State AG Opinions
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Are emails about a draft government contract still secret if the draft was never shown to a board?
Yes for the draft and any draft language buried in emails. The AG ruled the Diamond State Port Corporation could use the working-draft exception, but only for the proposed contract language and…
Must Delaware DHSS create a new COVID case-count report by school district when historical web data has been destroyed by a vendor?
No. DHSS properly denied a request for weekly COVID case counts by school district from August 2020 to August 2021. The data was previously hosted on a third-party 'My Healthy Community' website…
Can a retrofitted golf cart be registered as a low-speed vehicle in South Carolina?
In 2021, the Attorney General said South Carolina law barred issuing a low-speed-vehicle VIN to retrofitted golf carts and similar vehicles. It declined to decide whether a particular fold-up…
Can a city in Arkansas release the names, job titles, and salaries of its employees in response to a FOIA request, even when an employee objects?
Yes. The Fort Smith records custodian's decision to release employees' names, job positions, and salaries was consistent with the Arkansas FOIA. Under the personnel-records balancing test, the…
Can a South Carolina county exceed its property-tax millage cap to fund a roads reserve?
The Attorney General said the reserve exception could support money set aside for a specific future need, including a large road project, but not a dedicated stream for ongoing road expenses. It…
During a Virginia civil eviction, what should the sheriff do with a tenant's firearm that gets left behind? Can the sheriff seize it, check its serial number against criminal databases, or hold it for safekeeping?
Sheriffs may take custody of (or confiscate) a firearm left behind during a Virginia eviction in three specific situations: the firearm is stolen, the landlord is legally prohibited from possessing…
Can a city release a police captain's name with his salary and job position over his objection that the FOIA request is overly broad and an invasion of all employees' privacy?
Captain Gallant objected that Fort Smith’s request for employee names, positions, salaries, and raises was overly broad and invaded privacy. The AG said its legal analysis and application were the…
Can a city release a police detective's name with her salary and job position under FOIA when the detective fears the release will harm her family?
Yes. The City of Fort Smith's decision to release Detective Charity Abbott's name in conjunction with her job position and salary is consistent with FOIA. The analysis is identical to Op. Att'y Gen.…
Can the City of Fort Smith release a list of all employees' names, job positions, and salary increases since 2015 over an employee's objection that release would harm or embarrass him?
Yes. Public employees' names, job positions, and salary information (including increases) are personnel records under Ark. Code Ann. § 25-19-105(b)(12). Their release does not generally constitute a…
When a Mississippi municipality buys taxable land, who pays the year's property taxes, and can the county forgive them?
The 2021 opinion concluded: (1) A Mississippi municipality may, as part of its purchase agreement, agree to pay current-year ad valorem taxes, but cannot assume the seller's tax liability. The…
Can a Mississippi city's recreation department give participants free arts/crafts and run after-school programs without charging fees?
Yes. The 2021 opinion concluded that Mississippi cities have broad authority to fund recreation department programs with public funds, providing free arts and crafts supplies, after-school…
If a police officer's job application mentions criminal charges that were later sealed or expunged, can the city release that part of the personnel file under FOIA?
The Benton custodian's redacted release was likely not entirely consistent with FOIA. References in Officer Bennett's personnel file to charges that were nolle prossed and later sealed or expunged…
Must a South Carolina company hire a real estate agent to sell property it owns?
The 2021 opinion said a company selling the same ownership interest it holds need not hire a real estate agent or comply with the licensing rules governing real estate professionals for that sale.…
Does the Virginia Freedom of Information Act apply to JAUNT and other quasi-public transit corporations?
Yes, if JAUNT or a similar organization is supported principally (more than two-thirds is the FOIA Advisory Council benchmark, but less can qualify case-by-case) by public funds, it is a 'public…
Can a South Carolina town ban through-trucks from a highway in town?
The Attorney General said local authorities could restrict specified vehicle classes on highways they control for public safety and convenience. Restrictions that interfere with traffic on state…
Can a Mississippi school board member also serve on a joint airport board, or does the separation of powers prohibit it?
