State AG Opinions
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Do Texas juvenile probation officers have to supervise out-of-state juveniles sent here under the Interstate Compact on Juveniles, even ones Texas couldn't have prosecuted as juveniles?
The Attorney General concluded yes. By adopting the Uniform Interstate Compact on Juveniles as chapter 25 of the Family Code, Texas both authorized and required its juvenile probation officers to…
Could Kentucky's insurance commissioner regulate a county self-insurance pool that was exempt from the insurance code?
The AG said a particular regulation restricting joint liability did not apply to the certified county self-insurance pool because it was exempt from the insurance code. The commissioner could still…
Can a Texas health district refuse to let you inspect old birth and death records and charge a fee?
The Attorney General concluded yes, as to the original records. Old birth records (more than 50 years old) and death records (more than 25 years old) are public and not exempt under the Texas Open…
Who decided whether a Washington building permit had an adequate drinking-water supply?
The AG assigned that decision to the local building permit agency. For a public water system it had to apply Board of Health standards; for other sources it had more discretion but still needed…
Could Connecticut’s governor commute a death sentence, or only grant a reprieve?
The AG concluded that the Board of Pardons, not the governor, had authority to permanently commute a death sentence. The governor’s constitutional power was to grant a temporary reprieve after…
Where do funds left over from a USDA agriculture inspection agreement have to go in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded the money has to go into the state treasury. When a 1981 cooperative agreement between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Texas Department of Agriculture ended…
Can a Texas hazardous waste permit hearings examiner talk privately with agency staff about the case?
The Attorney General concluded no. A 1991 law (Senate Bill 1099) added section 361.0831 to the Health and Safety Code, governing hazardous-waste-permit contested cases before the Texas Water…
Does interest on Texas's proprietary school tuition fund go back to the fund or to general revenue?
The Attorney General concluded the interest goes to the state's general revenue fund. The Proprietary School Tuition Protection Fund, created by Education Code section 32.91, is a 'special fund in…
Does the State Office of Administrative Hearings handle Court Reporters Certification Board cases?
The Attorney General concluded no. The 1991 law creating the State Office of Administrative Hearings (article 6252-13f) reaches only 'state agencies' that are subject to the Administrative Procedure…
Was a Washington first-class city ordinance void because the city missed a charter publication deadline?
The AG said missing a stated number of days did not invalidate the ordinance under state law. Whether the city charter itself affected validity depended on interpretation of that local charter,…
What happened to a district judge when a Washington city ended its municipal department and formed a municipal court?
The AG said the city and county first had to settle the relevant criminal-case costs, then the city could give notice to terminate the district court’s municipal department through the districting…
Could a Washington county equalization board change a property assessment outside its revaluation year?
Yes. The AG said the board could review property on its own motion even without a current-year revaluation, but had to compare it with fair market value in the assessor’s revaluation year. It…
Could a Maryland District Court judge in one county issue a search warrant for property located in a completely different city or county?
Yes. Maryland's Attorney General concluded that a District Court judge had statewide authority to issue a search warrant for property anywhere in Maryland, not just within the judge's own district…
Could Maryland's Motor Vehicle Administration let its investigators carry handguns, and were those investigators police officers?
Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the Motor Vehicle Administration could let its Division of Investigative Services investigators carry handguns, but only if the investigators first…
Can the Texas Public Utility Commission lower the assessment utilities pay without the Legislature?
The Attorney General concluded no. Section 78 of the Public Utility Regulatory Act set the assessment each utility pays (one-sixth of one percent of gross receipts) to fund the Public Utility…
Who runs the West Brazoria County Drainage District if the board election never happened?
The Attorney General concluded the Brazoria County commissioners court is still the district's governing board. A 1981 law was supposed to replace the commissioners court with a five-member board…
Does a Texas justice of the peace have to keep a paper copy of an electronic court docket?
The Attorney General concluded no. Article 45.13 of the Code of Criminal Procedure lets a justice of the peace or municipal court judge process and store the court's criminal docket electronically,…
Can a Texas hospital pay doctors a flat fee to be on call to admit ER patients?
The Attorney General concluded yes, conditionally. Section 161.091 of the Health and Safety Code makes it an offense for a licensed health care professional to pay or accept money for securing or…
Can a Texas city cut a sales tax that is paying off its development corporation's bonds?
The Attorney General concluded that it cannot, as to bonds already issued. Section 4A of the Development Corporation Act lets a city hold a rollback election to reduce, or limit the time of, the…
What happened to Kentucky county magistrates' seats when redistricting reduced their districts?
The AG said new magisterial boundaries took effect when the reapportionment ordinance passed, but sitting magistrates served out their elected terms. A vacancy in an eliminated district would not be…
Did Kentucky counties count soil conservation tax revenue toward the four percent property tax limit in 1992?
