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 fewer or different words, check the spelling, or clear the filters to browse everything.
Could a Colorado school district transfer investment interest from its bond redemption fund to its general fund?
No. Investment earnings followed the restricted bond principal and had to be used only for bond interest and redemption, so a district could not contract to credit them to its general fund.
If I was let off probation when my term ended but never paid my court fines, do I still owe them in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that for both regular and deferred adjudication community supervision, the supervision period ends automatically when the term expires, even if the judge never signs a…
How many votes does a Texas hospital district board need to pass something, and do abstentions count against it?
The Attorney General concluded that because the Harris County Hospital District Board of Managers adopted Robert's Rules of Order to govern its meetings, it approves an action by a majority vote of…
Two Texas bills changed the same water-funding law in 2005, so which version of the 'affected county' rule actually applies?
The Water Development Board pointed out that two bills from the 2005 legislature, Senate Bill 425 and House Bill 467, amended the same Water Code sections (16.341 and 17.923) in conflicting ways,…
Can an 18, 19, or 20-year-old in Texas collect a lottery prize directly, or does it have to go through an adult?
The Attorney General concluded that for purposes of the State Lottery Act, a 'minor' is anyone who has not yet turned 21. That is because Government Code section 466.405, which governs paying prizes…
Can Texas's Private Security Board make new alarm installers work under supervision or meet electrical-code standards?
The Chair of the House Public Health Committee asked whether the Private Security Board could adopt two rules for newly registered alarm installers. The Attorney General split the answer. On the…
Could Tega Cay move its city election and let current council members serve longer?
The AG said Tega Cay could change its election date by ordinance even though incumbents would serve longer until successors were elected and qualified. It required a reasonable public purpose and,…
Does the Swan Falls Agreement let Idaho prioritize aquifer recharge over Idaho Power's hydropower water rights, and do later statutes give Idaho Power vested rights against that?
This is the original Opinion 06-2, since superseded by Opinion 06-2A. The conclusions are unchanged: Idaho Power's hydropower rights above the Murphy Gauge minimum flows are subordinated to…
What did Idaho's AG say about Ron Gillett's revised 2006 wolf-removal ballot initiative, after the AG flagged single-subject problems with the original?
Petitioner Ron Gillett filed a revised wolf-removal initiative on March 7, 2006. The AG said the revision addressed his earlier single-subject concern by limiting the proposal to wolf management. He…
Could a South Carolina school board issue bonds for both school construction and old bond debt?
The AG said a school district could issue general-obligation bonds with proceeds used partly for capital improvements and partly to refund previously issued bonds. It did not certify Marlboro…
Could a paid South Carolina charter school employee sit on that school's governing board?
The AG concluded that the Charter Schools Act did not bar an employee from serving on the school's governing board. Although it thought the common-law master-servant conflict rule might otherwise…
Could New London use Fort Trumbull project funds to settle with former property owners?
The AG found no legal obstacle in the grant agreement or its authorizing law to using the remaining Fort Trumbull project funds for settlement payments that secured possession of condemned parcels.…
Could a judge in Maine count time served as a legislator toward judicial retirement, and if the Legislature wanted to change that, would the constitutional unfunded-liability ban apply?
The Maine AG concluded that under the statutes as they stood in 2006, a judge could not count legislative service toward Maine Judicial Retirement System eligibility or benefits, there was no…
Could a South Carolina court admit a DVD copy after an undercover camera's original file was erased?
The AG said a DVD duplicate could be admitted even after the original digital recording was erased, if the evidence rules' conditions were met. A genuine question about authenticity or unfairness…
Could Folly Beach voters enact a 50-foot building height limit by initiative and referendum by placing it in the fire code?
The AG predicted that a court would treat the proposed 50-foot height limit as a zoning ordinance despite its fire-prevention label. Under I'on, voters could not enact zoning by initiative and…
Could a California city modify a water-company lease when a council member worked for the company?
The California AG concluded in 2006 that the city could modify the lease under the remote-interest exception if the company and council member met its conditions, the interest was disclosed and…
What did Idaho's AG say about Ron Gillett's 2006 ballot initiative to 'remove' gray wolves from Idaho?
The Attorney General said the caption could mislead voters because state law could not remove wolves protected by federal law. Abolishing the Office of Species Conservation alongside wolf provisions…
Would proposed Berkeley and Charleston County school millage rollbacks conflict with South Carolina's minimum local school funding requirement?
Yes. The AG concluded that the proposed rollback legislation conflicted with Section 59-21-1030's mandatory minimum local funding effort for schools. The opinion's opening and conclusion give…
If a small Texas city already taxes hotels in its ETJ, does a new county hotel tax force the city to drop its tax over the 15% cap?
The Attorney General concluded that section 351.0025(b) of the Tax Code limits cities, not counties, so it is not a question of which one has priority. A city with fewer than 35,000 people may tax…
Can a Texas waterfront owner rebuild eroded land that became School Fund property and keep title without paying the fund?
The General Land Office Commissioner asked whether a 2005 law, Natural Resources Code section 33.613, was constitutional. The Attorney General concluded it was not. When a waterfront (littoral)…
Could Connecticut remove a pharmacy from its employee plan for refusing a covered prescription?