Yes. The 2021 opinion concluded that simultaneous service on a Mississippi public school board and a joint airport board does not violate the separation of powers doctrine. Both boards exercise…
Can a Mississippi school district reclassify Sixteenth Section land from commercial to residential during an existing 25-year lease, when the lessee wants to live there?
Yes, conditionally. The AG said reclassification may proceed if the current lease does not prohibit it, changed conditions warrant it, the tract meets the residential-land definition, the Board…
Can private employers in Tennessee require employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19?
Yes, with federal-law caveats. Tennessee law does not prohibit private employers from making COVID-19 vaccination a condition of employment. Public Chapter 513 (codified at §§ 68-5-116 and 68-5-117)…
Can a Kentucky utility employee buy a vehicle the utility used to lease from its contractor?
Generally yes, under the facts given. The Attorney General concluded that Paintsville Utilities Commission employees may buy vehicles a contractor formerly leased to the Commission. KRS 82.083's ban…
Can a Kentucky city ban its employees from carrying guns at work?
Only narrowly. The Attorney General concluded that Kentucky law (KRS 65.870) broadly preempts local firearms regulation, so a city cannot bar its employees from carrying firearms 'at all times and…
Does Delaware's FOIA open-meeting law cover the House of Representatives Ethics Committee, and can the AG decide a prior-restraint free-speech challenge inside a FOIA complaint?
No to both. 29 Del. C. § 10004(h)(7) expressly excludes legislative ethics committees from FOIA's open-meeting requirements, so the Committee's closed September 10, 2021 meeting did not violate…
Can an Arkansas city release a clean-up lien on property so a nonprofit can buy and redevelop it, without violating the constitutional ban on giving public funds to private entities?
No constitutional violation. Article 12, section 5 of the Arkansas Constitution bans cities from donating money or property to private entities, but releasing a § 14-54-901 to -904 cleanup lien…
How long can a Delaware county take to fulfill a FOIA request for emails on a controversial topic?
No violation. The AG ruled New Castle County's repeated time extensions to process 2,158 emails responsive to a councilmember's keyword search complied with FOIA, because each extension fell within…
Could town police patrol a leased park outside town limits, and which court heard offenses there?
The 2021 opinion said West Pelzer police could exercise authority on the leased land because the town controlled it, but that authority did not reach the adjacent road. Offenses on the land below…
Did South Carolina’s 2019 hemp law legalize delta-8 THC by itself?
In 2021, the Attorney General said a court would likely hold that the Hemp Farming Act did not legalize delta-8 THC or other THC isomers in themselves. It expressly left trace amounts in lawful hemp…
Can a Virginia county pick which kinds of events get hit with an admissions tax, or does it have to tax all events the same?
Yes. A Virginia county may define the class of events on which to impose an admissions tax under the catch-all in § 58.1-3817(6). The county does not have to tax every type of event in that…
Can a Mississippi school district reclassify Sixteenth Section land and lease it to the city as a rubbish (yard waste) site?
The 2021 opinion concluded that a Mississippi school board has authority to reclassify Sixteenth Section land when conditions change, but reclassification must be based on the highest and best use…
Can Phoenix bar its employees from giving any money to candidates for city office, or from doing any political activity on city property?
No to both. The AG concluded that Phoenix City Code § 12-217(a)'s blanket ban on employee political contributions and § 12-217(c)'s blanket ban on political activity on any city property both…
Did South Carolina charge a vehicle infrastructure fee when a rental company registered its fleet?
The Attorney General said the DMV could collect the infrastructure maintenance fee from an owner or lessee first titling or registering vehicles for short-term rental use. The fee was additional to…
Can a Mississippi city accept land instead of cash to settle a special assessment debt the property owner owes?
Yes. The 2021 opinion concluded that under municipal home rule, a Mississippi city can accept real property in lieu of cash payment to satisfy a special-assessment debt, as long as the property is…
How many times must a Mississippi county advertise an ordinance, and can it post a shortened version online instead of the full text in the newspaper?