No. The AG concluded that the soil and water conservation tax was outside the rate rollback rule in KRS 68.245, so its revenue did not enter the four percent calculation for other covered taxes. The…
Can the Texas dental board limit HIV-positive dental workers more than state law does?
The Attorney General concluded that several rules the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners adopted for HIV- and HBV-infected dental health care workers exceeded the board's authority because they…
Who set a part-time Washington district judge’s pay, and could a nonlawyer judge run again?
The AG said the county defined how much of a full-time position the judgeship represented, while the state salary commission’s schedule determined pay. It also said an eligible nonattorney incumbent…
Could a Connecticut town hire a collection agency to pursue delinquent taxes?
A municipal tax collector could appoint an independent contractor to make personal or written demands on delinquent taxpayers. The AG said the contractor could not levy property or execute tax…
Who actually controls the rules of the Texas Automobile Insurance Plan?
The Attorney General concluded that the State Board of Insurance, not the private insurance companies that make up the Texas Automobile Insurance Plan (TAIP), holds the ultimate rulemaking authority…
How can a Texas county pay for a county elections administrator's office?
The Attorney General concluded that even though the Interlocal Cooperation Act generally lets counties contract with other local governments for shared services, Victoria County had to fund its…
Can a Texas county pay back a private person's legal bills from a lawsuit?
The Attorney General concluded that article III, section 52 of the Texas Constitution prohibits Morris County from reimbursing two private landowners for the attorneys' fees they ran up in a…
Can a school employee keep their job if a relative is elected to the board?
The Attorney General answered eight questions about the Texas nepotism law (V.T.C.S. article 5996a) as it applies to school districts. The key holdings: an employee may keep a promotion he held for…
Can a Texas hospital district lease space to a private drug treatment center?
The Attorney General concluded that the Chambers County Hospital District could lease part of its hospital facility to a group of private physicians to run an adolescent drug treatment center.…
After redistricting, which district voted to fill the remaining term of a vacant Washington Senate seat?
The AG concluded that the special election for the remaining term used the newly redrawn district. Candidates had to reside in that new district, although the opinion distinguished the earlier…
Could a Washington water district award a small works contract to one of its commissioners or part-time employees?
In 1992, the AG said a commissioner could not receive a district contract when the district’s liability exceeded $750 in a calendar month, even if listed on the roster. A part-time employee under…
Could Kentucky county clerks and sheriffs use excess fees to buy health insurance only for their own staff?
The AG concluded that a 1992 bill allowing certain sheriffs and county clerks to use excess fees for health insurance for their own offices was unconstitutional. It saw no rational basis for…
Could a homeowner make two guaranty fund claims against the same contractor?
Yes. The AG said a homeowner could obtain separate restitution orders and make separate Home Improvement Guaranty Fund claims against one contractor for distinct contracts. The $10,000 statutory…
Could Washington’s State Board of Education ban corporal punishment in public schools under its rulemaking powers?
The Attorney General concluded in 1992 that the two cited rulemaking statutes did not authorize a statewide ban. The board could adopt safeguards to ensure corporal punishment was reasonable and…
Could Maryland enforce its 1992 'gas guzzler' tax surcharge and fuel-efficiency credit law, or did federal fuel economy law preempt it?
Maryland's Attorney General concluded that a federal disclosure statute preempted the notice provision of Maryland's new gas guzzler tax law, that the tax surcharge and credit provisions themselves…
Can a Maine town ban or require a permit for state-agency site investigation work for a radioactive waste facility?
No. The towns of Pittston, Edinburg, and Garfield Plantation could not stop the Maine Low-Level Radioactive Waste Authority's preliminary site investigation work. Their ordinances were preempted…
Can a city council member vote on zoning that affects their own neighborhood?
The Attorney General concluded that, in certain circumstances, chapter 171 of the Local Government Code requires a home rule city council member to abstain from voting on a zoning matter affecting…
Can a Texas city let employees donate sick leave to coworkers who run out?
The Attorney General concluded that a Texas home rule city has the authority to create a voluntary 'sick leave pool,' where employees contribute accrued sick leave that coworkers who have exhausted…
Who decides how much a county court reporter in Texas gets paid?
The Attorney General concluded that the Denton County Commissioners Court, not the district judges, sets the salary of official court reporters in the county courts at law. Government Code section…
Can Texas make you arbitrate a dispute instead of going to court?
The Attorney General concluded that the Texas general arbitration statute (V.T.C.S. article 224 et seq.) does not violate the 'open courts' provision of the Texas Constitution (article I, section…
Could Connecticut collect Medicaid costs from the spouse of a nursing home patient?
