State AG Opinions
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When a Texas school district spins off its community college to a separate board, can the same trustees sit on both?
No. The Attorney General concluded that when Houston ISD divests its community college by appointing a separate board of trustees under Education Code section 130.016, the district's trustees cannot…
Can a Texas commissioners court require a separate bank account for the county airport fund?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded the Ector County commissioners court may order a separate bank account for the county airport fund created under the Municipal Airports Act (article 46d-11). The…
Can Maryland's legislature cap a state manager's salary through budget bill language instead of a separate law?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the General Assembly could validly cap executive management salaries through Budget Bill language rather than separate legislation,…
Can Texas local governments pool their public funds and hand them to a joint agency to invest together?
No. The Attorney General concluded the Interlocal Cooperation Act does not let Texas local governments pool and jointly invest their public funds through a joint agency created under that act.…
Can Texas's workers' comp board approve a settlement that ends an injured worker's right to future medical benefits?
No. Under the workers' compensation law in effect in 1988, once there was a final award of the Industrial Accident Board, a court judgment, or an approved compromise settlement that had not been…
If a Texas city annexes my municipal utility district but does not dissolve it, can the city and the district both tax me for the same services?
The Attorney General concluded that a 1987 amendment letting a city annex a political subdivision while the district keeps existing (up to ten years) does not create unconstitutional double…
Does the State of Maine guarantee the obligations of the SEED Plan to pay college tuition for plan beneficiaries, and if so, does that guarantee fit within the Maine Constitution's $2,000,000 limit on unbonded long-term debt?
Half yes, half no. Asst. AG Jeffrey Frankel concluded that 20-A M.R.S.A. § 12604 made the State a contractual party to each advance tuition payment contract. But once the cumulative value of those…
How does the Maine Tort Claims Act, state purchasing law, and corporate-formality framework apply to Maine's new Student Educational Enhancement Deposit (SEED) prepaid-tuition plan and its directors?
Asst. AG Jeffrey Frankel advised that SEED directors and officers were very likely covered by the Maine Tort Claims Act, while federal-law claims remained possible. Michigan's IRS ruling could not…
Can a Maryland county require its circuit court to follow county purchasing rules, including a minority-business contracting program?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that subjecting the Circuit Court for Prince George's County to the county's budget, fiscal, and purchasing laws, including its Minority…
Can a Maryland county liquor board fine a bar for breaking liquor laws even if no one was criminally convicted?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the Montgomery County Board of License Commissioners could impose administrative sanctions, including fines, on alcoholic beverages…
When a North Carolina sheriff seizes drug-related cash and the U.S. Attorney pursues federal forfeiture and shares the money back, must the cash go to the county school board under the state constitution?
No, in the federal forfeiture and sharing arrangement addressed in this 1988 opinion. The AG said the North Carolina school-fund clause applies to forfeitures for violations of state penal law, not…
When can a former Texas district judge who served less than four years still be assigned to hear cases?
A 1987 law let the presiding judge of an administrative judicial region assign a 'former district judge who has served as judge of more than one district court' even without the usual four years of…
Can a state aviation authority give one taxicab company the exclusive right to pick up passengers at the airport?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the State Aviation Administration could require taxicabs to hold a concession contract before picking up passengers at BWI Airport, and…
Is a Maryland 'covenant not to encumber' real estate subject to recordation tax, and can it even be recorded?
A 1988 Maryland opinion concluded that a covenant not to encumber or convey real estate, a borrower's promise not to sell or mortgage property while a debt is outstanding, creates no security…
Can a Texas hospital authority spread its deposits across affiliated banks so all funds are FDIC-insured and skip the collateral rules?
No. A hospital authority created by a city under the Hospital Authority Act that picks a depository different from the city's must follow the same municipal-depository rules in Chapter 105 of the…
Could a Washington hospital district operate a treatment center outside its boundaries?
The 1988 AG said yes when the center primarily served the district's residents. The district could not operate inside another hospital district without that district's agreement.
Does serving as a court-appointed special master count as 'employment' that cuts into a retired Maryland judge's pension?
A 1988 Maryland opinion concluded that a retired judge who accepts appointment as a court special master has accepted 'employment' under Article 73B, §56(c)(1), because the court controls the…
Can a Texas county commissioner post a bail bond, or pledge his property as a surety, for someone charged in his own county?
No. The Attorney General concluded a county commissioner may not act as a surety on a bail bond for a defendant charged in the commissioner's own county. A bail bond is a contract, and if the…
Can a Texas firefighter pension board run its own office, hire its own administrator and attorney, and control its own records?
Yes, mostly. The Attorney General concluded that the board of trustees of a fire fighters' relief and retirement fund can spend fund money on reasonable administrative expenses, which includes…
In Texas, does a county attorney pro tem have the same power as a regular county attorney to file and sign a criminal information?
Yes. A county attorney pro tem serving under an agreement between two counties has all the powers and duties of the regular county attorney, so he is not excused from filing an information and he…
Can a Texas court require me to put my Social Security number on a will probate application, and is that legal under federal privacy law?
