State AG Opinions
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Could a hospital district promise unlimited legal indemnity to doctors serving on peer review panels?
The California AG concluded in 2005 that a hospital district could not promise unconditional indemnity to nonemployee medical staff sued over peer review work. The proposed unlimited coverage…
Could someone serve on Bamberg’s city economic development board and county hospital board at the same time?
The 2005 AG said yes on the facts supplied. The hospital board likely counted as a public office, but the city economic development board made recommendations and did not exercise sovereign power.
Did Georgetown County tourism groups have to use county procurement procedures when spending accommodations-tax grants?
The 2005 AG said recipients of Georgetown County accommodations-tax tourism funds should follow established county procurement procedures. The county could decide which procedures applied, including…
Could a South Carolina nonprofit own a for-profit utility business, and did alleged use of competitors’ information violate unfair trade law?
The 2005 AG found no absolute bar to a nonprofit owning or operating a for-profit company if its profits supported nonprofit purposes instead of members. He could not decide whether PUPS met that…
Did a Maryland political party have to register as a lobbyist when it talked with officials or voters about policy?
Generally no. The AG said a recognized political party did not have to register as a lobbyist because it communicated with officials, and election-related communications to voters fell under…
Could a Winn Parish police juror also work for the parish coroner?
No. The AG said a Winn Parish police juror could not also be employed by the coroner's office. It treated the positions as incompatible under the dual-officeholding statute and said the individual…
Could a Louisiana parish council call an alcohol local-option vote without a voter petition?
No. The AG said Livingston Parish's council could not call a local-option election on alcohol sales on its own initiative. Under R.S. 26:582, a petition signed by at least twenty-five percent of…
Could a Louisiana state hospital refuse a municipal jail inmate or divert the ambulance?
The AG said a state-supported hospital could not deny emergency treatment to anyone, including a municipal jail inmate. For nonemergency care, the statutes did not impose the same treatment duty for…
Can a Louisiana alderman serve on a joint commission and also work as its supervisor?
The AG said the elected alderman could also serve as the town's appointee to the joint commission. He could not accept employment as supervisor of the commission whose board he served on, because…
Who pays for a parish assessor's and tax collector's office equipment and computer services?
The AG said the parish governing body should buy needed tax-office furniture, equipment, supplies, and maps, then bill tax-recipient bodies proportionately. Computer services could not be prorated…
Could Plaquemines Parish's civil service commission move a job to a different pay range without council approval?
Yes. The AG said the commission could reallocate classified positions under the parish's adopted pay plan and rules without consulting the parish government or obtaining its approval that funds were…
Who paid a Louisiana sheriff's tax-notice and private collection contractor costs?
The AG said the parish and other tax recipients did not have to reimburse the Washington Parish sheriff for producing property-tax notices or hiring a private tax-collection contractor. The sheriff…
Who paid an off-duty Louisiana police officer's fee for testifying in city court?
The AG said the local governing authority paid qualifying off-duty officer witness fees from a special fund of assessed and collected city-court costs, rather than the officer's employer. A…
Could a Louisiana school board make employee raises effective from an earlier budget commitment?
The AG said a school board could make raises effective from the date it had obligated itself to pay them. It treated the East Baton Rouge board's millage vote, resolutions, and commitment to raises…
When a minor in New York is caught with alcohol with intent to consume, who can prosecute the case: the town attorney, or only the district attorney?
Section 65-c is a criminal offense. ABC Law § 65-c bars minors under 21 from possessing alcohol with intent to consume and is punishable by a fine, alcohol-awareness program, or community service.…
Could Post University keep Connecticut student grants after changing to a for profit corporation?
The AG concluded that Post University no longer qualified for the Connecticut Independent College Student Grant Program after its corporate structure changed from nonprofit to for profit. He read…
If DC tried to ban the sale of M-rated and AO-rated video games to minors based on the ESRB rating system, would that violate the First Amendment?
Yes. Then-Attorney General Robert J. Spagnoletti concluded the bill could not survive First Amendment review. Video games are protected speech, and the bill restricted that speech based on content.…
If an Idaho creditor follows Regulation B's spousal-signature rules and only the applicant spouse signs, can the creditor still collect against community property after divorce or the death of the borrower?
The opinion concluded creditors face significant collection risk if they make individual loans to married Idaho borrowers without obtaining the spouse's signature. Under Twin Falls Bank & Trust v.…
Could the Oregon DAS Risk Management Division provide liability insurance to the bistate Columbia River Gorge Commission and its members?
Yes, if Risk Management determined that doing so was 'necessary or desirable for the efficient operation of state government' under ORS 278.405(1). The 2005 AG opinion concluded that ORS 278.405(1)…
Does the Texas Insurance Code apply to a county's self-funded employee health plan?
