State AG Opinions
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Could a Kentucky fiscal court set personnel policies for jail employees without the jailer's agreement?
The Kentucky AG said a fiscal court could adopt personnel policies for jail employees, including the jailer's deputies, without the jailer's agreement. The policies could not interfere with the…
Could a South Carolina school consortium charge other districts initial and annual fees to use its televised Spanish lessons?
The 1996 informal opinion said yes. It concluded that the consortium, educational television agency, and nonmember districts had contracting authority and no identified statutory bar to initial or…
Did a breath test below 0.10 require a South Carolina officer to drop a DUI charge in 1996?
The 1996 informal opinion said a reading below 0.10 did not automatically defeat a DUI charge; readings in the intermediate range could be considered with other evidence. If an issued DUI ticket was…
Could a South Carolina credit union add unrelated employee groups under the 1996 common-bond law?
The 1996 informal opinion said the new state credit-union law required a common bond across the groups in one credit union, not just within each added group. It treated the older regulation allowing…
Can the Texas Medical Board regulate hyperbaric oxygen therapy?
The executive director of the Texas State Board of Medical Examiners asked whether the board could treat hyperbaric oxygen therapy (sealing a patient in a high-pressure, pure-oxygen chamber) as the…
Do veterans get to keep their Texas state job over others in a layoff?
The head of the state mental health agency asked whether a veteran on the state payroll has an absolute right to keep their job in a layoff (a reduction in force), or only an edge among equally…
Can a Minnesota sheriff serve documents purporting to be issued by a 'common law court' or 'superior county court of the Minnesota state Republic' that is not established by the Minnesota or U.S. Constitution?
No. The AG concluded that under Minn. Stat. § 387.03, a sheriff is required to execute processes issued only 'by lawful authority,' and so-called common-law courts have no lawful authority because…
Can a Texas public university waive tuition or fees for its employees or their families?
A university chancellor and a state senator asked whether a Texas public university's governing board could waive tuition and fees outside the situations a statute already lists, for example as an…
Can a Texas flood control district use tax money to build parks and trails?
Harris County's county attorney asked whether the Harris County Flood Control District could use tax and bond revenue to build the recreational and environmental improvements authorized by a 1993…
Could a Kentucky sheriff collect both the sheriff's and jailer's salaries after the offices merged?
The Kentucky AG concluded that a sheriff who assumed the jailer's duties after the offices merged was not eligible for compensation for both offices. The opinion relied on the constitutional…
Could a Kentucky school council change its curriculum if the change led to a teacher's transfer?
The Kentucky AG said a school council could choose a curriculum and set the number of positions in each job category, even if a superintendent later had to transfer an employee. The council could…
Did one South Carolina concealed-carry permit cover every handgun a person owned in 1996?
The 1996 opinion accepted SLED’s reading that the permit covered only the type of handgun with which the holder qualified, based on the act’s reference to firing “the handgun” during training. The…
Could a South Carolina county council set holidays for staff employed by elected county officials?
The 1996 informal opinion said county government could set holiday policy for employees in elected officials’ offices as a general personnel rule. It said the county could not dictate the holidays…
Could inactive voter signatures count on a South Carolina public service district nominating petition in 1996?
The 1996 informal opinion said inactive voters did not count as qualified electors under the then-cited definition. It said the State Election Commission lacked authority to certify a candidate…
Did Connecticut’s higher education commissioner need the governor’s approval to forgive an uncollectible teacher incentive loan?
The Attorney General concluded that the commissioner’s specific authority to forgive an uncollectible Teacher Incentive Loan Program loan was not limited by the general state-debt cancellation…
Could South Carolina’s health agency move its coastal division under another division without legislative approval?
The 1996 Attorney General opinion said no. Although DHEC had broad reorganization power, reducing the separate coastal division to a bureau within another division counted as dissolving that…
Can the North Carolina State Board of Education license its own speech-language teachers for public schools, or does the state's professional speech-pathology licensing board have exclusive authority over that credential?
