State AG Opinions
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When the Assessment Coordination Division publishes a manual telling county assessors how to value poultry houses, does that count as a 'rule' that needs legislative approval?
No, the AG concluded that the optional ARCREM poultry-valuation guidelines were not 'rules' under Amendment 92 because assessors were not required to follow them. The Division did not have to submit…
If a juvenile gets multiple consecutive sentences for crimes that include a homicide, do the parole eligibility waiting periods stack?
Yes. Where a juvenile was convicted of multiple offenses and at least one involved another person's death, the AG read § 16-93-621(a)(2)(A) to allow stacking of parole eligibility periods, because…
Can a public employee union challenge a charter-amendment ballot measure that the city placed before voters without consulting the union under the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act?
Yes, by quo warranto. The AG granted Local 1319 leave to sue Palo Alto to invalidate Measure D, which had repealed the charter's binding-arbitration clause for police and fire unions. PERB and the…
Could Charleston County bar the city water system from requiring annexation before serving nearby unincorporated property?
The Attorney General concluded in 2020 that municipalities could condition outside-boundary sewer service on annexation and that counties lacked authority to override that choice. It also said the…
Did the Missouri Attorney General sign off on the State Auditor's fiscal note summary for James Owen's renewable energy initiative (version 2)?
Yes. Attorney General Eric Schmitt approved the legal content and form of the fiscal note summary for Owen's version 2 petition (2020-143). The summary estimated about $143,500 in annual ongoing…
Did the Missouri Attorney General approve the fiscal note summary for James Owen’s petition 2020-142?
Yes. The Attorney General approved the fiscal note summary’s legal content and form. The summary estimates about $147,000 in annual state costs and a possible unknown increase in electricity costs;…
Did the Missouri Attorney General sign off on the State Auditor's fiscal note summary for James Owen's renewable energy initiative (version 3)?
Yes. Attorney General Eric Schmitt approved the fiscal note summary's legal content and form for Owen's version 3 petition (2020-144). The estimated annual state cost was about $143,500 (matching…
Does a Seaford BOA agenda violate FOIA when it lists a variance by tax parcel number rather than street address?
No. The Delaware AG ruled the Seaford Board of Adjustment did not violate FOIA when its December 4, 2019 agenda identified a variance by case number, applicant name, business name, business…
When a school district investigates a sexual harassment complaint, can the accused employee get a copy of the investigative report even if the FOIA otherwise exempts it?
Yes, the subject of an employee-evaluation record is entitled to it under § 25-19-105(c)(2), but the school cannot publicly release the report just because the subject 'authorizes' it. If the same…
After a Florida tax deed sale produces a surplus, do governmental lienholders lose their claim if they don't file a request for the surplus within 120 days?
No. Governmental units holding liens of record must be paid from the surplus first, without filing a claim or request. Nongovernmental holders of recorded governmental liens must request…
Does West Virginia law force a county commission to clean debris out of a creek or stream when a water utility or property owner asks them to?
The AG read W. Va. Code § 7-1-3u as a grant of authority, not a mandate. Counties were authorized to dredge, remove debris, and do other flood-control work in streams, but the statute did not…
Does a West Virginia county sheriff have to appoint a deputy as humane officer, or can the sheriff hold that role personally?
The AG concluded that the plain text of W. Va. Code § 7-10-1 makes the appointment mandatory: a sheriff must designate a deputy (or, with county-commission agreement, the county dog warden) as…
Why did the Missouri Attorney General reject Mark Parachini's fourth initiative petition (2020-148) on form grounds in February 2020?
Same defect as 6-2020. Attorney General Eric Schmitt rejected the petition for failing to comply with § 116.050.2(3), RSMo, the rule requiring that all new matter being added to existing law be…
Why did the Missouri Attorney General reject Mark Parachini’s petition 2020-147 as to form?
The Attorney General found that the petition was not in the form prescribed by § 116.050.2(3), RSMo. The letter expressly did not review whether other deficiencies existed; the Secretary of State…
Can police destroy rape-kit or DNA evidence early if the victim decides not to press charges?