The Harris County Attorney asked whether the county's self-funded employee medical plan (set up under Local Government Code section 157.101, administered by a third party) is governed by the Texas…
Are the NC Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention 'local educational agencies' under No Child Left Behind, so that the schools they operate inside their facilities qualify for the LEA-tied federal funds?
No. Neither DHHS nor DJJDP is an LEA. They are State agencies that happen to operate schools inside residential and detention facilities, not local entities controlling or serving public schools…
Could a California city set housing production objectives below its full regional housing need because funding was insufficient?
The Attorney General said it could set lower quantified objectives if its resources as a whole were insufficient to meet the need. It had to consider local resources and other housing programs as…
What does the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board have to do as the single 'administering' agency for Measure 66 lottery money, and can its board members be sued personally if they follow a budget bill that turns out to be unconstitutional?
OWEB has to oversee the spending of every dollar of natural resources lottery money for the Article XV, § 4b purposes (watersheds, salmon, fish and wildlife habitat, water quality), even when the…
Can Texas officials get around the Open Meetings Act by discussing business in small groups instead of a full quorum?
A district attorney asked the Attorney General to interpret section 551.143 of the Open Meetings Act, which makes it a crime for members of a governmental body to knowingly conspire to circumvent…
When a Texas police officer returns from military leave, can the officers who moved up be returned to their old ranks?
State Senator Troy Fraser asked, for the City of League City, what happens to a chain of police promotions once an officer comes back from military leave. A lieutenant deployed to Afghanistan on…
Should Connecticut prisons notify inmates about untried charges before a warrant is served?
The AG advised Connecticut’s correction department to continue giving inmates written notice of known untried indictments or informations even when an arrest warrant had not been served. He…
Could a local emergency food and shelter board review aid recipients’ names to prevent duplicate payments?
The 2005 AG said a local board could collect and review recipients’ names for program oversight and predicted that this limited disclosure would not violate their privacy. He encouraged signed…
Did California law require biological evidence to be kept while someone was jailed for a misdemeanor?
The Attorney General concluded that the evidence-retention duty in the statutes reviewed in 2005 did not extend to misdemeanor cases. The related postconviction DNA testing procedure then applied to…
Could a Louisiana provider assert an injury lien without overbilling an insured patient?
The AG found no conflict between the provider-lien law and the health-insurance billing restrictions discussed in 2005. A provider could pursue a lien for reasonable charges where appropriate, but a…
Can a New York city enact a juvenile curfew, and can it punish parents (with a fine or jail) when their child violates it?
Two-part answer. (1) Yes, a city may enact a juvenile curfew under its home-rule police power, provided the law is substantially related to an important governmental interest under intermediate…
Can the elected Union Parish sheriff serve on the parish detention center commission?
Yes. The AG said the statute establishing the Union Parish Detention Center Commission expressly included the sheriff, and the commission seat was part time. It read that specific statutory…
Can the New Orleans Regional Business Park's executive director run for and serve in the Louisiana Legislature?
The AG said the executive director generally could run for state office while employed, if workplace policies and civil-service rules allowed it, but had to use personal leave to campaign during…
Could Orleans Parish require notary exam applicants to take a preparation course and show extra proof of good conduct?
No. The AG concluded that the Orleans Parish Notarial Examining Committee could not require a police good-conduct letter and extra proof of competency, including coursework or supervised study,…
Could Connecticut college students brew beer on campus without a liquor permit?
The AG concluded that Connecticut College students could not use the home brewing exception to run a campus club that made and consumed beer without a permit. Academic study of brewing without…
What did Idaho's AG say about a 2005 ballot initiative to amend Idaho Code § 49-445 (motor vehicle registration)?
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 amend a statute. The…
Could Washington’s agriculture department charge fruit and vegetable inspection funds for its administrative overhead?
The Attorney General concluded in 2005 that the department could charge the fruit and vegetable inspection account for overhead tied to implementing and enforcing RCW 15.17. The opinion did not…
Could a California county combine spouses’ campaign donations under one contribution limit?
The Attorney General concluded that a county could not require a husband’s and wife’s contributions to be combined under its campaign limit. Although state campaign law did not preempt this local…
Did Oregon's prevailing wage law apply to a low-income housing project just because Oregon Housing & Community Services made the construction loan?
No. The 2005 AG opinion concluded that the standard OHCS division-10 loan program for low-income, multi-unit housing did not turn the project into a 'public works' under ORS 279C.800(5). OHCS…
Does Louisiana's treasury need a new appropriation to advance cash to an agency awaiting appropriated revenue?
No additional appropriation was needed under the AG's analysis for a treasury cash advance on expenses already appropriated to a state agency. The advance had to follow LSA-R.S. 39:71(D), remain…
Can a salaried Louisiana coroner charge the parish extra for emergency psychiatric commitment exams?
