State AG Opinions
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Can a Texas county sign a hold-harmless clause that makes it pay for another party's damages?
Denton County's Criminal District Attorney asked whether a hold-and-save-harmless clause the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers wanted the county to sign (as part of an agreement for the county to provide…
Could The Citadel ban smoking and smokeless tobacco inside its buildings?
The Assistant AG said The Citadel’s Board of Visitors had authority to adopt both smoke-free building rules and a similar policy for smokeless tobacco, at its discretion. He also said the 1990 Clean…
Can a town's vote to adopt a land-use plan be voided because of notice problems earlier in the planning process?
Yes, under the law as it stood in 1998. The AG found Middletown committed a series of FOIA notice violations, unadvertised planning workshops, public input sessions not properly noticed by the town,…
Could a Greenville animal-control officer issue an ordinance summons for a violation the officer did not see?
The Assistant Deputy AG said an ordinance summons under § 56-7-80 could be used even when the officer did not witness the violation, because it was not a custodial arrest. He left the question of…
Were South Carolina chambers of commerce exempt from property tax on every property they owned?
The Assistant Deputy AG gave no blanket exemption ruling. He said the exemption depended on how each property was primarily used and on the statutory no-private-benefit condition; the Department of…
Could a part-time South Carolina magistrate also serve on the Pee Dee Tourism Commission?
The Assistant AG said most probably yes: he viewed commission membership as probably not a public office for the constitutional dual-office rule, and found no supervisory relationship between the…
Could a Washington agency release a list of individuals for business use if the requester would not solicit them?
The Attorney General concluded in 1998 that the then-current Public Disclosure Act barred disclosure of lists of individuals requested for a commercial purpose even without direct solicitation. The…
Could a ten-year-old make a valid contract without a parent’s approval in South Carolina?
The Assistant AG said a minor could generally make a valid contract without parental approval, but it was voidable at the minor’s choice before ratification. After reaching majority, written…
Did the South Carolina AG view indecent exposure as a crime of moral turpitude?
Yes. In a 1998 informal opinion, the Assistant Deputy AG predicted that South Carolina courts would classify indecent exposure as a crime of moral turpitude because he read the state offense as…
After Casey, did Idaho's abortion statutes and the 1998 draft legislation comply with U.S. Supreme Court constitutional standards?
The AG identified constitutional problems under the federal law as understood in 1998, including Idaho's second-trimester hospital requirement, lack of a health exception after viability, and broad…
Are eight-liner gambling machines legal in Texas, and can regulators act against businesses that have them?
Senator David Sibley asked whether the 1995 exception to the Penal Code's definition of 'gambling device,' which let certain machines pay out small noncash prizes (worth no more than $5 or ten times…
Did Colleton County School District need county council consent before calling a school bond referendum?
The Assistant Deputy AG said the School Bond Act allowed the district to call a qualifying general-obligation bond election without county council input; the council’s separate school-tax power…
Can a city ethics board go into closed session to deliberate and reach a consensus on ethics charges, calling it a legal-advice session?
No, under the law as it stood in 1998. The AG found Newark's Board of Ethics went well beyond the narrow legal-advice exception when it deliberated the merits of ethics charges and reached a…
Could Greenville County Council return control of the county jail to the sheriff by ordinance?
The Assistant Deputy AG did not give a definitive yes or no. He said a later state supreme court decision cast considerable doubt on a 1980 AG opinion against transfer, making council authority…
When federal officials sit on a New York public benefit corporation's board to monitor federal funds, must they file New York's annual financial disclosure under Public Officers Law § 73-a?
No. The AG concluded that federal supremacy bars New York from imposing § 73-a financial disclosure requirements on federal officials acting in their federal capacity, even when they serve as…
Can a city inspect a school building built by a private developer for lease to the school district, or does the State Education Department control code enforcement?
The State Education Department retains exclusive authority to administer and enforce the Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code for the school construction, even though a private developer will…
Can North Carolina community colleges enter into lease-purchase and installment purchase contracts to acquire equipment, or do they need explicit legislation like K-12 schools and local governments already have?
Yes, community colleges can enter lease-purchase and installment purchase contracts, but only when the contracts are made by or with the approval of the Purchase and Contract Division of the NC…
Can North Carolinians legally canoe or kayak down a stream that runs across private property, or do they need permission from the landowners along the banks?
Yes, they can paddle without the consent of riparian owners. The AG applied the NC Supreme Court's holding in Gwathmey v. State, 342 N.C. 287 (1995): under the pleasure-craft test, a stream that is…
Should registrars send voters’ Social Security numbers to build Connecticut’s master jury list?
The AG said both readings of the new jury-list mandate were plausible: existing numbers might be “available,” but earlier voter notices had not disclosed jury use. He advised proceeding with names…
Could a Washington community college board raise its president’s pay beyond the legislative budget limit by signing a new contract?
The Attorney General concluded in 1998 that retaining or recontracting with an existing community college president did not bypass the salary-increase ceiling in RCW 28B.50.140(3). The board could…
Could Florence police enforce a careless-driving ordinance after a crash in a private parking lot?