Yes, the State Board of Education has independent authority. The AG concluded that G.S. § 90-294(c)(4) carves public-school speech-language pathologists out of NCBESLPA jurisdiction when they work…
Can New York undercover police officers conduct 'reverse drug sales' — that is, sell controlled substances to suspects as part of a drug investigation — without violating the Public Health Law's drug regulation scheme?
Yes. Although Public Health Law § 3304 makes possession or sale of controlled substances 'unlawful' except as the statute permits, Penal Law § 35.05 justifies conduct otherwise constituting an…
Can a New York town license and regulate vans used as taxicabs that operate within its borders, given that the State has centralized regulation of common carriers under the Department of Transportation?
Yes, but only for vans operating as local taxi or livery service entirely within the municipality's boundaries. Transportation Law § 151(11) permits local regulation of qualifying taxi or livery…
Can a deed identify the property only by a tax map block-and-lot reference and still be accepted for recording with the county clerk?
Yes. A deed that identifies real property by tax map reference is in recordable form and the county clerk must accept it, whether the grantor is the county (after a tax foreclosure) or a private…
Could Connecticut parole officers enforce parole conditions on the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan reservations?
The AG concluded that state parole officers had the same authority to enforce parole conditions on Connecticut’s two federal tribal reservations as elsewhere in the state. The answer covered Indian…
Does a group of council members meeting informally with an outside organization need to be formally named a 'committee' to count as a public body under Delaware's open-meetings law?
No, under the law as it stood in 1996. The AG reaffirmed its earlier Newark ruling (96-IB02), holding that FOIA doesn't require an ad hoc committee to be formally designated or appointed for the Act…
How can a New York village dedicate land it already owns as a park, and what happens if it later wants to use the parcel for something else?
A village board of trustees may dedicate village-owned land as parkland either by resolution under Village Law § 6-624 or by local law under the Municipal Home Rule Law. A local-law route requires a…
When North Carolina pours public money into a beach renourishment project on the Atlantic Ocean and the project restores land that had eroded into the sea, does that new land belong to the State or to the adjacent oceanfront property owner? And does the answer change if the project was privately funded?
Public funding makes the new land the State's. G.S. § 146-6(f) declares that title to land along the Atlantic Ocean raised above the mean high water mark by publicly financed dredging or fill…
Could a Delaware school board discuss teacher terminations and layoffs for three hours in closed session, and could it informally poll members on teacher transfers there too?
Yes to both, under the law as it stood in 1996. The AG found that a school board's three-hour executive session was properly devoted to personnel matters tied to terminations and reductions in…
If a network of doctors and hospitals contracts directly with a self-insured employer's ERISA plan to provide healthcare to employees on a capitated basis, does the network have to be licensed as an HMO under North Carolina law, or does federal ERISA preempt the state HMO Act?
ERISA preempts the state HMO Act here. The AG concluded that North Carolina's HMO licensure requirements relate to ERISA employee welfare benefit plans by limiting which entities those plans can…
Could the University of Louisville ban weapons on campus under Kentucky's right to bear arms?
The AG concluded that the University of Louisville's ban on possessing or storing deadly weapons and destructive devices on its property did not violate Kentucky's constitutional right to bear arms.…
Could a Kentucky county ban firearms in a public park or in its park buildings?
Under the 1996 law addressed by the opinion, a county could not ban open or concealed carry throughout a public park. Its fiscal court could, by ordinance, restrict concealed carry in county…
Could Kentucky regulators move entire types of health facilities into a faster certificate of need review?
The Kentucky AG concluded that the health cabinet could not use a regulation to place broad categories of services and facilities into the certificate of need nonsubstantive review process. The…
Can a town attorney represent a town judge in a grievance proceeding before the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct?
