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Did Missouri approve the fiscal note summary for Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-016?
Yes. The attorney general approved the fiscal note summary's legal content and form; it estimated at least $31,000 in state costs in each odd-numbered fiscal year beginning in fiscal year 2027 and…
Does the Arkansas Attorney General have authority to review and approve an interlocal agreement between a city and a county that only divides funding for district court operations?
No. The AG concluded he lacks authority to review the Pope County / Russellville agreement under either the Interlocal Cooperation Act or the county-interlocal-agreement statute. The Cooperation Act…
Did Missouri approve the fiscal note summary for Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-015?
Yes. The attorney general approved the fiscal note summary's legal content and form; it estimated at least $31,000 in state costs in each odd-numbered fiscal year beginning in fiscal year 2027 and…
Can off-duty Texas sheriff's deputies be hired directly for private security work without commissioners court approval?
It depends on whether the work is 'county business' or genuinely private. The AG explained that only the commissioners court may contract on the county's behalf for law enforcement services that…
Can a juvenile defendant's lawyer get the underlying records behind a Texas juvenile probation social history report?
Not through ordinary criminal discovery, but yes by subpoena. The AG concluded that a local juvenile probation department (Tarrant County Juvenile Services) is not 'the state' under Code of Criminal…
When does a newly elected Arizona fire district board member take office after a November election?
On the first day of the month after the election. The Attorney General concluded that A.R.S. § 48-803(G) was meant to apply to all fire districts, even though a 2014 amendment accidentally added a…
Can the Kansas Governor veto just the strings attached to a school grant while leaving the money itself untouched?
No. The Attorney General concluded that Governor Kelly's line-item veto of a proviso restricting how a $5 million school safety and security grant could be spent, while leaving the $5 million…
Can South Dakota's State Treasurer proactively find owners of small unclaimed property holdings and mail them a check, without waiting for the owner to file a claim?
Yes. The Uniform Unclaimed Property Act says an owner 'may' file a claim, not 'must,' which means the owner's claim is one route but not the only one. The Treasurer is the safekeeper of the property…
Can a California special water district hire its own staff or contract with an outside vendor for staff, when the district's enabling statute says it may contract with two named partner agencies for staff services?
No. The Fox Canyon Groundwater Management Agency cannot hire its own employees or contract with a private vendor for staff. Its enabling statute lets it get staff only from the County of Ventura or…
If a public employee's name, salary, hire date, and job title are requested under the Arkansas FOIA, can the agency release them?
Yes. The AG concludes that releasing nonelected public employees' compensation information (name, hire date, base salary, bonus, overtime, gross wages, and position title) is consistent with the…
Can an Arkansas city pass an ordinance that limits how much a landlord can charge for rental application fees and background checks?
No. AG Tim Griffin opines that Fayetteville's Ordinance 6800 (capping rental application fees at $20 and background check fees at $40) likely violates A.C.A. § 14-43-608, which broadly prohibits…
If the state takes my home through eminent domain and I have to buy a new one, can my Amendment 79 senior property tax cap follow me to the new house at the old assessed value?
The new home is capped under Amendment 79 at its assessed value on the purchase date, or a later lower value. The former home's assessment cannot carry over, even after a forced sale. The AG said…
Can Texas police issue a traffic ticket as a card with a QR code that links to the full citation online?
Probably, if the system is built right. The AG concluded a court could find that handing a driver a card showing the time and place to appear and the citation number, plus a QR code that links to…
Can the Arkansas Attorney General review a school district's decision to release records about a job applicant who is not employed by the district?
No. The AG declined to review the release decision because § 25-19-105(c)(3)(B)(i) covers personnel and employee-evaluation records, and the applicant was not employed by the school district. The AG…
Did Missouri approve the summary statement for Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-010?
Yes. The attorney general approved the proposed summary statement's legal content and form; the proposal addressed legislative changes to citizen initiatives and when ballot measures would be decided.
Did Missouri approve the summary statement for Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-009?
Yes. The attorney general approved the proposed summary statement's legal content and form; the proposal addressed legislative changes to citizen initiatives and when ballot measures would be decided.
Did Missouri approve the fiscal note summary for Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-014?
Yes. The attorney general approved the fiscal note summary's legal content and form; it estimated no state or local government costs or savings, and the review did not assess that estimate's…
Why did Missouri reject Katherine Floyd's initiative petition 2026-020?
The attorney general rejected petition 2026-020 because it did not correctly include only the sections of existing law to be repealed or amended. The opinion did not review whether other…
Did Missouri approve the form of Katherine Floyd's initiative petition 2026-019?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-019 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Katherine Floyd's initiative petition 2026-018?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-018 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Can a South Carolina state agency or public university agree to indemnify or 'hold harmless' another party in a contract?