The Assistant Deputy AG said yes for the ordinance described, because it did not require the conduct to occur on a public highway. He distinguished the posting requirement for extending jurisdiction…
Could Florence police enforce traffic laws on a road segment outside city limits but between two parts of the city?
The Assistant Deputy AG predicted a good likelihood that a court would extend the boundary-road jurisdiction statute to that situation, while noting no decision had applied it to those exact facts.…
Could a neighboring town police Highway 302 where the road bordered its limits, though Cayce had annexed it?
The Assistant AG said yes on the described boundaries: Section 5-7-155 gave the neighboring town jurisdiction over a highway bordering its corporate limits regardless of which town contained the…
If a homeowner has been partially paid by the general contractor who botched the job, can the homeowner still recover any of the remaining loss from North Carolina's Homeowners Recovery Fund?
No. The Homeowners Recovery Fund definition of 'reimbursable loss' in N.C.G.S. § 87-15.5(6) requires that the loss 'is not paid, in whole or in part, by or on behalf of the general contractor whose…
Could a Wyoming state agency accept a vehicle bid from a dealer that lacked a franchise for that make?
No. The AG concluded that a dealer without a franchise for the offered make could not legally submit the bid, and a state purchase contract made in violation of the Motor Vehicle Franchise Act would…
What training did a former officer need to become a Hampton County reserve officer after three years away?
The Assistant Deputy AG reported that the Criminal Justice Academy regarded the statutory sixty-hour reserve course as necessary for someone away from law enforcement for more than three years. He…
When a member of the Edgecombe County Board of Education (merged school system) resigns mid-term, does the board's appointee serve the remainder of the four-year term, or must voters elect a replacement at the next general election to serve out the remainder?
The appointee serves the remainder of the unexpired term, with no intervening election. The AG concluded that Chapter 809 of the 1991 Session Laws, the local act establishing the merged Edgecombe…
Do North Carolina's political-activity restrictions on city and county 'employees' also cover elected mayors, commissioners, and sheriffs?
Yes. The AG concluded that the term 'employee' in G.S. § 153A-99 (counties) and G.S. § 160A-169 (cities) is broad enough to include elected officials. The same political-activity prohibitions and…
Could Kershaw County enforce an ordinance against keeping a cougar as a pet?
The Assistant Deputy AG said no state statute specifically forbade possession of a wild animal at that time and pointed to a state supreme court decision upholding a similar municipal wild-animal…
Could a Fellowship of Christian Athletes club meet during a public school activity period?
The Assistant Deputy AG said the federal Equal Access Act could require access if the period was noninstructional time and the school allowed noncurriculum student clubs to meet then. He declined to…
Could one South Carolina candidate win nominations from two parties using conventions?
The Deputy AG said the 1998 statutes did not absolutely prohibit a candidate from seeking two convention nominations, but both parties would have to agree and a loss in either convention could…
Could a Fellowship of Christian Athletes club meet during a public school activity period?
The January 1998 AG gave a conditional answer. The federal Equal Access Act could require access if the period was noninstructional and the school allowed other noncurriculum student groups to meet.
Could the Mohegan Tribe use contract offsets to reduce its required minimum gaming contribution?
Interpreting the state–tribal gaming memorandum, the AG agreed with the state division that specified offsets applied only above the minimum contribution. The minimum-payment paragraph controlled…
Who decides sex education curriculum in Texas public schools, the state board or local districts?
The Commissioner of Education and the chair of the State Board of Education asked how the board's power to set curriculum standards and adopt textbooks fits with the law that gives local school…
Could Kentucky eliminate jury trials in paternity cases without violating its constitution?
In 1998, the Kentucky Attorney General concluded that the General Assembly could repeal the statutory right to a jury trial in a paternity case. The state constitution preserved no such right…
Did the South Carolina AG consider reciprocal commercial-fishing license fees for nonresidents constitutional?
The Assistant Deputy AG viewed § 50-17-250 as constitutionally suspect under the federal Privileges and Immunities Clause, but emphasized that only a court could invalidate it. He advised continuing…
Was a Budget and Control Board sewer-system report exempt from South Carolina FOIA as attorney work product?
The Assistant AG predicted a court would most likely treat Report #2 as exempt attorney work product. He relied on information that a judge had already quashed subpoenas for that report and related…
Could Greenville County’s code enforcement administrator also sit on its redevelopment authority board?
The Assistant AG concluded that the administrator post was a public office and that a redevelopment authority director likely held another, so simultaneous service would violate the state…
How did the South Carolina AG address school-bond election protests, joint party notices, and shared candidates?
The Deputy AG said school-bond election results were challenged by timely court proceeding under the cited statute; joint party notices were not absolutely barred but could confuse voters; and…
How did the South Carolina AG suggest disposing of cash found during a murder investigation when no owner claimed it?
The Assistant Deputy AG tentatively favored the law-enforcement property statute, § 27-21-20, over the general unclaimed-property act, assuming no forfeiture law applied and no heirs came forward.…
Does a school district have to tape-record its executive sessions or identify students and employees by name when it meets to discuss personnel matters?