No. The Attorney General concluded that under KRS 524.140 a law enforcement agency could not seek a court order to destroy biological evidence from a sexual assault investigation only three years…
Did South Carolina’s chiropractic statute let the licensing board approve dry needling?
The AG said a court might find that dry needling fell outside the statutory scope of chiropractic practice and that a filiform needle did not qualify as a board-approved machine. It acknowledged a…
How does a Mississippi county board buy emergency E-911 equipment without competitive bidding, and can it sign a 7-year contract?
Once the Board declares an emergency under § 31-7-1(f), § 31-7-13(k) lets it skip competitive bidding. Multi-year equipment with a 7-year life is fine, but service contracts that extend past the…
Can a Mississippi community college lease land to a private nonprofit without monetary rent if the lessee covers construction, taxes, and maintenance?
Yes, the AG concluded a community college may take into account the lessee's payment of construction costs, ad valorem taxes, maintenance, and the college's right to use part of the facility when…
Whose job is it to draft Mississippi youth court orders, the prosecutor or the court staff?
The AG said drafting youth court orders is the responsibility of court staff hired by the judge and paid by the county out of the court budget under § 43-21-119. It declined to answer the part of…
Can the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District pay half the cost of a county guardrail repair to protect its existing water and sewer lines?
Yes. The AG concluded the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District may contract with Rankin County to share the cost of guardrail repairs on Northshore Causeway, if the District factually determines…
Can a Mississippi waterway district give a lender a security interest in just the lease (not the state land itself) for its tenant?
Yes for the leasehold. The AG concluded the Pat Harrison Waterway District may grant the lessee's lender a security interest in the leasehold interest itself, but not in the state-owned premises. On…
Can a Mississippi county tax assessor/collector also serve as the interim county administrator at the same time?
Yes. Under the core-powers doctrine, the tax assessor/collector exercises core executive powers, but the county administrator does not, so holding both positions does not violate separation of…
Can a Mississippi county let the Red Cross use a county building for free?
Yes, with a cap. The AG concluded that under Miss. Code Ann. § 19-5-93(1), Yazoo County could enter into a use agreement with the American Red Cross for free use of a county-owned building, treating…
Are total donation amounts to specific charities under Mississippi's Children's Promise Act tax credits public information?
Yes. The AG concluded that the total contribution amounts received by individual charities under Mississippi's Children's Promise Act tax credit programs are subject to disclosure under the Public…
Can a Mississippi county offer health insurance dependent coverage to some employees but not others?
Yes. The AG concluded that under Miss. Code Ann. § 25-15-103(4)(b), as amended in 2019, a county Board of Supervisors may provide group hospitalization benefits and life insurance for specified…
If a Mississippi defendant misses a justice or municipal court date for a traffic ticket, can the judge issue a warrant and require a cash bond equal to the fines?
The court can hold the no-show defendant in contempt and impose a fine up to $1,000 or six months in jail, or both. A cash bond is not strictly proper because contempt has already been adjudicated.…
Does the Fresh Start Act force the Mississippi Board of Physical Therapy to ignore prior felony convictions when licensing applicants?
The AG concluded that because the Physical Therapy Board's enabling statute did not bar licensure based on prior convictions, the Board had to comply with Section 73-77-5 of the Fresh Start Act. Its…
Does Mississippi's Fresh Start Act let people with criminal records get a nursing license, or can the Board of Nursing still bar them?
The AG concluded that the Mississippi Board of Nursing's existing enabling statute, which let it deny a license for felony or moral-turpitude convictions, qualified as 'applicable state law' that…
Does the Fresh Start Act limit the Mississippi Funeral Services Board from disqualifying applicants for prior crimes?
Partly. The AG concluded that the Funeral Services Board's enabling statute, Miss. Code Ann. § 73-11-51, did not bar an applicant for a prior criminal conviction. So Fresh Start Act § 73-77-5…
Does Mississippi's Fresh Start Act let a person with a serious felony become a licensed nursing home administrator?