No, not without express statutory authority. The Attorney General reaffirmed its longstanding position (dating to 1966) that a state agency has no authority to enter indemnification or 'hold…
Can a journalist use FOIA to find out which Delaware House staff signed nondisclosure agreements?
No. The Division of Legislative Services produced redacted copies of the five signed NDAs, the unsigned policy template, and the related employee handbooks. The redactions of staff names and…
Can a Delaware public body cure a missing public-comment item on the agenda by orally adding it before the meeting starts?
No. The public-comment period had to appear on the agenda for the December 13, 2024 meeting. The Mayor’s verbal addition before the meeting did not cure its omission, so the AG found a FOIA…
Can a Tennessee property assessor correct an erroneous property classification or square-footage error after the original assessment year, and can the trustee then collect additional taxes?
Yes to both, as long as the correction happens before March 1 of the second year following the tax year. Once the assessor certifies a correctable error in writing, the trustee or municipal…
Can a Delaware state representative use FOIA to find out which legislative staff signed nondisclosure agreements?
He can get the policies themselves, but the names of the staff who signed are protected. The Division of Legislative Services properly redacted names and signatures from the five NDAs because the…
Does the New Mexico Military Institute get a share of the extra 1.25% annual distribution from the state's land grant permanent funds that voters approved in 2022, including the 60% piece earmarked for early childhood education?
No, on either question. The 2022 amendment's extra 1.25% distribution comes only from the permanent school fund, which the federal Enabling Act limits to support of public (common) schools. NMMI is…
Did Missouri approve the fiscal note summary for Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-012?
Yes. The attorney general approved the legal content and form of the auditor's fiscal note summary, which estimated no costs or savings for state and local government.
In a South Carolina mayor-council town, can the mayor hire a deputy administrator without council approval, and can the council cut the budget to block it?
The Attorney General concluded that in a mayor-council form of government, the mayor has broad authority under § 5-9-30(1) to appoint municipal employees, and because no statute governs a…
Can a New Mexico state agency sign the standard US Forest Service indemnity language for a special-use permit that lets it put a cell tower or other equipment on federal land?
Partly. The State can agree to indemnify the United States up to the Tort Claims Act's liability limits and can name the USDA as an additional insured on a commercial general liability policy…
Is it legal for Kansas to require the State Board of Cosmetology to have at least one African-American member?
It's constitutionally uncertain. The Attorney General concluded that K.S.A. 74-2701(a)'s requirement that at least one member of the State Board of Cosmetology be African-American is a race-based…
Are settlement discussions and materials in Oklahoma utility rate cases confidential, and can a single Corporation Commissioner be shown them?
Confidential, yes, and no, not even one Commissioner can see them. Settlement matters in any public utility rate proceeding before the Oklahoma Corporation Commission are privileged under 17 O.S. §…
If a Delaware town quotes me a high fee for a FOIA request and I ask for a quote on a narrower version, can the town just ignore the new request?
No. When the requester modifies a FOIA request after seeing a fee estimate (here, $660), the town has to engage with the modification, not stay silent. Bethany Beach's failure to respond to Ms.…
Did Wilmington violate FOIA by saying it had no citations from a condominium inspection?
No. A department director swore that a city inspector visited the property in August 2024 but issued no citations or violations. The AG found that affidavit sufficient to support the City's response…
Can the Mesalands Community College Board of Trustees demand money from the Mesalands Community College Foundation when the College needs cash?
No. The College Board can request funds, but the Foundation is not legally required to comply with any specific request. The Foundation's directors owe fiduciary duties (good faith, care, loyalty)…
Did Missouri approve the fiscal note summary for Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-011?
Yes. The attorney general approved the legal content and form of the auditor's fiscal note summary, which estimated at least $25,000 in state costs each odd-numbered fiscal year and no local costs…
When a public flood-control authority sets up a private dispute-review board to handle construction disputes, do open meeting laws apply?
Yes. The Metro Flood Diversion Authority is a public entity. Its Technical Dispute Review Board, set up by contract with a private developer to resolve construction disputes, is a committee of the…
If a New Mexico statute says members of the State Music Commission cannot receive 'compensation, perquisite or allowance,' can they still be reimbursed for the gas and per diem they spend traveling to a Commission meeting?
Yes. The Per Diem and Mileage Act applies to members of the Commission as nonsalaried public officers and authorizes mileage reimbursement at the IRS standard rate plus per diem within statutory…
When the New Mexico State Ethics Commission votes in closed session on whether to file a civil enforcement action, does the Open Meetings Act force it to put the target's name on the public agenda?
No, not necessarily. The Open Meetings Act requires 'reasonable specificity' on agendas, but reasonableness is fact-specific. Because the State Ethics Commission Act keeps complaint and…
Did Missouri approve the ballot wording for a county tobacco cigarette tax with dedicated local uses?