For ordinances not governed by a specific publication statute, Mississippi counties have no minimum number of newspaper runs and can post a shortened version on a county website. But if a particular…
Can a Mississippi county provide group health insurance to part-time employees or non-salaried employees, and can it pick which employees to cover?
The 2021 opinion concluded that a Mississippi county may provide group health insurance to full-time employees who receive direct compensation from the county. It did not separately decide whether…
Can a Mississippi county hire a chamber of commerce to manage a county-owned property and share offices, and does revenue generated have to flow through the county?
The AG found no prohibition on Tunica County retaining offices at Chamber-managed RiverPark under a lawful agreement. It said both parties must comply with laws governing public funds, including the…
Can a Mississippi school district sell laptop computers (purchased with COVID Equity in Distance Learning Act funds) to graduating seniors?
Yes. The 2021 opinion concluded that a Mississippi school district may sell laptop computers, purchased with grants under the Equity in Distance Learning Act (EDLA), to graduating twelfth graders.…
Can a Mississippi county board of supervisors add secretarial expenses to the county prosecutor's base salary, raising the retirement and tax base?
No. The 2021 opinion concluded that the county prosecutor's salary (set by Section 25-3-9 based on county population and location) is separate from secretarial expenses paid under that statute or…
Does a Mississippi city judge in a city of 10,000 to 20,000 have to be a qualified elector of the county where the city sits?
No. The 2021 opinion concluded that Brookhaven's municipal court judge does not need to be a qualified elector of Lincoln County. Section 21-23-3 generally requires city judges in cities of 10,000+…
Can a Delaware agency charge me $2,374 to have its Director of Community Relations sift through 3,801 emails one-by-one for my FOIA request?
No, not without explaining why a director-level employee was the only person who could do the work. The Department of State quoted $2,374 for the Director to review emails about Gulftainer and the…
In West Virginia, can a local county health officer issue a binding mask requirement or other public-health rule on his own, or does it have to come from the local board of health?
It must come from the local board of health, not the health officer alone. The AG concluded that under W. Va. Code §§ 16-2-11 and 16-3-2, only a local board of health (not its individual executive…
Are the records of a government-created advisory committee open to the public under Maryland's Public Information Act?
The opinion concluded that a committee a government creates to advise it on public matters, such as a town's stormwater committee, is very likely a 'unit or instrumentality' under the Public…
If a Maine city condemns a privately-held conservation easement so it can hand the land to a developer, does the easement automatically end, or does a court still have to approve the change?
The easement is not automatically extinguished. AG Frey concluded that since 2007, only a court can terminate or amend a conservation easement in a way that materially detracts from its protections,…
Can a Delaware school board hold no-confidence and mask-mandate votes under a vague '2021-2022 School Year' agenda heading without separate notice?
The Indian River School District Board of Education violated FOIA. Its August 22, 2021 agenda listed only '2021-2022 School Year (D)' for discussion. Two votes followed: one expressing no confidence…
Can someone simultaneously serve as trustee of a California county board of education and a community college board with overlapping territory?
The AG found substantial questions about whether the two Imperial County offices were incompatible, citing potential clashes over property, contracts, district organization, and other duties. It did…
Does Texas's Lone Star Infrastructure Protection Act block Chinese-owned companies from connecting power generation to the state's electric grid?
Generally yes, in the scenarios described. A state senator (the bill's author) asked how the Lone Star Infrastructure Protection Act applies to a proposed wind-generation project in Val Verde County…
Must a Texas school district accept and spend PTA donations earmarked for extra staff positions?
Yes, when the statute's conditions are met. The chair of the Senate Education Committee asked whether House Bill 1525 requires school districts to accept and spend PTA donations earmarked for…
If a FOIA request for an Arkansas state trooper's personnel file looks politically motivated, can the custodian deny it on that ground, and what should be redacted?