The AG said Connecticut should exempt a community spouse receiving a monthly income allowance from a support claim. It could pursue a spouse who received no such allowance, but had to assess ability…
Can a Texas county charge subdivision owners to fix their roads, and how?
The Attorney General concluded the charge a county levied to improve subdivision roads under article 6702-3 was a 'special assessment,' not a tax, so property-tax rules did not apply. The county tax…
Could Kentucky researchers compost chicken carcasses under the animal disposal statute as the AG read it in 1992?
The AG concluded that the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture could compost chicken carcasses without violating the animal-carcass disposal statute as it stood in 1992. Its answer rested…
Could a Kentucky officer arrest a domestic violence suspect without a warrant after the victim fled the scene?
The AG said the victim's departure did not by itself prevent a warrantless arrest under the 1992 domestic violence statute. The officer needed probable cause both that the suspect had caused the…
Could a Kentucky school require a student with excessive absences to attend summer school in 1992?
No. The AG concluded that a school could offer a summer program to students whose excessive unexcused absences jeopardized their progress, but could not compel them to attend it under the law…
Did a Kentucky prisoner have the same right to request public records in 1992?
The AG said a prison inmate had the same right to inspect public records as anyone else under the law considered in 1992. It found the Legislative Research Commission's response late, though its…
Could a Connecticut town refuse an unfunded duty imposed by state law?
No. The AG concluded that a municipality must comply with a valid state statute even when the cost is unfunded, was once paid by the state, conflicts with a home rule charter, or was not…
Are life insurance cash values fully protected from creditors in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that article 21.22 of the Insurance Code wholly exempted life insurance proceeds and cash values from seizure by creditors, and that this unlimited exemption…
Can a Texas employer get an applicant's workers' comp injury history before a job offer?
The Attorney General concluded the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, as interpreted by the EEOC, bars an ADA-covered employer from getting an applicant's workers' compensation history before…
Can Texas add a $10 court cost in only some counties for the same crime?
The Attorney General concluded no. Section 51.702(b) of the Government Code let a county's commissioners court opt in to charging an extra $10 court cost on each criminal conviction in a statutory…
Can a Maryland funeral home legally refuse to embalm, or charge extra, because the deceased had HIV?
Maryland's Attorney General concluded that a funeral home refusing to embalm, or charging extra fees for handling, an HIV-positive body was illegal discrimination under Maryland's mortician…
Could a Kentucky health department run a needle exchange program under the law considered in 1992?
The AG concluded that a needle exchange program would violate Kentucky's drug paraphernalia law as it stood in 1992. The opinion said the health department, its board, and participating individuals…
Who owned substitute-care citizen review board records, who could see them, and did the board have to transcribe reviews?
The Attorney General concluded in 1992 that each board owned its records, generally had to retain them for six years, and could disclose them only as juvenile-records statutes authorized. A verbatim…
Can Maine legislators serving on a special legislative committee vote to grant state agencies a hardship exemption from a legislatively imposed property-transfer moratorium?
No. The AG concluded that voting to grant or deny hardship exceptions to executive branch agencies is an executive function. Legislators may serve on the Special Committee on the New Capitol Area…
Can a South Dakota school district let children attending a preschool operated by a local church ride the public school buses to and from preschool, if the buses are not rerouted and the public-school students are also riding?
No. The AG concluded that the school district lacked statutory authority to transport private preschool children while the bus was being used for public school purposes. He also expressed grave…
Can a Texas hospital district elect all its directors from single-member districts?
The Attorney General concluded yes. Chapter 286 of the Health and Safety Code let a hospital district elect all of its directors 'by place' from single-member districts, and those single-member…
Were Baxter State Park's user fees and timber sale revenues protected from Maine's 0.9% General Fund sweep, even though they sat in a dedicated revenue account rather than a formal trust account?
Yes. The AG concluded that the trust character of Baxter State Park follows the trust property and attaches to its products. The user fees and timber sales generated from the Park were 'products' of…
Could Maryland's Office of Administrative Hearings dismiss an appeal because someone failed to pay a required filing fee?
The Attorney General concluded that Maryland's Chief Administrative Law Judge had the discretion to adopt a regulation providing that a nonindigent party's appeal would be dismissed for failing to…
Could Connecticut’s banking commissioner waive a mortgage trustee’s annual report?
No. The AG concluded that the banking commissioner had to require every trustee under mortgage to file the annual trust account report. The statute’s “shall require” language left no discretion to…
Did a Washington freight-only launch boat need a passenger-service certificate to carry cargo to anchored ships?
The Attorney General concluded in 1992 that a freight-only launch did not need the certificate required for certain passenger service. It remained a regulated common carrier, including duties such…
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