Yes. The attorney general approved the summary statement for Deirdre Hirner's petition 2026-006, letting county voters set and control taxes on tobacco cigarettes with proceeds dedicated to listed…
Did Missouri approve the ballot wording for a county cigarette and tobacco tax controlled by county voters?
Yes. The attorney general approved the summary statement for Deirdre Hirner's petition 2026-005, a shorter version letting county voters set and control county taxes on cigarettes or tobacco products.
Did Missouri approve the ballot wording for a proposed county tobacco tax amendment?
Yes. The attorney general approved the legal content and form of the summary statement for Deirdre Hirner's petition 2026-004, which would let county voters set and control county taxes on…
Can a Tennessee county add race-conscious 'culturally-competent community engagement' criteria to its tax-increment-financing approval process?
Likely not. The AG concluded that if the Shelby County Commission considers race when approving TIF projects, the policy almost certainly fails strict scrutiny under the Equal Protection Clause and…
What can the Arkansas Department of Corrections redact from a current employee's personnel file in response to a FOIA request, and are commendation letters from supervisors public?
The AG found four errors in the planned release: missed redactions of some personal details, improper redaction of references' names and contact information, planned release of exempt college…
Did Missouri approve the ballot wording for a detailed county excise tax on tobacco cigarettes?
Yes. The attorney general approved the summary statement for Deirdre Hirner's petition 2026-008, a more detailed version giving local voters power to set, change, or repeal a county excise tax on…
Did Missouri approve the ballot wording for another county tobacco cigarette tax petition with dedicated uses?
Yes. The attorney general approved the summary statement for Deirdre Hirner's petition 2026-007, letting county voters set and control taxes on tobacco cigarettes with proceeds dedicated to listed…
Did Missouri approve the fiscal note summary for Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-010?
Yes. The attorney general approved the fiscal note summary's legal content and form; it estimated no state or local government costs or savings, and the review did not assess that estimate's…
Did Missouri approve the fiscal note summary for Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-009?
Yes. The attorney general approved the fiscal note summary's legal content and form; it estimated no state or local government costs or savings, and the review did not assess that estimate's…
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-017?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-017 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-016?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-016 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-015?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-015 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Louisiana's AG approve the updated Recall Packet and Recall Petitions after the 2024 law change?
Only after corrections. The Louisiana AG identified outdated election-code excerpts in the submitted Recall Packet and said the packet and petitions would comply with state law once those excerpts…
Did Louisiana's AG approve the Home Rule Charter Commission petition form for printing?
Yes. After the Secretary of State requested expedited review, the Louisiana AG reviewed the Home Rule Charter Commission Petition, found it compliant with Louisiana law and approved it for printing…
If Tennessee identifies a doctor as a high-risk prescriber of controlled substances, are the remedial steps the licensing board imposes (continuing education, waiting-room literature, special opioid consents) optional or required?
Required, not optional. Once a Tennessee licensing board is told a clinician is a high-risk prescriber, it must impose every remedial step in Tenn. Code Ann. § 68-1-128(c)(3)(A) through (D) that is…
Can a South Carolina county bill a city for 911 dispatch and for housing the city's inmates, even though the county already collects 911 fees and taxes residents?
It depends on whether there is a cost-sharing agreement. The Attorney General said it cannot decide whether a particular county bill is authorized because that turns on facts. But the Constitution…
How specific does a Delaware agency have to be when it tells a FOIA requester that it needs more time to gather documents?
It has to give a real, good-faith estimate of when the records will arrive, not just a generic 'we need more time.' The Lieutenant Governor's Office repeatedly told the AP it was working on the…
When a city releases the personnel files of two former police officers, what can it redact and what must come out?
For these former police employees' files, the AG approved redacting personal identifiers, but rejected redactions of references' names and contact details, time-off records, and change-in-benefits…
Did Missouri approve the summary statement for Winston Apple's legislative proxy-voting initiative?
Yes. The attorney general approved the proposed summary statement's legal content and form under § 116.334, RSMo, without endorsing the petition.
Can a Virginia city adopt local rules (a resolution or charter provision) that prohibit a council member who also works for the city from voting on the budget or personnel matters?
No. The AG concluded that the State and Local Government Conflict of Interests Act preempts local rules that try to impose their own voting disqualifications. The Act sets a uniform statewide…
When can a North Dakota city council go into executive session to talk to its lawyer about possible litigation?
Lincoln City Council went into executive session to talk to its attorney about possibly suing the former city auditor over a bond claim. The AG concluded the executive session wasn't authorized: the…
If I'm an Oklahoma seller's-only real estate broker, do I have to write up an offer that an unrepresented buyer hands me, and what other duties do I owe a buyer who isn't my client?
If your written agreement with the seller specifies that you are providing services to the seller only, you do NOT have to reduce an unrepresented buyer's offer to writing under SB 1920 (2024).…
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