State AG Opinions
Free state attorney general opinions with plain-English summaries, full citations, and the original source on every page.
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In South Dakota, can a candidate or officeholder pay for childcare or personal security out of their campaign account?
Probably yes, but only when the expense exists because of the campaign or office, not as a personal cost the person would have anyway. SDCL 12-27-50 is silent on these categories, so each expense has …
If I asked my Delaware town council to discuss my employment in open session, can they still go into executive session over my objection?
Yes, if litigation is on the table. AG opinion 26-IB03 found that the Town of Greenwood did NOT violate FOIA when the Town Council went into executive session twice in 2025 to discuss Janet Todd's emp…
Did the Missouri attorney general approve the fair ballot language for House Bill No. 1's congressional-district map?
Yes. The attorney general approved the proposed fair ballot language's legal content and form under § 116.025, RSMo, while stating that the approval was not an endorsement of House Bill No. 1.
Did New Mexico's 2023 Native American Voting Rights Act force counties to redraw precinct boundaries on tribal lands right away, or do counties wait until their next regular boundary update?
Counties wait. Section 1-21A-3 does not impose its own deadline. The tribal-consultation duty is triggered the next time a board of county commissioners adjusts precinct boundaries under existing Elec…
Can a New Mexico public university just promote its interim president into the permanent role, or does state law force the board of regents to run a formal search?
A formal search is required. Section 21-1-16.1(B) makes the board consider at least five finalists, give 21 days' public notice of the finalists, and take the final hiring vote in an open public meeti…
Can a Mississippi constable handle the squatter-removal affidavit under the Real Property Owners Protection Act, or must landlords go to a sheriff or police department?
The new statute does not say. It tells a property owner to file the squatter-removal affidavit with 'the law enforcement agency' of the county or municipality, but it does not define that term and doe…
Can I get my own job interview notes from a Delaware city under FOIA?
No. AG opinion 26-IB02 found that the City of Wilmington did NOT violate FOIA by denying Tymir Thompkins's request for his own interview panel records. Records reflecting interview panelist evaluation…
If a Delaware public body says my housing application records are exempt but won't say specifically why, did they violate FOIA?
Yes. AG opinion 26-IB01 found that the Delaware State Housing Authority VIOLATED FOIA by failing to meet its burden to justify denying Talia Mann's request for her own tenant program application recor…
Can a Mississippi city hire a councilmember's daughter for a 'cashier/clerk' job in the city electric department, given the state nepotism law?
It depends on the actual duties of the position. Mississippi's nepotism statute (Section 25-1-53) bans hiring a relative within the third degree as an 'officer, clerk, stenographer, deputy or assistan…
Can a New Mexico county or city use opioid settlement money to help build a general behavioral health facility that will treat some opioid patients along with patients who have other mental health conditions?
No. Under the State-Subdivision Agreement, opioid settlement funds can only pay for opioid-specific expenditures. Construction of a general behavioral health facility that treats a mix of patients is …
If my supervisor wrote a memo about a conversation we had and filed a discrimination/harassment complaint against my wishes, can the County release those records under FOIA?
No, not as 'personnel records.' The AG ruled that a memo created by your supervisor describing your work-environment complaints, plus a complaint form completed against your wishes, are employee-evalu…
Can an Arkansas school district let a booster club and an outside ad agency sell broadcast rights to high school football games and keep the proceeds, without going through the public-school-facility sale rules or competitive bidding?
Yes, with limits. The sale-of-school-facility statute does not cover intellectual property like broadcast rights, but Article 14, Section 2 of the Arkansas Constitution still requires the district to …
Can a Mississippi school board ban people with enhanced concealed-carry permits from bringing firearms to school athletic events, especially when the high school activities association says they have to?
No. The Mississippi enhanced concealed-carry statute (Section 97-37-7(2)) authorizes enhanced permittees to carry weapons in 'any school, college or professional athletic event not related to firearms…
I FOIA'd Pulaski County for complaints against employees. They redacted entire pages and lots of names. Are those redactions legal under Arkansas FOIA?
Mostly, yes. Whole-page redactions of evaluation records are required when the four-part test isn't met. Name redactions are case-by-case under the privacy balancing test, justified for things like me…
Does the Arkansas Attorney General have to approve a Memorandum of Agreement between Little Rock, North Little Rock, and Pulaski County to share costs for a public-safety study and Group Violence Intervention?
No. The AG only approves agreements that involve 'joint cooperative action.' An agreement that just splits the bill for a study or program, without committing the parties to act together, is not 'join…
Can a Kansas county offer a property tax rebate program without specific state statutory authorization?
Likely no. The Attorney General concluded that taxation is purely a creature of state statute, so a county cannot lawfully implement an ad valorem property tax rebate program unless it is authorized b…
Can the Executive Director of a joint regional sewer authority also serve on a city's planning commission, or does South Carolina's dual office holding ban prevent it?