No, not as a hard requirement. The Attorney General concluded that the Federal Privacy Act bars the state from denying probate of a will just because the applicant refuses to give their own Social…
Can a Texas Lloyd's Plan insurance company issue the surety bond a contractor needs to do a public construction job in Texas?
No. The Attorney General concluded that public-works bonds under article 5160.A must be backed by a 'corporate surety,' and a Texas Lloyd's Plan carrier is an unincorporated association of…
Does the Texas Commercial Feed Control Act apply to a commercial feed lot that boards and feeds another person's cattle?
No. The Attorney General reaffirmed a 25-year-old position: a feed lot that keeps and feeds an owner's stock is performing a service (a bailment known as agistment), not selling or distributing…
Did Washington agencies have to use the architect-and-engineer selection process to hire land surveyors?
Yes. The 1988 AG read the procurement law's definition of architectural and engineering services to include professional land surveying, so agencies had to follow that law's selection process for…
Can Texas library grant money go to a regional library system that includes private religious school libraries or for-profit libraries?
Only if the system's members are public libraries. The Attorney General concluded that a regional library system can have as members only public libraries, because only a public library can be…
Could Texas fertilizer regulators send a failed state-lab report to the purchaser before the manufacturer completed independent testing?
In 1988, the Attorney General concluded that the Texas Feed and Fertilizer Control Service had implied statutory authority to send the state chemist's noncompliance report to the fertilizer's…
When a five-member North Carolina county board of social services picks its fifth member, do all four other members have to be present, and do they all have to agree?
Not all present, but yes all must agree. Under N.C.G.S. § 108A-3(b), four of the five members of a five-member county board of social services are appointed (two by the county commissioners, two by…
If a Texas appraisal district's mistake made my property tax late, can the taxing unit waive the penalties and interest?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that a central appraisal district counts as an 'agent' of the taxing units it appraises for under Tax Code section 33.011. So when a taxpayer's bill becomes…
Do employees of a private firm hired to collect a Texas taxing unit's property taxes have to register as tax professionals?
Only if the taxing unit's chief tax administrator says so. The Attorney General concluded that field collectors and supervising officers of a private collection firm working under contract for a…
Can a Texas court make me pay a fee to dismiss a no-insurance ticket after I prove I actually had coverage?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the $10 fee the legislature added to article 6701h, requiring a driver to pay before a failure-to-maintain-financial-responsibility charge is dismissed, is…
When an electric utility wants to install a new line through Maine's unorganized territories (the area regulated by LURC), does the utility need a Land Use Regulation Commission permit?
It depends on whether the line follows a public way. Asst. AG Jeffrey Pidot concluded that a major new utility installation generally needs a LURC permit, but 35-A M.R.S.A. §§ 2502-2503 give…
If a NC city contracts with a private hospital to assign uniformed, armed city police officers to provide security at the hospital full time, does the city have to obtain a private security license under Chapter 74C?
No. When officers act as municipal police performing their official duties under a contract paid by the hospital, they are not 'engaging in a private protective service business' and fall within the…
Could a Washington school district use bonds or a six-year levy just to buy computers and furniture?
The 1988 AG said no to bonds or a six-year levy solely for equipment and furniture. A six-year levy for a qualifying modernization project involving major structural work could include equipment and…
Did Maryland properly suspend Governor Harry Hughes's state pension while he served as Governor?
A 1988 Maryland opinion concluded that suspending former Governor Harry Hughes's Employees' Retirement System allowance during his term as Governor was proper under Article 73B, §11(12), and that…
Can a Maine regional planning commission's executive board include members who weren't appointed by a member municipality?
No, based on this opinion. While a regional planning commission may create a smaller subordinate executive board to handle day-to-day operations, every member of that board must also be a member of…
Could a Washington agency demand a reason for a records request or withhold confidential property-tax income data?
The 1988 AG said an agency could ask why a record was sought but could not deny it solely for silence. It could seek a noncommercial-use promise for a list of people, but not a hold-harmless…
Could Maryland voters petition to referendum just the handgun ban part of a 1988 law that also protected gun makers from lawsuits?
In a 1988 opinion issued during the Saturday Night Special referendum fight, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the handgun ban and the strict liability repeal in Chapter 533 were not…
Can a state agency legally pay a private tipster a cut of the money the state recovers because of their information?
Yes, within limits. The Attorney General concluded that a 1987 law letting the Texas Comptroller contract with informants, and pay them up to 5% of what the state actually recovers, does not violate…
If a teacher gets workers' compensation and paid sick leave for the same work injury, can the school district reduce one to offset the other?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a school district cannot use the offset provision in the public-employee workers' compensation law (article 8309h, section 5) to reduce a teacher's sick-leave…
When two Texas laws passed the same year set different penalties for the same offense, which one applies?
The later-passed one. Two 1985 bills, S.B. 464 and S.B. 980, both rewrote the penalty sections of the Parks and Wildlife Code and set different fines and jail terms for the same…
Can Texas charge lawyers a special occupation tax that exempts older attorneys and those who no longer practice?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the temporary occupation tax the legislature placed on Texas attorneys (running from 1988 through 1990) was constitutional. The tax exempted lawyers 70 and…
After a justice of the peace dismisses my fine-only ticket, can that same court erase the record, or do I have to go to district court?
