State AG Opinions
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Can a Texas Ethics Commission member reveal a sworn complaint that is being litigated?
The AG concluded the complaint stays confidential. Under Government Code section 571.140(a), a sworn complaint filed with the Texas Ethics Commission, along with related documents and evidence, is con…
Can the Texas Ethics Commission redact home addresses from campaign finance reports it must post online?
The AG concluded mostly no. Government Code section 552.1175 lets certain people (including some judges) keep their home address and similar personal details out of public records. But the statutes th…
Why did the Arkansas AG reject Ed Frizzell's 2017 'Proportional Voting Amendment' that would have shrunk the legislature into seven multi-member senate districts and 21 multi-member house districts drawn by latitude lines?
Three reasons. The popular name 'Proportional Voting' is a technical term that means different things in different electoral contexts and would mislead voters. The ballot title described the new distr…
Does a Virginia retailer break the law if a cigarette manufacturer prints a sweepstakes notice on its packs and the only place a customer can learn of the sweepstakes in the store is on the pack itself?
No. Code § 18.2-242 targets retail establishments that use games of chance to promote sales of products subject to federal and state excise taxes. A retailer that simply sells cigarettes whose packagi…
Why did the Arkansas AG reject True Grass's 2017 recreational marijuana amendment with the prison-release and expungement provisions?
Because Section 8 of the proposal had a fundamental ambiguity. Subsection (a) and subsection (b) could be read to apply different rules about whether prisoners with non-marijuana convictions also qual…
When can an Arkansas adult legally hand a gun to someone under 18, and when does it become a crime?
It depends on consent, the kind of weapon, and what the minor does with it. The AG explained that handing a firearm or other deadly weapon to a minor without a parent's or guardian's consent is a crim…
Why did the Arkansas AG reject Larry Froelich's 2017 ballot title for an initiated act that would have made Act 570 of 2011's reduced drug sentences retroactive?
Because the popular name and ballot title referenced 'Acts 2011, No. 570' without describing the punishment changes that act made, leaving voters unable to assess what the proposal would do. The submi…
Could the Peninsula Airport Commission legally guarantee a private bank loan to People Express Airlines using public airport funds?
No. The Peninsula Airport Commission's guarantee of a $5 million bank loan to People Express Airlines was an extension of public credit covered by the Credit Clause in Article X, Section 10 of the Vir…
Can a Florida county lease or convey county-owned land to a developer for a project that includes market-rate housing as an economic-development activity?
The opinion concluded that § 125.045(3) lists non-exclusive examples of authorized economic development activities. Whether a project including market-rate housing furthers the statute's goals was a f…
Must a Texas municipal court report a juvenile's drug paraphernalia conviction to DPS?
The AG concluded no, it found no such statute. A municipal court's jurisdiction over juveniles reaches only fine-only offenses, and possession of drug paraphernalia is a Class C misdemeanor punishable…
Did the Arkansas AG approve a 2017 ballot title for legalizing recreational marijuana under the 'Arkansas Adult Recreation of Marijuana Amendment'?
No. The AG rejected Mary Berry's proposed amendment because key terms in the text (such as 'Schedule VI substance' and the expungement language) were ambiguous, and because Berry's proposal was substa…
Can a Florida mosquito control district's drone qualify as an FAA public aircraft, and can the district use it for any commercial purpose?
The AG confirmed the Beach Mosquito Control District as a Florida political subdivision for the FAA's public-aircraft rule and added that § 388.231(1) prohibits the district from using mosquito-contro…
If a bill from Arkansas's 2017 First Extraordinary Session has no emergency clause and no stated effective date, when does it take effect?
August 2, 2017. Adjournment was May 3, 2017, the 90-day referendum window under Amendment 7 ran through August 1, and the acts took effect the day after.
If an Arkansas bill passed in the 2017 regular session has no emergency clause and no specified effective date, when does it become law?
August 1, 2017. Under Amendment 7, acts without an emergency clause take effect 91 days after the legislature adjourns, giving the people 90 days to file a referendum petition. Adjournment was May 1, …
Do appointees to the Arkansas Judicial Ethics Advisory Committee have to take the constitutional oath of office before they start serving?
No. Committee members are not 'public officers' under Article 19, § 20, because they don't exercise the State's sovereign power and only issue non-binding advisory opinions. They look more like public…
Can an Arkansas city pass an ordinance requiring future tax measures to win two-thirds of the vote, instead of a simple majority?
No. State law (Ark. Code Ann. § 14-55-301 and Amendment 7) requires only a majority for referred ordinances, and other Arkansas statutes set majority-vote rules for specific city taxes. A two-thirds-v…
Was a Springdale police suspension record properly redacted before release under the Arkansas FOIA, when the suspended officer wanted broader redactions removed?
Yes. The custodian's decision to release the records as redacted was consistent with the FOIA. The records formed the basis of the officer's suspension, the suspension was final, and there is a compel…
Did the Arkansas AG approve the 2017 'Decriminalization of Recreational Marijuana' constitutional amendment ballot title submitted by Larry Morris?
No. The AG rejected the proposal because key terms were ambiguous (the relationship between 'Schedule VI substance' and 'marijuana,' and the expungement clause's antecedent), and because Morris's prop…
Did the Arkansas AG approve the 2017 'Fairplay Holdings' ballot title proposal that would have given specific people exclusive rights to operate casino gambling?