A requester's political or subjective motive is generally irrelevant under Arkansas FOIA. The Arkansas State Police custodian's stated redaction list (medical, personal contact info, home address,…
Did a Horry County petition need a special form to change county council elections?
The 2021 Attorney General opinion found no prescribed petition form. It said the proposed referendum wording generally met the statute’s form requirements, but clarification might be needed because…
Can a city release a former employee's personnel and termination records when the misconduct involves honesty violations, even though the subject objects?
Release of the redacted personnel records was consistent with FOIA. For the evaluation records, the AG could not say the proposed release was inconsistent on the facts supplied. Whether termination…
Can the Washington State Board of Accountancy discipline a CPA who works for the State Auditor for things they did as part of their job?
Probably not. The AG concluded that RCW 18.04.350(12), which says nothing in the Public Accountancy Act prohibits acts or words by a public official or employee in the performance of duties, likely…
Can a member agency of a California joint powers authority publicly debate a pending JPA matter with its own appointee, and can the agency tell the appointee how to vote?
It depends. The Brown Act does not bar a member agency from openly discussing a pending JPA matter with its appointee at the agency's own open meeting, because there is no serial deliberation by a…
Did Texas Executive Order GA-38 give people the right to refuse a local mask mandate?
The AG said yes, presuming the order was valid. In 2021, during the COVID-19 disaster declaration, the Williamson County Attorney asked whether Governor Abbott's Executive Order GA-38 created a…
Could an event-storage business keep customers’ liquor and deliver it to venues?
The 2021 Attorney General opinion could not conclusively approve storage or delivery. It said the described business likely escaped one place-of-business storage ban, but a separate authorization to…
Can a port operator's lawyer use FOIA to gather DNREC records about other Delaware companies' permits while the operator's own permit-violation appeal is pending?
DNREC did not violate FOIA. The records request, faxed from a number identified as Elliott Greenleaf (the law firm representing GT USA Wilmington in a pending Environmental Appeals Board appeal of…
Who could request a South Carolina absentee ballot application for another voter in 2021?
Under the law discussed in this 2021 opinion, a voter, an immediate family member, or a qualifying authorized representative could request the application. A representative had to sign an oath; a…
Does a Texas district attorney have to appear when a court modifies an emergency protective order?
No, the DA may appear but is not required to. The Nueces County District Attorney asked whether he must represent the State when a municipal judge, acting as a magistrate, hears a motion to vacate…
Could a South Carolina DHEC Voluntary Cleanup Oversight Contract qualify as a voluntary cleanup contract despite its title?
In 2021, the Attorney General said a court would likely treat the described DHEC oversight agreement as a voluntary cleanup contract if its terms met the statute. Public notice depended on whether…
Can a candidate running for office in Virginia use campaign funds to pay for childcare while campaigning?
Yes. A Virginia candidate may pay for childcare with campaign funds if those expenses are a direct result of campaign activity and would not exist if the candidate were not running. Childcare needed…
Can West Virginia require state employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine or require businesses to check vaccine passports?
The West Virginia AG concluded that a blanket state-employee vaccine mandate or a statewide vaccine-passport requirement, without medical or religious exceptions, would likely violate the West…
Can a Kentucky sheriff spend donated money on a community event like a free movie night?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the Franklin County Sheriff's use of donated funds to host a free community movie night is a public purpose of the office under KRS 61.310(8). As long as the…
Can the membership on a Mississippi joint airport board be adjusted when one owner has been paying double the cost?
Yes. The 2021 opinion concluded that the statutes governing joint airport boards (Sections 61-5-33 to 61-5-41) permit revision and amendment of the joint agreement, including the number of board…
Can a Mississippi special-charter city's board of mayor and selectmen remove school board trustees mid-term or change school board term lengths by ordinance?
No on both counts. The 2021 opinion concluded that the City of McComb's Board of Mayor and Selectman cannot remove a school board trustee mid-term and cannot adopt an ordinance conflicting with…
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