Yes, both positions can be held simultaneously. The AG concluded that an executive director hired by a board to run day-to-day operations is an employee, not an officeholder, so the constitutional dua…
Can a Kentucky public agency stop a citizen from live-streaming a public meeting on their cell phone?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the Open Meetings Act does not let a public agency prevent a member of the public from live-streaming its meeting on a cell phone, as long as the person is non-…
Can a Virginia county board of supervisors install and operate security cameras in the county treasurer's office, even if the treasurer objects?
No. The AG concluded that the treasurer, as a constitutional officer with exclusive control over the operation of her office, may refuse to allow the county board of supervisors to install or operate …
If a Virginia property deed is notarized in another state via remote online notarization (the signer was not in the physical presence of the notary), can the deed still be recorded in a Virginia circuit court?
Yes. The AG concluded that under § 47.1-13.1, a notarial act performed outside Virginia via remote online notarization by an authorized out-of-state notary has the same effect as if performed by a Vir…
If a Virginia sheriff stores his own records on a server owned by the county or city, can the county administrator restrict or deny the sheriff's access to those records?
No. The AG concluded that a sheriff, as a constitutional officer independent of local government, must have unfettered access to his own records even when stored on locality-owned servers. Local offic…
When a Virginia locality has part-time and temporary employees working for a constitutional officer (sheriff, Commonwealth's attorney, commissioner of revenue, court clerk), does the locality have to give them the vacation, sick leave, and legal-holiday benefits that § 15.2-1605 requires for 'employees'?
Part-time employees: yes. Temporary employees: no. The AG read § 15.2-1605 to cover permanent full-time and part-time employees of constitutional officers, but not seasonal or short-term temporary wor…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Andrew Prewitt's Osage River gambling petition 2026-147?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-147 would revise Article III, Section 39(e), authorize one additional gambling location on the Osage Ri…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Andrew Prewitt's Osage River gambling petition 2026-146?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-146 would allow lotteries, gift enterprises, and games of chance at one legally defined Osage River loc…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Andrew Prewitt's Osage River gambling petition 2026-145?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-145 would authorize one gambling site on the Osage River within described Miller County boundaries, req…
If a hunter sends a deer dog onto private land where the hunter has no permission to hunt, can the hunter be charged with criminal trespass under South Carolina Code Section 50-1-90?
The AG declined to say yes outright. The Office acknowledged that 1960s opinions reading Section 50-1-90 narrowly may be outdated, but stopped short of declaring the dog an extension or agent of the h…
Can Adams County let homeless individuals shower at its FEMA-funded emergency shelter when there is no declared disaster?
Yes, if the county adopts a uniform written policy authorizing such private use of the shelter and collects from the user any actual costs the county incurs (cleaning, utilities). Without those guardr…
When a church or religious organization buys property in Mississippi, when does the property tax exemption start, and can it be applied retroactively to the current tax year?
The exemption starts at the next lien-attachment date after the religious organization meets the statutory requirements, not retroactively to the current year. For real property, the lien attaches Jan…
Can a Mississippi city give a long-term lease of city property to a non-profit for $1, or some token amount?
Maybe, depending on which statute fits. The default rule is that municipalities cannot make donations, and a lease at far below market value is a donation. But several specific statutes (Sections 21-7…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-125?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-125 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-124?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-124 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-122?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-122 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-121?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-121 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-120?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-120 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-119?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-119 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-118?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-118 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-117?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-117 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-116?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-116 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-114?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-114 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What ballot summary did Missouri approve for Mark Johnson's electoral-vote petition 2026-113?
The Attorney General approved the legal content and form of a summary stating that petition 2026-113 would replace Missouri's winner-take-all presidential electoral-vote system with a proportional sys…
What fiscal impact did Missouri approve for Andrew Prewitt's initiative petition 2026-147?
The approved summary reported $2.5 million in one-time costs, $2.5 million in annual costs, $271,000 in initial fee revenue, $14.5 million in annual state revenue, and $2.6 million in annual local rev…
What fiscal impact did Missouri approve for Andrew Prewitt's initiative petition 2026-146?
The approved summary reported $2.5 million in one-time costs, $2.5 million in annual costs, $271,000 in initial fee revenue, $14.5 million in annual state revenue, and $2.6 million in annual local rev…
What fiscal impact did Missouri approve for Andrew Prewitt's initiative petition 2026-145?
The approved summary reported $2.5 million in one-time costs, $2.5 million in annual costs, $271,000 in initial fee revenue, $14.5 million in annual state revenue, and $2.6 million in annual local rev…
Why did the Arkansas Attorney General reject 'The Natural Environment Amendment' ballot title for the third time, and what would the sponsor need to fix?
The AG rejected the ballot title because the underlying amendment text is too vague to support any non-misleading title. The constitutional duties on government are undefined, the limits on the Genera…
Can a Kansas governor refuse to extradite a fugitive to a state that will seek the death penalty?