Not on the facts presented. The AG said the salaried Livingston Parish coroner could not claim additional fees under the cited criminal-procedure provision because no court had appointed him to…
Does a school board vote to negotiate a superintendent's three-year contract create a binding offer?
The AG did not decide whether St. John the Baptist Parish School Board had offered or formed a three-year superintendent contract. It said that depended on factual questions about the board's…
Can a Louisiana justice of the peace jail someone for contempt, and are the justice's judicial acts immune from suit?
The AG said a justice of the peace could punish direct contempt with a fine of up to $50, up to 24 hours in parish jail, or both, after due process. It also said judicial acts within the justice's…
How did Louisiana school boards calculate bus operator reimbursements when routes changed?
The AG could not decide whether the per-mile reimbursement rate applied to one-way or round-trip miles. It said a board-approved bus purchase could protect the officially designated route length…
Can Texas's Treasury Trust Company accept cash as collateral in a repurchase agreement?
The Texas Comptroller asked whether the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company, which invests state funds and the TexPool local-government investment pool, may enter into repurchase agreements…
Did South Carolina’s state motorcycle safety program bar private companies from offering rider training?
The 2005 AG said no. The statute authorized a state technical-college program without making it the exclusive motorcycle safety course. He left uncertainty about whether a separate…
Could county supervisors dictate investment manager contract terms after delegating investment authority?
The California AG concluded in 2005 that a county board could not attach conditions to the treasurer’s investment management contracts after delegating investment authority. The treasurer assumed…
Could a Connecticut school board charge retired teachers an extra health plan administrative fee?
The AG concluded that a participating board of education could not charge a retired teacher an extra administrative fee for group health coverage when active teachers did not pay the same charge.…
Could a California state employee receive a forestry grant for privately owned timberland?
Yes, on the facts considered in 2005. The employee sought the grant only as a private landowner, and his state job had no connection to the department or its grant decisions.
Could Maine constitutionally make 'the depicted minor was not real or not a minor' an affirmative defense the defendant has to prove in child-pornography cases?
The AG concluded that LD 548's proposed affirmative defense was unconstitutional. Federal due process requires the State to prove every element of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt, and Maine's…
Who has authority to prosecute someone whose dog attacked a person under New York's dangerous-dog law: the town attorney, the district attorney, or anyone? And can the dog-bite victim get money damages in that proceeding?
Mixed answer. A town attorney can bring civil dangerous-dog proceedings under Agriculture and Markets Law § 121 (and § 119 civil penalties) on the town's behalf. Criminal prosecutions for dog-law…
Does a Delaware town have to release a public employee's draft contract before it is finalized?
Not while it is still a genuine working draft, but according to this opinion, once a town council votes at a public meeting to approve the contract, even subject to further legal review, it becomes…
Can a Delaware public body vote in public to hire one of two final job candidates without naming them at the time of the vote?
Yes, under this 2005 opinion. The AG found no FOIA violation when New Castle County Council's Personnel Committee voted publicly using Candidate A and Candidate B rather than their names. The…
Can the Texas Lottery Commission sell its promotional merchandise to the public?
The Texas Lottery Commission hands out branded promotional goods (koozies, T-shirts, scratch-off coins, ornaments, towels, sports bags) to lottery players and retailers, and it asked whether it…
Can a Texas county official suspend an employee with pay?
A Brooks County official (the sheriff, who also served as tax assessor-collector) suspended a deputy with pay after the deputy was indicted, even though the office had no written policy on paid…
Could the mayor of Hollywood, South Carolina also serve as the town’s zoning administrator?
The 2005 AG said no. The zoning administrator’s permit and enforcement powers made it a second public office, state law separately barred mayors from other municipal office or employment, and the…
Could Charleston voters misassigned to District 5 vote in the corrected District 7 special election?
The 2005 AG said qualified Plantation Apartments voters should be allowed to vote in the new District 7 special election even if the county’s mapping error had let them vote in District 5 the…
Can a licensed video poker device maker supply software for Louisiana's central monitoring system?
Potentially. The AG said a licensed device manufacturer could develop, supply, or perhaps maintain software for Louisiana's video poker monitoring system, but could not control polling or remote…
Can a Texas school district build on leased private land and lease out its unused land?
The Port Neches-Groves ISD wanted a 50-year (renewable to 100-year) deal with Huntsman Petrochemicals: lease Huntsman's land for $1 a year to build schools on it, and in return let Huntsman use a…
Could South Carolina’s Insurance Reserve Fund insure a defender corporation and its employees against tort claims?
The 2005 AG said no. He read the fund’s authority as covering government entities and their personnel, while treating defender corporations and their employees as private nonprofit entities for this…
Was the Beaufort Water Festival’s paid River Rally card event a prohibited lottery in 2005?
The 2005 AG said yes. Participants paid for cards drawn at docks and could win prizes based on their hands, meeting the opinion’s prize, payment, and chance test. He also said the event violated a…
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