You have to go to district court. The Attorney General concluded that when a justice of the peace dismisses a fine-only (Class C) case after deferred disposition under article 45.54, the person…
Which Texas county official was responsible for preparing payroll, printing paychecks, and distributing them?
In 1988, the Attorney General concluded that county officers in Harris County had statutory authority to prepare payroll and issue paychecks for employees of their own offices. The county auditor…
Can a Texas county commissioners court give elected and appointed county officials vacation and sick leave, and pay them for unused leave when they leave office?
Yes, but only if the commissioners court actually authorizes it. The Attorney General concluded that a commissioners court may grant vacation and sick leave (and pay for unused leave) to county and…
Does a candidate for a Texas water control and improvement district board have to live inside the district, or is living in the state enough?
Living in the state is enough. The Attorney General concluded that the Water Code sets the qualifications for a water control and improvement district director and requires only that the candidate…
Can a Maryland home rule county create a private lawsuit remedy for improper vehicle towing?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that Montgomery County had authority under the Express Powers Act to create an express private right of action, including a treble damages…
Can someone be convicted of a lesser crime if the charging document only listed the greater offense?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that a charging document did not need to separately spell out a lesser included offense as long as it clearly alleged every element and…
Could a Texas county sign a long-term solid-waste contract, include minimum-delivery or cost-plus terms, and award it without competitive bidding?
In 1988, the Attorney General concluded that a Texas county could enter a long-term solid-waste service contract that bound future commissioners courts, include properly measured damages for a…
Can NC DMV waive an out-of-state salvage-title brand, or relax the 75% repair-cost test, or require an insurer total-loss declaration to also meet that test, when a vehicle comes in for titling?
No to all three. The AG concluded G.S. 20-71.3 is mandatory: NC DMV must honor an out-of-state salvage brand, must apply the 75% repair-cost test as written, and cannot impose the 75% test on top of…
To get a patent to public free school land in Texas under the constitution's title-defect provision, does your chain of title have to reach all the way back to the original grant from the state?
No. The Attorney General reconsidered and overruled an earlier opinion, concluding that article VII, section 4A(a)(3) of the Texas Constitution requires a patent applicant to show an unbroken chain…
Could a Washington 911 center record calls to responders or call back someone reporting an emergency?
The 1988 AG said dispatcher-to-responder calls were generally not private, though some might be. A callback to complete a citizen's emergency report could be recorded without everyone's consent, and…
Could the City of Cascade upgrade its water system without holding a special election, even though the project cost more than the city's annual budget?
The 1988 AG opinion concluded that under Asson v. City of Burley and City of Pocatello v. Peterson, the proposed Cascade water system improvements (distribution upgrades, treatment plant repairs,…
Can the Texas Medical Board discipline doctors in closed, informal hearings, and does it have to tell hospitals about old complaints against a physician?
The closed 'administrative sanction' hearings no longer work. After 1987 amendments to the Medical Practice Act, the board must enter a formal disciplinary order whenever it finds misconduct, so its…
If one partner in a law firm files a divorce complaint, can another partner in the same firm notarize the client's verification, or does that violate the rule against attorneys taking oaths in their own cases?
The AG advised against the practice. G.S. 47-8 prohibits a practicing attorney from administering an oath to any paper used in a legal proceeding in which the attorney appears. Under…
When a Texas justice court defers a no-insurance fine, can it also defer the $75 court cost, and can it spend the fees it collects the way a prosecutor spends hot-check money?
No on both. The Attorney General concluded that article 45.54 of the Code of Criminal Procedure lets a justice defer the fine but says nothing about deferring court costs, so the $75 cost of court…
If a teenage driver is involved in a car accident in NC, does the Juvenile Code's confidentiality rule prevent the police report from identifying the teen as the driver?
No. The AG concluded that the 1988 Juvenile Code confidentiality provision did not prevent a collision report from identifying a person under 18. The report was a factual account filed under G.S.…
Can a Texas county clerk re-record a corrected deed, and is the clerk on the hook for mistakes inside the documents people file?
The clerk's job is ministerial. The Attorney General concluded that each document offered for recording is judged on its own merits: if it meets the Property Code's recording requirements (proper…
Did restoration of civil rights or a vacated conviction make a person eligible for a Washington concealed-pistol license in 1988?
For the specified violent, firearm and drug felonies, the Attorney General said no under the 1988 statute: discharge, restored civil rights or a vacated record did not itself restore eligibility.…
Does Maryland's Homeowners Association Act apply to condominiums and co-ops?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the Homeowners Association Act did not apply to ordinary condominiums or cooperatives, only to the rare ones that were also part of a…
Could Texas Racing Commission members send substitutes to meetings, and could the commission fund a laboratory for racehorse and greyhound drug testing?
The comptroller's chief clerk could sit, vote, and count toward a quorum when the comptroller was unavoidably absent because a statute authorized the clerk to perform the comptroller's official…
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Two states are not listed and are not pending: New Hampshire publishes its opinions on a page that automated retrieval cannot read, and Rhode Island publishes no complete full-text archive at all. We will add them if that changes.