No. The Attorney General concluded that under Article IV, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution and Kansas's Uniform Criminal Extradition Act, K.S.A. 22-2701 et seq., the Governor has no discretion to re…
If an Arizona voter who registered using a pre-1996 driver license updates their registration (new address, new party, new name, or moves to a new county), can the county recorder require fresh proof of U.S. citizenship?
It depends. For an intra-county update (changing address, party, or name within the same county), the recorder cannot require new proof of citizenship. For a move to a new county, the new recorder mus…
Did a North Dakota rural ambulance district violate the open meetings or open records laws when its email notice to the official newspaper got stuck in an outbox, and when it took 80 days to release a severance agreement?
Mostly no on the meeting notice (the email failure was a technical glitch and the AG found substantial compliance for both meetings), but yes on the records side. The 80-day delay in releasing a sever…
Can a North Dakota state's attorney refuse to release records of a child-sexual-abuse investigation to the convicted defendant, and how long can the office take to respond?
Yes on the substance: state's attorneys can withhold records that fall within the active-criminal-investigation exemption, juvenile-records confidentiality, child-abuse-report confidentiality, and chi…
Are DraftKings, FanDuel, and other Daily Fantasy Sports apps legal in New Mexico?
Probably not, but the AG would not give a blanket yes or no. Daily Fantasy Sports is not expressly authorized by the Gaming Control Act, the Lottery Act, or any other New Mexico statute. The legality …
Can New Mexico let non-tribal racetracks offer Class II gaming (like bingo-style machines) without breaking the 2015 tribal-state gaming compact, and could the tribes stop their revenue sharing if it does?
The Attorney General declined to give a categorical answer. The questions turn on whether the term Gaming Machine in the 2015 Compact reaches Class II machines or only Class III, and that requires fac…
Can a new political party in New Mexico collect its qualification-petition signatures electronically (DocuSign, online portals, tablets), or do they have to be on paper in pen?
On paper in pen. Section 1-7-2(A) requires the petition information, including signatures, to be hand-printed. The AG concluded the more specific Election Code requirement controls over the general Un…
Can a New Mexico hospital that financed its building through the Hospital Equipment Loan Council claim a property tax exemption on the land and the building, or only on the equipment?
Not based on Council ownership. The Hospital Equipment Loan Act tries to designate the Council as 'the state' just for purposes of the constitutional property-tax exemption, but the same statute also …
Can Hattiesburg spend city funds to help homeless individuals get the ID documents they need to apply for a job or housing?
Yes, conditionally. The City can spend funds for this purpose if its governing authorities determine (1) the city's Homeless Coordinator program is a 'social and community service program' under Secti…
Can Pascagoula spend the tourism tax it collects from hotels and bed-and-breakfasts on tourism, economic development, and recreation programs?
Yes. The 2004 local and private law authorizing the city's 3% lodging tax expressly says the funds are for 'the purpose of providing funds to promote tourism, economic development and recreation.' The…
When a county employee files a complaint about a coworker or supervisor under the county's personnel policy, is that complaint a 'personnel record' (mostly disclosable) or an 'employee evaluation' (mostly sealed)?
It's a personnel record. The 'at the behest' test under A.C.A. § 25-19-105(c)(1) requires command or directive, a personnel policy that lets employees file complaints isn't a command. Reprimands and s…
If a Delaware public body holds a virtual town hall with sign-in requirements and a waiting room, but only a few members attend, did they violate the open-meetings law?
No. AG opinion 25-IB66 found that the Redding Consortium for Educational Equity did NOT violate FOIA at its November 18, 2025 town hall meeting because less than a quorum of its 24 members attended (o…
If a Tennessee city has a private act passed before July 1, 2021, that authorizes up to a 5% hotel occupancy tax, but the city council didn't actually vote to charge the full 5% until after that cutoff date, is the city stuck with the new statewide 4% cap?
No. Tennessee's grandfathering provision protects pre-existing private acts that 'authorize the levy' of an occupancy tax, not just acts that already imposed it. The city can vote to levy the full 5% …
Can the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board's Executive Director put a dying or medically frail inmate on the medical parole docket without a request from the Department of Corrections Director?
No. The DOC Director has the sole authority to start the medical parole process by requesting that an inmate be placed on the Pardon and Parole Board's docket. Without that request, the PPB Executive …
Can I get the police station booking-area video and 911 audio for an arrest where the charges were later dismissed?
No. AG opinion 25-IB65 found that New Castle County did NOT violate FOIA by denying Gordon Putnik's request for body-cam, dash-cam, 911 audio, CAD logs, dispatch notes, and station/booking video relat…
If a Family Court temporary order gives one spouse exclusive use of the home, can law enforcement issue a trespass notice against the excluded spouse, even though they still co-own the property?
Yes. The AG concluded that South Carolina's trespass-after-notice statute applies to anyone, including a property co-owner, when the person in peaceful possession asks them to leave. A pending Family …
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