No, for serious felonies. The AG concluded that Miss. Code Ann. § 43-11-13(5)(c), which bars nursing home administrator licensure for felonies including drug offenses, murder, manslaughter, sexual…
Does Mississippi's Fresh Start Act stop the Optometry Board from rejecting a license applicant for a moral-turpitude crime?
No. The AG concluded that Miss. Code Ann. § 73-19-23(1), which lets the Optometry Board refuse, cancel, or suspend a license for 'conviction of a crime involving moral turpitude,' was 'applicable…
Does Mississippi's Fresh Start Act of 2019 stop the social-worker board from denying a license based on a felony conviction?
No. The AG concluded that the social-work board's enabling statute, Miss. Code Ann. § 73-53-13, was 'applicable state law' that exempted the board from the Fresh Start Act's restrictions on using…
Does a Mississippi tax collector in a two-district county get $7,000 extra pay or just $3,500?
$7,000. The AG concluded that under Miss. Code Ann. § 25-3-3(5), the Hinds County Tax Collector was entitled to two mandatory $3,500 supplements: one for serving in a county with two judicial…
Could a South Carolina driver be cited for driving too fast for conditions without a crash?
Yes, according to the AG’s 2020 interpretation of South Carolina's speed statute. A collision or contact with a moving object was not required; the driver’s speed relative to actual and potential…
Why did the Missouri Attorney General reject Mark Parachini's second initiative petition (2020-146) on form grounds in late January 2020?
Same defects as the prior filing. Attorney General Eric Schmitt rejected the petition because it did not follow § 116.040, RSMo's format rules and did not show deletions in brackets and additions…
Could a South Carolina defendant who posted bond still request a preliminary hearing?
The AG said making bond did not by itself remove eligibility for a preliminary hearing. Rule 2 required a request within ten days after notice; the office saw a possible, rare equitable tolling…
Could a South Carolina clerk charge a case party FOIA search fees for copies of court filings?
The AG said a party to a pending case, or the party’s agent or lawyer, could inspect or copy case papers without charge under the clerk statute. A clerk could charge the statute’s per-sheet fee for…
Can a Delaware agency invoke the 'pending or potential litigation' FOIA exemption based on a lawyer's threat to sue if the agency doesn't act?
Yes. Delaware's pending-or-potential-litigation exemption (29 Del. C. § 10002(l)(9)) applies when (1) litigation is likely or reasonably foreseeable and (2) there is a clear nexus between the…
Can a Texas appraisal district keep a 'one entity, one vote' method for choosing its board after House Bill 1010?
Probably not, the AG advised. A county appraisal district is run by a five-member board appointed by the local taxing units (the county, cities, school districts, and others) that participate in it.…
How do you repeal a special county road tax in Texas?
The AG laid out a two-part procedure. A special road tax is a county tax for maintaining county roads, adopted under Transportation Code section 256.052 after a petition signed by at least 200…
Can a Texas county refuse to register your car for unpaid fines even without a DMV data-sharing contract?
Yes, the AG concluded. Transportation Code section 502.010, the 'County Scofflaw' law, lets a county tax assessor-collector (and the DMV) refuse to register a vehicle when the owner owes the county…
Could Lexington use development impact fees to expand parks, and charge homes differently from businesses?
The AG said impact fees could fund expansion of an existing facility only to add capacity for new growth in the fee’s service area. It said a court would likely use rational basis review for…
Why did the Missouri Attorney General reject Mark Parachini's initiative petition (2020-145) on form grounds in January 2020?
Attorney General Eric Schmitt rejected the petition for two formatting failures: it was not in the form prescribed by § 116.040, RSMo, and it did not show deletions in brackets and additions…
What did the Missouri Attorney General decide about James Owen's renewable energy initiative petition (version 3) when reviewed for form in January 2020?
Attorney General Eric Schmitt approved the form of version 3 of Owen's petition (Secretary's tracking number 2020-144) under § 116.332, RSMo. Like its sibling versions, the form approval was…
What did the Missouri Attorney General decide about James Owen's renewable energy initiative petition (version 2) when reviewed for form in January 2020?
