded that, as a general rule, a city mayor or city manager acting outside his or her prescribed authority cannot bind the city to a lease for a governmental function when the…
Does writing 'signed under duress' next to my signature void the agreement?
The Attorney General concluded that writing words like 'forced to sign under threat, duress and coercion' or 'non assumpsit to the contents of this document' under a signature on a state document may …
Can a Texas city create a tax increment reinvestment zone in a thriving area?
The Attorney General concluded that a city may not designate a tax increment financing reinvestment zone, including one created through the property-owner petition route in section 311.005(a)(5), unle…
Can a non-veteran be a veterans county service officer in Texas, and how is it challenged?
The Attorney General concluded that a person who is not a veteran of the armed forces is ineligible to serve as a veterans county service officer, except for a widowed Gold Star Mother or unremarried …
Can Texas charge property tax on a travel trailer I already paid sales tax on?
The Attorney General concluded that taxing a travel trailer that has been affixed to land and is taxable as personal property is not, by itself, impermissible double taxation. A trailer attached to a …
What can a Texas county do with the interest earned on motor vehicle inventory tax escrow accounts?
The Attorney General concluded that interest earned on a motor vehicle inventory tax escrow account could be used only to defray the cost of administering the tax-prepayment procedure, not for general…
Does a Texas deputy constable have to live in the precinct where he works?
The Attorney General concluded that no statute or constitutional provision required a deputy constable to live in the precinct for which he was appointed. The Election Code's residency requirement app…
Can the Governor of North Carolina, after declaring a state of disaster, create new flood-relief programs for citizens not eligible for federal aid, and pay for those programs by shifting money out of regular state agency budgets, or does that have to wait for a legislative appropriation?
The Governor may do it, but only out of regular agency appropriations and with Council of State concurrence. AG Mike Easley's office concluded that G.S. § 166A-6(c)(5) lets the Governor, during a decl…
Did the new SBI Director, Bryan Beatty, have legal authority to take the North Carolina criminal justice officer's oath of office, given that he had not completed the Chapter 17C certification requirements that other certified officers must meet?
Yes. AG Mike Easley's office (through General Counsel Andrew Vanore) concluded that N.C.G.S. §§ 114-12 and 114-14, enacted in 1937, make the Director of the SBI a law enforcement officer by statute, w…
Can a state agency hand an employee's bank account information to a private third-party administrator that runs the agency's flexible spending account program?
The AG concluded yes. Because Aon Consulting was acting as NC Flex's contractual agent (not an outside entity), giving Aon the direct-deposit data needed to pay claims wasn't a disclosure prohibited b…
When a Minnesota statutory city holds a special election to fill the remainder of an unexpired mayoral term, when does the appointed mayor's tenure end and the newly elected mayor's term begin?
Upon qualification of the elected mayor. The AG concluded that the person elected at the special election may take the oath and assume office as soon as they receive a certificate of election. The fir…
Could the NC Private Protective Services Board start issuing 'temporary' private-investigator trainee permits so applicants didn't have to wait two months for the next board meeting?
The AG said no on all three sub-questions. The Board had no statutory authority to issue temporary trainee permits before vetting an applicant, so it could not delegate that nonexistent authority to i…
Does a nonprofit research organization like Research Triangle Institute have to register with the NC Engineering Board before doing engineering work in the state?
Yes, if the nonprofit is actually engaged in the 'practice of engineering' as the statute defines it. The opinion drew a line between pure research or teaching (exempt) and contractual engineering ser…
When do Texas county salary increases take effect if the budget is adopted after the fiscal year starts?
The Attorney General concluded that when a county's budget is not adopted until after the new fiscal year has begun, salary increases for county officers and employees took effect on the date the comm…
Can the Texas Legislature appropriate money to a state agency to give to a private out-of-state endowment?
The Attorney General concluded that the Legislature may not appropriate state funds to a state agency to transfer to a private, out-of-state endowment unless the appropriation meets several constituti…
Can a Texas city require street vendors to get a permit, or ban them outright?
The Attorney General concluded that a Type A general-law city could not prohibit the occupation of street vending, but could reasonably regulate the sale of merchandise on its streets, sidewalks, and …
If a Texas police officer is hurt on duty, can the city offset his workers' comp against his full pay?