No, under the law as it stood in 1997. The AG found the Woodbridge School District didn't violate FOIA by keeping written (rather than tape-recorded) minutes of an executive session, or by…
Could a Kentucky legislator vote in a floor session by live audio and video from another location?
No. The 1997 AG opinion said an absent legislator could watch or listen to a session by audio and video, but could not participate in floor debate, vote, or count toward a quorum without being…
If a NC EMS responder withholds CPR based on a Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) order, are they protected from being sued?
For the attached Model DNR Order, the AG said EMS personnel withholding CPR under its statutory form could claim statutory immunity. Its common-law form did not confer that immunity, but the AG…
Is Texas's $25 fee for paying criminal fines over time constitutional, and who has to pay it?
Senator Rodney Ellis asked about the new $25 time payment fee under Government Code section 51.921. The Attorney General concluded it did not violate due process or equal protection for the reasons…
Could the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe replace Connecticut workers’ compensation for its reservation employees?
The AG said the tribe could operate its own workers’ compensation code for employees injured while working on its reservation, including nonmembers. State claims against the tribe required its…
Does Texas's freeport property-tax exemption still apply if a manufacturer sells its goods to another in-state company before they leave the state?
Senator Bill Ratliff asked about Alliance Compressors, a Texas company that makes air-conditioning compressors and sells them to Trane, another in-state company, which builds them into air…
Could former officers, employees, or governing-board members of a Texas taxing unit serve on an appraisal review board?
For appointments from January 1, 1998, the opinion read section 6.41(c) to bar former governing-body members, officers, and employees of any taxing unit from appraisal review boards in counties over…
Can a Minnesota county use money from its forfeited-tax-sale fund to buy four-wheel-drive pickup trucks for its land commissioner to manage 74,000 acres of tax-forfeited timberland?
Yes, qualified. The AG concluded that the 1967 amendment to Minn. Stat. § 282.09, subd. 2 expanded the permitted uses of the forfeited-tax-sale fund to include equipment acquisition and maintenance,…
Can a Texas adult probation department refuse to supervise a teenager who was convicted of perjury in criminal court?
The Frio County Attorney described a situation where a 16-year-old was tried in criminal court (not juvenile court), convicted of perjury, given a suspended jail sentence, and placed on community…
Can a Texas county juvenile probation board enter contracts and spend money without the commissioners court's approval?
The El Paso County Attorney asked whether the county's juvenile probation board could contract and authorize expenditures for the juvenile department without going through the commissioners court.…
If New York town voters approve restoring a town justice office at a special election before December 31, can the justice already elected at the November election fill the post, or must a new election be held in 1999?
A new election is required, and the term is four years starting January 1 after that election. The AG concluded that because no timely petition was filed against the town board's August 1997…
Does the State of Texas have to pay court filing fees and service fees up front when it sues?
The Williamson County Attorney's office relied on a 1982 opinion (MW-447A) for the rule that the State of Texas does not have to pay filing fees and service-of-process fees in advance, but sheriffs…
How does Oregon's Measure 50 property tax framework treat the expiration of enterprise zone and key industry exemptions?
Yes. Expiration of enterprise zone and key industry development exemptions counts as 'disqualification from exemption' under Article XI, section 11(1)(c)(E), restoring assessed value via the…
If a North Carolina Property Tax Commissioner's brother sits on a county board of commissioners, can the PTC member hear property-tax appeals from that county where his brother voted on the underlying tax decision?
The AG said the Property Tax Commission member should recuse himself from appeals involving any county-commissioner action in which his brother may have participated. Reviewing a decision his…
Under the 1997 NC Excellent Schools Act, when a career teacher chooses to skip the case-manager hearing and have his dismissal appeal heard directly by the school board on documents, what evidence may actually be considered?
The board's record includes the superintendent's recommendation and grounds, documentary evidence (defined broadly to cover pre-existing documents and documents prepared specifically for the hearing…
Can a NC public hospital keep a non-medical-malpractice settlement agreement confidential, even when the agreement itself says it must stay confidential?
For the non-medical-malpractice settlement presented, the AG said the public hospital must release the agreement despite its Restricted Disclosure Covenant. The opinion allowed redaction only for…
Does a sex offender treatment provider have to report suspected child abuse even if the information is old or incomplete?
Texas Family Code section 261.101(a) requires anyone who has cause to believe a child has been abused or neglected to report it immediately. The Council on Sex Offender Treatment told the Attorney…
Does Texas have to pay legal costs for a volunteer who gets sued for work they did for a state agency?
Civil Practice and Remedies Code chapter 104 makes the state pay damages, court costs, and attorney fees for certain people sued over work they did for the state, and also makes the Attorney General…
Can a New York county copyright its informational pamphlets (like 911 brochures or food stamp guides) to stop a county legislator from reprinting them with added advertising for his private business?
Yes. The AG concluded a county can register a copyright under the federal Copyright Act for its informational pamphlets. Federal law preempts state common law for equivalent rights (17 USC § 301),…
How did Washington’s election rules apply when a third party qualified as a major party?
After the Reform Party’s 1996 result, the Attorney General concluded in 1997 that major-party status could extend beyond the next even-year election if no statewide partisan race appeared. A new…
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