No. Public Officers Law § 18, the local-option defense-and-indemnification statute, only covers civil actions and proceedings in State or Federal courts. A judicial-conduct grievance is outside that…
Can a New York county civil service commission refuse to hire a security guard applicant for a prior misdemeanor when the State has already registered him as eligible to work as a security guard?
Yes, with limits. New York's Security Guard Act sets minimum registration standards for security guards but does not preempt an employer's right to apply more stringent hiring standards. The Nassau…
If a New York city mayor resigns on August 1, when does the city hold an election to fill the seat?
November election. Under N.Y. Const. art. XIII, § 3 and Public Officers Law § 42(1), a vacancy in the office of mayor of the City of Watervliet that occurred on August 1, 1996 had to be filled for…
Could a Washington county maintain restricted federal roads at Hanford or regulate traffic there?
The 1996 AG opinion said the restricted federal roads were not county roads, so the county could not maintain them with ordinary county road funds. It could regulate traffic where federal law did…
Can a school board review scholarship applications behind closed doors if they include student transcripts and parents' tax returns?
Yes, under the law as it stood in 1996. The AG found the Woodbridge Board of Education properly discussed scholarship applications in executive session because the applications included student…
Could the Idaho Park and Recreation Board spend recreation registration fees, fuel-tax revenues, and capital-improvement money on general agency overhead, and could it redirect a $25,000 RV-fund earmark away from gateway visitor centers?
The Board could spend administrative funds and a share of fuel-tax revenue on overhead but had to limit vendor handling fees to registration costs, and it could not unilaterally undo the…
Can my wages be garnished in Texas to collect a defaulted student loan?
Two Texas officials asked about garnishing or withholding wages for unpaid student loans, and the Attorney General gave two answers. First, the state comptroller could not withhold a salary or…
How did Texas school districts have to procure insurance and related administrator services under Education Code section 44.031?
Under the 1996 statute, a school district had to use one of section 44.031’s six best-value procurement methods for a nonexempt contract worth at least $25,000 in a twelve-month period. Insurance…
Can Texas exclude a teacher's driver-education pay when calculating Teacher Retirement System benefits?
A state representative asked whether a 1995 amendment to Government Code section 822.201(c) was constitutional. The amendment excluded payments for teaching a driver education and traffic safety…
Can an optometrist in Texas use cocaine eye drops to diagnose eye conditions?
The Texas State Board of Medical Examiners asked whether the Texas Optometry Board could adopt a rule letting a therapeutic optometrist administer cocaine eye drops for diagnostic purposes. The…
Can a licensed chiropractor in Texas practice acupuncture without a separate license?
The Texas State Board of Acupuncture Examiners asked whether a licensed chiropractor could practice acupuncture without holding a separate acupuncture license. The Attorney General concluded that…
Can Texas suspend an emissions inspection station's license before a hearing without violating due process?
The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission asked whether a federal requirement, that the state immediately and temporarily suspend a vehicle-emissions inspection station's or inspector's…
Who pays for a Texas jail inmate's medical care if the inmate isn't indigent: the county or the hospital district?
Two county officials (a district attorney and a county auditor) asked the Attorney General who must pay when a county jail inmate who is not eligible for indigent health care under chapter 61 of the…
Can the same person in New York serve as police chief of one town and as a board of assessment review member in a different town?
Yes. A person may serve simultaneously as chief of police of one New York town and as a member of another town's board of assessment review. No statute prohibits the combination, and the People v…
Can a New York town or village provide legal defense and indemnification for officers of a joint fire district under Public Officers Law section 18?
No. Only the joint fire district itself may provide defense and indemnification under POL § 18, because the district exists to benefit the property within it, not the constituent municipalities.
In New York, is the district attorney required to prosecute violations of a village's local laws and ordinances?
No. The AG concluded the DA need not personally prosecute violations of village regulations. The DA may arrange for others to appear on the DA’s behalf with the DA’s knowledge and consent; Village…
Can a government building hosting a polling place ban campaigning outside on its own property?