Yes, under the state employee plan and pharmacy contract the AG analyzed in 2006. A network pharmacy's refusal to fill a covered prescription gave the plan cause to remove it from the network, but…
Was a Maryland poker tournament with prizes illegal gambling if everyone could enter for free?
No, if entry was genuinely free at every level. The Attorney General said poker and prizes supplied the chance and reward elements of gambling, but the tournament described was not illegal gambling…
Could Maryland sell prison-made clothing through inmate commissaries without violating the ban on open-market sales?
Yes for the arrangement reviewed in 2006. The Attorney General said an inmate-only commissary was not the open market, and the statute separately allowed prison-made goods to be sold to a contractor…
Did South Carolina's constitutional lottery restriction apply to teachers, private lawyers, or National Guard members in 2006?
The AG said teachers and private attorneys generally were not public officers and thus were outside the constitutional lottery restriction. It called application to National Guard members…
Did the California AG authorize a court challenge to a community services district director’s disputed residence?
Yes. In 2006 the AG granted leave for a quo warranto suit because the director’s eligibility and claimed district domicile raised substantial factual and legal questions. It did not decide whether…
Can the public inspect grading and soils reports as soon as a California city receives a building-permit application?
The California AG concluded in 2006 that interim geology, compaction, and soils reports submitted with a building-permit application were open to inspection and copying when the building department…
Can a town supervisor in New York appoint the same person to serve as their confidential secretary and as deputy supervisor?
No. The deputy supervisor and the confidential secretary to the supervisor are incompatible positions and cannot be held by the same person. When the deputy supervisor stands in for the supervisor,…
Could a California doctor prescribe a device sold by a company the doctor owned in part?
The California AG concluded in 2006 that a physician generally could prescribe such a device if investment returns followed proportional ownership and required disclosures were made. A company in…
Can a Texas attorney ad litem meet with a foster child by phone before a court hearing, or does the law require an in-person meeting?
Two legislators asked whether a telephone interview satisfies an attorney ad litem's duty under Family Code section 107.004(d) to meet, before each court hearing, with a child in a child-protection…
Did Connecticut need to approve a private discounted heating oil program backed by CITGO?
No state approval was needed for the private program the AG reviewed in 2006. He found no legal impediment or plausible antitrust issue, because the arrangement was between private nonprofit groups…
If Interstate 55 was built outside the land Louisiana expropriated for it, can DOTD return the unused strip by a boundary agreement?
Assuming the alleged route error was real, the AG said the state owned the land actually expropriated in 1958 and had acquired the road corridor by 30-year prescription, or alternatively held a…
Could Berkeley County's legislative delegation constitutionally approve future school bond issues under Act 229 of 1983?
The AG concluded that section 3 of Act 229 of 1983 likely violated separation of powers by giving the Berkeley County legislative delegation authority to approve future school bonds. Only a court…
Georgia adds a 5% surcharge to fines for criminal offenses (O.C.G.A. § 15-21-131). When someone gets a traffic ticket, posts a cash bond, and lets the bond be forfeited instead of going to court, does the clerk still collect the 5% surcharge?
Yes. When a defendant in a traffic case posts a cash bond and forfeits it in lieu of appearing in court, O.C.G.A. §§ 17-6-8 and 40-13-58 require the proceeds to be 'applied and distributed as any…
Could a county use Mental Health Services Act funds to pay the usual staff of a mental health court?
No. The California AG concluded in 2006 that the Act did not fund customary court staff, including judges, clerks, prosecutors, and public defenders, even under an approved county mental health…
When a Texas county distributes county permanent school fund money to its districts, are transfer students counted where they live or where they attend school?
Dawson County's attorney asked how to split a county permanent school fund reduction among five school districts when many students live in one district but attend another. The Attorney General…
Does a Texas county clerk have to impress a raised seal on every page of a certified copy, or only on the last page?
The Office of Court Administration asked whether the county clerk's certificate that goes on each page of a certified copy has to include a raised (embossed) seal on every page, or whether the seal…
Does a Texas retirement home that makes residents use the owner's own home health agency for care have to be licensed as an assisted living facility?
The Department of Aging and Disability Services asked about a place, marketed as a retirement community, that housed more than four unrelated residents and required them, by contract, to get all…
Could a Maryland orthopedic group refer patients to MRI scans on its own leased machine if the referring doctor supervised them?
No for the group-practice MRI arrangement the 2006 opinion addressed. The Attorney General adopted an attached advice letter concluding that direct performance or supervision did not make the…
Does a Maryland condo conversion purchase offer have to state a price, and what happens if it does not?
Yes. The Attorney General said the purchase offer sent with a condominium-conversion notice had to name a specific price for the tenant's unit. If it did not, the tenant's minimum 180-day period to…
Could South Carolina municipalities fund the Municipal Association's lobbying against James Island incorporation?
The AG said MASC received public funds but remained a private organization. Municipalities had implied authority to fund legislative activity serving public and municipal corporate purposes; whether…
Can a Texas elected constable also work full-time as a deputy sheriff at the same time?