The Attorney General concluded that when a municipal police officer is injured in the line of duty, the full pay he is entitled to under section 143.073(a) of the Local Government Code completely offs…
Can Maine give its Penobscot and Passamaquoddy tribal representatives a vote in the Legislature, and what privileges can they get without it?
The Maine AG concluded that letting a Tribal Government Representative cast a counting vote on the House floor would violate both the U.S. and Maine Constitutions under the 'one person, one vote' rule…
Can a Texas city require beginning fire fighters to be U.S. citizens?
The Attorney General concluded that state law does not stop a civil service commission governed by chapter 143 of the Local Government Code from requiring applicants for beginning fire fighter positio…
Can a Texas home-rule city limit how many building permits it issues each year?
The Attorney General concluded that nothing in federal or Texas law stops a home-rule municipality from limiting the number of building permits it will issue in a given period, even without an emergen…
Can a Texas city spend leftover tax increment funds outside the zone after the zone ends?
The Attorney General concluded that chapter 311 of the Tax Code does not let a city undertake or complete a reinvestment zone project in a way that departs from the board of directors' project and fin…
Does a Texas commissioners court have to fill a vacant constable position?
The Attorney General concluded that a commissioners court has no enforceable duty to fill a vacancy in the office of constable. Section 87.041 of the Local Government Code says the court 'may' fill su…
Could Idaho voters limit municipal annexation by requiring approval from a majority of property owners in the area before a city annexes it?
The proposed initiative would have required 'favorable concurrence of the majority of affected property owners' before annexation. The AG concluded this conflicted with Idaho Code 50-222(1)'s forced a…
Can a Delaware resident use FOIA to see a code enforcement complaint file about their own property, even after the case is closed with no charges filed?
No, under the law as it stood in 1999. The AG found that a Town of Elsmere Code Enforcement complaint file, opened over an unregistered vehicle, was protected from disclosure under FOIA's investigator…
Do national banks have to comply with Oregon insurance laws when offering debt-cancellation contracts on their loans?
No. Debt-cancellation contracts offered by national banks under the National Bank Act and OCC regulations were not insurance for purposes of Oregon's insurance code. The 1999 opinion explicitly revers…
Can a Texas county borrow money from the State Infrastructure Bank and repay it with property taxes without issuing bonds?
The Attorney General concluded that a Texas county may not borrow money from the State Infrastructure Bank for road and bridge construction and repay the loan with ad valorem property taxes over a ter…
Can a Texas junior college transfer donor-restricted scholarship funds to a nonprofit foundation?
The Attorney General concluded that scholarship money a donor gives a public junior college for needy students is impressed with a charitable trust, so it is not a general asset of the college. Becaus…
If two Texas bills passed the same session both create a state-employee retirement option, which one takes effect?
The Attorney General concluded that section 814.1043 of the Government Code, added by House Bill 3504 to give a temporary early-retirement option to South Texas Hospital workers, has no legal effect. …
Can a Texas county skip competitive bidding for an ambulance service contract?
The Attorney General concluded that a Texas commissioners court may exempt a contract for ambulance service from the County Purchasing Act's competitive-bidding requirement, because ambulance service …
Can a 17-year-old who will turn 18 by the November 2000 general election file for the NC House of Representatives, or does the candidate have to be older?
No. A candidate for the NC House must be at least 21 years old by the date of the general election. The 18-year-old voting-age threshold in Article VI, Section 1 doesn't override the 21-year-old offic…
Can a Texas tax assessor-collector use motor vehicle inventory tax interest to boost staff salaries?
The Attorney General answered three questions about the Motor Vehicle Inventory Tax Fund. First, a county tax assessor-collector may use interest earned on the fund to supplement the salaries of full-…
Can a Texas county waive property taxes on a building used by a nonprofit but owned by an individual?
The Attorney General agreed with Cameron County that it could not waive the taxes, penalties, and interest on a building owned by an individual even though a nonprofit organization used it. Penalty an…
Can a Texas city grant a new tax abatement on property that already had a ten-year abatement?
The Attorney General concluded that a governmental entity may not grant a new tax abatement on property that already received a full ten-year abatement under chapter 312 of the Tax Code, and that the …
What political activity can a New York city police officer take part in: running for office, joining party caucuses, donating to campaigns?
Most yes, one no. A police officer may run for and hold the office of county legislator, sit in a county legislative caucus, attend party committee meetings, and make political donations. Police offic…
Can a Texas state officer or employee bind the state with an oral contract?