Attorney General Eric Schmitt approved the petition's form under § 116.332, RSMo. The approval did not address whether the underlying renewable energy proposal was a good idea or whether the…
Did the Missouri AG approve the form of James Owen's initiative petition to amend Chapter 393, RSMo (2020-142)?
Yes, as to form only. AG Eric Schmitt approved the sufficiency as to form of James Owen's initiative petition under Mo. Rev. Stat. § 116.332. The letter notes that the Secretary of State retains…
Did South Carolina’s AG require a full Social Security number to register to vote?
In a 2020 letter, the AG changed the office’s earlier advice and construed the voter registration statute to permit submission of only the last four digits of a Social Security number.
Could a nonprofit provide eye exams and free glasses at South Carolina Title I schools using a mobile clinic?
The AG said the described limited eye evaluations could support glasses prescriptions, but mobile optometry clinics required registration and the statute restricted them to licensed health care…
Can a Delaware charter school board's subcommittee hold an executive session, or is that authority reserved for the full board?
Yes. The Delaware AG agreed that the Odyssey Charter School Nominating Committee, as a public-body subcommittee of the Board, could notice an executive session under FOIA for an authorized purpose.…
Can I FOIA Delaware's Office of Animal Welfare for the name and address of someone who filed an animal-control complaint about my property?
No. The Delaware AG ruled the Division of Public Health properly denied Laura Allen's request for animal-control complaint records targeting her address. The Office of Animal Welfare's complaints,…
Must a South Carolina assessor exclude a golf course's personal property income when valuing its real estate for tax?
Yes. The AG said the exclusion applied whichever appraisal method the assessor used, and failing to remove income and expenses tied to personal property violated the statute.
Could Maryland nurse practitioners, nurse-midwives, and physician assistants provide medication abortions, and could physician assistants perform surgical abortions?
The Attorney General predicted that a Maryland court would likely allow nurse practitioners, certified nurse-midwives, and physician assistants to prescribe and provide medication abortions because…
Are personal direct messages on a state-issued phone public records under FOIA?
The AG declined to rule. The threshold question (whether the messages are 'public records' at all) is outside the AG's review authority under § 25-19-105(c)(3)(B), which only reaches whether an…
Can a Mississippi county hire its Planning and Development District to handle tax-refund setoff collections for it under the 2019 Local Government Debt Collection Setoff Act?
The AG concluded that the Local Government Debt Collection Setoff Act limited delegation: a county could not assign its point-of-contact or notice duties to a Planning & Development District, but…
Can a Mississippi levee board partner with the Army Corps to build a flood-control berm that disturbs a cemetery on the levee toe?
Yes, with conditions. The AG concluded the Mississippi Levee Board has plenary constitutional authority under Article 11, Section 232 to construct, or partner with the Army Corps of Engineers to…
Can a Mississippi mayor and aldermen replace an appointed school board member before the appointee's five-year term ends?
No. The AG concluded that an appointed municipal-separate-school-district trustee was entitled to serve the full five-year term as long as he remained qualified, and a mayor and aldermen could not…
Can a city withhold a police chief's suspension letter from public records when other related records have already been released?
The AG questioned the withholding. Letters explaining officers' suspensions are employee-evaluation records and appeared disclosable on their face, but the AG could not give a definitive answer…
What does Texas law require before a court can seize or order the destruction of a dog that attacked someone?
The AG answered three questions about the dog-attack procedures in Health and Safety Code chapter 822. First, a 'sworn complaint' that triggers a seizure warrant under section 822.002 does not have…
Does an appointed county prosecuting attorney in Mississippi have to live in the county and be a registered voter there?
The AG concluded that an appointed Mississippi county prosecuting attorney is a contract employee, not an officeholder. Article 12, Section 250's qualified-elector rule and Section 19-23-9's…
Can a Mississippi town require a business that only sells beer and light wine to also get an ABC liquor license?
No. The AG concluded that a Mississippi municipality cannot require a business already permitted by the Department of Revenue under § 67-3-25 to also hold an ABC liquor license to sell beer or light…
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