Yes. The opinion found no constitutional, common-law, or statutory bar to an elected constable serving as a deputy sheriff, because the deputy position is not a separate office. Practical scheduling…
Could Connecticut towns tax business personal property at a different mill rate and keep old state grants?
The AG found no clear ban or clear authorization for a town to set a different mill rate for nonvehicle personal property, and called for legislative clarification. He also said the state could not…
Which Lafayette school-bus driver payments did the board have to try to recover after an audit?
The AG said Lafayette Parish School Board had to make reasonable efforts to recover payments for mileage it improperly guaranteed without a legal obligation. Contractually owed frozen-mileage…
If a Texas wireless carrier disputes whether the 911 fee applies to its service and seeks a refund, does the 911 Commission or the Comptroller decide?
A wireless carrier filed a refund claim with both the Commission on State Emergency Communications and the Comptroller, arguing the 9-1-1 fee did not apply to its prepaid service. The Commission…
Would Greenwood County volunteer fire departments lose tax-exempt status by collecting insurance reimbursements through a third party?
On the facts supplied, the AG saw no indication that collecting fire-response cost reimbursements from insurers, directly or through a third party, would affect the departments' tax-exempt status.…
Could Beaufort County Republican Party regional directors and area managers vote on its county executive committee?
The AG said party rules conflicted with Section 7-9-60 if they gave votes to regional directors, area managers, or officers who did not otherwise qualify as committee members. The validity of past…
Can a New York town adopt a local law making it a violation to host a party for minors where alcohol is being consumed?
Yes. State alcohol-control laws do not preempt a local 'teen party host' ordinance that penalizes adults for letting underage drinkers gather and drink at a residence they control. The state…
Can a title company bring its own plat copying machine into a Texas county clerk's office to copy property records?
San Patricio County's attorney asked whether a person or company may set up a plat copying machine in the county clerk's office or elsewhere in the courthouse, where the clerk's office had no…
Could a South Carolina drycleaning facility leave the restoration trust fund after the 1995 election deadline?
The AG maintained that a drycleaning facility could elect out of the restoration trust fund only by the October 1, 1995 deadline stated in the governing provisions. It said the 2004 amendment…
What fees can a Texas hospital charge a workers' comp carrier for medical records, the lower Labor Code rate or the Health and Safety Code rate?
The Department of State Health Services asked whether Health and Safety Code section 241.154(b) or Labor Code section 408.025(d) sets the fees a hospital may charge a workers' compensation carrier…
Do retired Texas judges who were eligible to serve by assignment before the 2003 rules still qualify under the old requirements?
Texas lets retired and former judges sit by assignment to help clear court backlogs, if they meet the eligibility rules in Government Code section 74.055(c). A 2003 law (House Bill 3306) made those…
What tuition exemption do Texas firefighters get for fire science courses, and does it cover community college fees?
A state senator asked the Attorney General to clarify Education Code section 54.208, which exempts Texas firefighters from tuition and lab fees for fire science courses. The opinion reached four…
Was a Washington teachers’ professional association an employee organization if it refused collective bargaining?
The Attorney General concluded in 2006 that an association that did not exist, even partly, to bargain over wages, hours, or employment terms was outside the “employee organization” definition in…
Could a California city and county exchange property tax revenue without changing their boundaries?
The California AG concluded in 2006 that a city and county could agree to change their shares of property tax revenue without a boundary or service change, if the statutory procedures and conditions…
Can Texas collect unpaid fines with a capias pro fine after a defendant's deferred adjudication ended with no motion to adjudicate filed?
Burnet County's collections office found expired deferred adjudications with unpaid court costs and fines, and the county attorney asked whether the state could still chase those defendants with a…
Could a child living with a noncustodial parent attend public school in that parent's South Carolina district?
Yes. The AG read Section 59-63-30 to allow a child living with either parent to attend public school in that parent's district, even if that parent did not have legal custody.
Could California enforce vehicle registration and driver-license rules against tribal members on reservation roads?
The California AG concluded in 2006 that the two state requirements could not be enforced against tribal members on roads within their reservation. It classified those requirements as civil…
Would a defense-of-marriage amendment to the Idaho Constitution actually do anything new, given that Idaho already banned same-sex marriage by statute?
The AG said Idaho’s existing marriage statutes would probably survive a state constitutional challenge, while an amendment would bar that kind of challenge and strengthen the state’s stated policy…
Could South Carolina's Firefighter Mobilization Oversight Committee own equipment and hire support staff?
The AG concluded that the committee lacked authority to own mobilization equipment. It could appoint and remove state and regional coordinators under the Act, but could not hire or fire other state…
Could a part-time chief indigent defender serve on a Louisiana parish council?
Yes. The AG concluded that a part-time chief indigent defender could also hold an elected parish council seat. The defender position was an appointive office, but the statute barred the combination…
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.
Browse opinions by state
Two states are not listed and are not pending: New Hampshire publishes its opinions on a page that automated retrieval cannot read, and Rhode Island publishes no complete full-text archive at all. We will add them if that changes.