The Attorney General concluded that a state officer or employee cannot bind the State of Texas by any contract, oral or written, unless the constitution or a statute gives them actual authority to do …
Can a Texas county official close the office for bad weather and still pay employees?
The Attorney General answered three questions for a county auditor. First, absent a state law saying otherwise, an elected or appointed county official has the implied authority to set the official's …
Can Texas revoke a child-care license over an old criminal conviction?
The Attorney General concluded that, under the Department of Protective and Regulatory Services' current rules, the Department may revoke the license of a child-care facility operator who was convicte…
When must Texas police register a parolee as a sex offender?
The Attorney General concluded that local law enforcement has no discretion when a parolee has a 'reportable conviction or adjudication' under chapter 62 of the Code of Criminal Procedure; the authori…
Was the 1999 NC law giving Charlotte/Mecklenburg schools more flexibility on construction contracts an unconstitutional 'local act' regulating trade?
The AG concluded no. Sections 2 through 6 of Chapter 207 only regulated the bidding process for Charlotte/Mecklenburg, not the contracting industry as a whole. Local acts regulating the bid process ar…
When the NC Insurance Commissioner collects money from a regulated insurance company, does that money go to the public schools or can the Department of Insurance keep it?
It depends on the nature of the payment. Civil penalties and cease-and-desist forfeitures are punitive, so under Article IX, Section 7 of the NC Constitution their clear proceeds go to local school sy…
If a New York cemetery decides to provide all annual lot care services itself, does that void existing contracts between lot owners and outside landscapers?
No. The AG concluded the Annual Care Law applies only prospectively. Lot owners with existing third-party care contracts keep them, and current lot owners can still hire outside contractors. The exclu…
Can a town police officer also serve as a village trustee in a village within that town, when the police department is run by an intermunicipal board?
Yes. The AG concluded the positions are compatible. The Manlius police department is governed by a Police Committee with town and village representatives, but the village board itself has no direct su…
Can a New York village agree to defend and pay any judgment against outside lawyers it hired, even for punitive damages in a civil rights lawsuit?
Mostly no. The AG concluded the Village can defend and indemnify its own employees by adopting Public Officers Law § 18, but generally cannot extend that to independent contractors. The Village may al…
Can a Texas county make a bail bond company post a letter of credit for each agent?
The Attorney General concluded that chapter 1704 of the Occupations Code requires a corporate bail bond surety to furnish one letter of credit to get licensed in a county, and a county bail bond board…
Can voter-approved bond money pay legal fees for construction arbitration?
The Attorney General concluded that proceeds of bonds voters approved to construct a public improvement may be used to pay legal fees for arbitration of a contract relating to that construction, but o…
Does a company keep its state license when it converts to a different type of business entity in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that, as a general rule, a state license held by a Texas corporation continues to be held by the new entity when the corporation converts to a different business form un…
Can a county sheriff police a city inside the county without an agreement, and must service be equal because residents pay county taxes?
The Attorney General concluded that a Texas sheriff is the conservator of the peace for the entire county, so he is authorized to provide law enforcement inside an incorporated city within the county …
Can voters in a New York village or fire district force a referendum on whether the fire district contracts with the village for fire protection?
No. The AG concluded only the Legislature can authorize a local referendum, and Town Law § 176(22) (which lets fire commissioners contract for outside fire protection) is not subject to one. Petition …
Can a New York village stop providing water to customers who live outside the village limits?
Yes. Under Village Law § 11-1120, supplying water to outside customers is optional, and the village can terminate the arrangement on reasonable notice that gives customers time to arrange another sour…
Can the county officer who runs the county's workers' compensation self-insurance program also serve as supervisor of a town that participates in that program?
No. The AG concluded the two positions are incompatible. The Sullivan County Director of Risk Management decides workers' compensation claims for participating towns, including Liberty. Liberty's supe…
Can a New York village pass a local law banning the use of truck engine compression brakes (jake brakes) in town?
No. The New York Vehicle and Traffic Law fully preempts local regulation of truck brake equipment, and the Legislature has not delegated authority for villages to restrict engine compression brake use…
How these opinions are useful
- Understand state law: AG opinions are authoritative interpretations of how state law applies.
- Persuasive authority: Not binding like court decisions, but they carry significant weight.
- Government guidance: Often clarify how state agencies and officials should interpret statutes.
- Legal research: Cite AG opinions in letters, motions, and legal arguments.