The Attorney General concluded that a governmental entity hosting a polling place could not prohibit electioneering in a traditional public forum, such as a park or sidewalk, or in any part of the…
When the NC Hearing Aid Dealers and Fitters Board issues a 'private reprimand' to a licensee, is that reprimand a public record under Chapter 132? And what happens to the record when the licensee refuses the reprimand?
A private reprimand issued by the Board is subject to public inspection on request. If the licensee refuses a proposed reprimand under the Board's rule, it has no disciplinary effect; it may be kept…
Can a New York town use a different definition of 'mobile home park' for its site-plan review than the State law uses for landlord-tenant regulation?
Yes. New York Real Property Law § 233's regulation of mobile home parks preempts local laws on mobile home park landlord-tenant relations but does not reach local site-plan review or zoning. So a…
In New York, can the same person serve as deputy town supervisor and president of a local school board at the same time?
Yes. New York's bar on a town supervisor sitting on a school board doesn't extend to the appointed office of deputy town supervisor; the AG's office superseded a contrary 1966 opinion in concluding…
Can the Rensselaer County Attorney in New York also serve as counsel to the Troy Industrial Development Authority?
Yes. The Rensselaer County Attorney can also serve as counsel to the Troy Industrial Development Authority. The two are legally independent of each other, the county is not the city, and TIDA is an…
Can the same person in a New York town serve as both the town's appointed assessor and the local political party chair?
Yes. A New York town assessor may also serve as a local political party chairperson. A political party chair is a party office under Election Law § 1-104(5), not a State or local public office. The…
If a New York town supervisor sends his resignation letter to the town board with a copy to the town clerk, is that a valid resignation?
Yes. A New York town supervisor's resignation became effective once a copy of the resignation letter was delivered to the town clerk's office, even though the letter was technically addressed to the…
Could Washington Fish and Wildlife commission administrative staff as enforcement officers?
No. In 1996, the AG read the statutes to require both appointment to a position with law enforcement duties and a commission. An honorary or backup commission for staff whose jobs lacked those…
Do North Carolina's rural telephone membership corporations (the cooperative-style entities that provide phone service in many rural counties) have to follow the state's Open Meetings Law?
Yes. The AG concluded that telephone membership corporations established under Article 4 of Chapter 117 are 'public bodies' under the Open Meetings Law because G.S. § 117-33 expressly declares them…
Could Red Fox Coal workers claim Kentucky's utility rebate fund for unpaid workers' compensation?
The AG said Red Fox Coal workers' compensation claimants who had properly elected could claim benefits from the SERF fund. It found a reasonable connection between the utility refund that funded…
Could a Kentucky fiscal court cut a circuit clerk's law librarian pay during the clerk's term?
The Kentucky AG concluded that Caldwell County's fiscal court could not lower its circuit clerk's monthly law librarian salary during her term. She could recover the unpaid difference even though…
What fees did a Kentucky sheriff earn for criminal summonses, warrants, and warrantless arrests?
Under the 1996 statutes the AG examined, a misdemeanor summons or arrest carried a $10 fee. A felony summons or arrest warrant carried $20 for execution and return of process; a warrantless felony…
If a North Carolina city or town officer arrests someone (often for DWI) but the local magistrate or chemical analyst isn't available, can the officer drive the arrestee outside the officer's territorial jurisdiction to find one?
Yes. The AG concluded that when no magistrate or chemical analyst is available within the officer's territorial jurisdiction, transporting the arrestee outside the jurisdiction is a necessary duty…
Could South Carolina’s governor appoint a temporary county council member while a special election was pending?
For the vacancy considered in this 1996 opinion, no. More than 180 days remained in the deceased member’s term, so the office advised that a special election was required and the governor lacked…
Could Connecticut revise a business grant agreement when Dun & Bradstreet split into three companies?
The AG said the state could replace, but not merely amend, its Dun & Bradstreet grant contract to allocate obligations among three companies. The replacement required AG approval as to form. The…
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