No. The AG rejected the proposal because the popular name was nonsensical, the 833-word ballot title was too long and confusing for voters to digest in five minutes, and the measure failed to identify…
Were Oregon physical therapists allowed to perform 'dry needling' in 2017, or was that acupuncture and outside their scope of practice?
The opinion addressed whether dry needling was within the physical therapist scope of practice. The Physical Therapist Licensing Board had previously taken the position that dry needling likely was wi…
Can a civilly committed sexually violent predator in Texas vote by mail?
The AG concluded a court would likely say yes. A person who is civilly committed as a sexually violent predator under chapter 841 of the Health and Safety Code keeps the right to vote if he fully disc…
Can a Georgia dispensing optician still duplicate eyeglasses or contact lenses without a prescription, given a 2016 statute that bars dispensing without one?
Yes. There was no conflict between the 2016 amendment to O.C.G.A. § 31-12-12(c) (which prohibits dispensing or adapting contact lenses or spectacles without a prescription) and O.C.G.A. § 43-29-14(b) …
Is a resident of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation reservation also a 'bona fide permanent resident' of the Town of Ledyard for purposes of getting a Connecticut pistol permit?
Yes. The MPTN reservation sits geographically inside Ledyard, and Connecticut law treats reservation residents as residents of the surrounding municipality for state-administered licensing programs. T…
Under the Arkansas FOIA, what records can a Little Rock police officer get from the city's investigation file on a complaint they filed against a superior, when no discipline resulted?
Mostly the records the officer themselves submitted, plus the original complaint as the personnel record of both employees. Most of the rest are employee-evaluation records of the superior, and becaus…
Does Virginia's State Air Pollution Control Board have authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions and set a statewide cap on power-plant carbon?
Yes. The AG concluded that the State Air Pollution Control Board has legal authority under §§ 10.1-1306, 10.1-1307, and 10.1-1308 to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, including establishing a statewi…
Did the Arkansas AG approve the 2017 'Arkansas Fair Voting Amendment' ballot title for ranked-choice voting and a redistricting overhaul?
No. The AG rejected it. The popular name's word 'fair' gave partisan coloring, the title used the technical term 'ranked-choice voting' without defining it, the title described 'eliminating gerrymande…
Do new Texas school buildings have to follow the commercial energy conservation code?
The AG concluded a court would likely say yes. Chapter 388 of the Health and Safety Code adopts the International Energy Conservation Code for all 'residential, commercial, and industrial' constructio…
Can I keep my Texas homestead exemption if I move into a senior or care facility?
The AG concluded a court would likely read the statute broadly. A home keeps its residence-homestead character during a temporary absence caused by the owner's residency in a 'facility that provides s…
Can New Jersey contribute the entire state lottery enterprise to certain state pension funds for 30 years to help close the pension funding gap, without violating the state constitution?
Yes, in the Attorney General's view. As long as the State continues to operate and control the lottery (the Division of the State Lottery keeps running it, the State Lottery Commission keeps regulatin…
Can Arkansas release citizen complaints about an Alcoholic Beverage Control enforcement agent under FOIA, even if the agent objects?
Yes. AG Rutledge confirmed that citizen complaints about an Arkansas ABC enforcement agent are personnel records under FOIA, and that under the Young v. Rice balancing test the public's interest in di…
Why did the Arkansas AG reject Mary Berry's 2018 recreational-marijuana amendment ballot title?
Rejected. AG Rutledge declined to certify Mary Berry's proposed 'Arkansas Recreational Marijuana Amendment of 2018' because the expungement provision in Section 8 was ambiguous and the proposal said n…
Who hires staff for a Texas veterans treatment court, the judge or the county?
The AG split the authority. Under chapter 124 of the Government Code, a county commissioners court that establishes a veterans treatment court program can create the staff positions and fund them, inc…
After Congress deauthorized the federal Stonington Harbor breakwater in 2016, who owns it and who is responsible for maintaining it?
Connecticut owns it. The breakwater rests entirely below the mean high tide line on submerged lands the state holds in public trust, and federal law transfers state title to such lands once the federa…
Is a Florida mosquito control district a 'political subdivision' for purposes of the FAA's public-aircraft rule when it applies for a UAS certificate of authorization?
The AG concluded that the Beach Mosquito Control District, a special taxing district created under Florida law, was a 'political subdivision' of Florida for purposes of 49 U.S.C. § 40102(a)(41), suppo…
After Amendment 97, can an Arkansas city museum or A&P Commission spend public money on private economic-development projects?
Generally yes, in concept. AG Rutledge opined that Amendment 97's economic-development authority for cities extends to local governmental agencies that act as arms of the municipality. Whether a parti…
Does an Arizona county supervisor have to resign to apply for a Superior Court judgeship the Governor would fill by appointment?
No. The AG's informal opinion concluded that submitting an application for a gubernatorial appointment is not the same as 'offering yourself for nomination or election.' The resign-to-run statute requ…
Can a Virginia city require pre-ADA commercial buildings to retrofit their doors with manual entry hardware for disability access?
No. The AG concluded a Virginia locality lacks authority to enact an ordinance requiring retrofitting of commercial buildings with manual entry door hardware where the buildings were constructed befor…
Why did the Arkansas AG refuse to certify Larry Morris's 2017 recreational-marijuana ballot title?
Rejected. AG Rutledge declined to certify the popular name and ballot title for Larry Morris's proposed 'Arkansas Decriminalization of Recreational Marijuana Amendment' because the underlying proposal…
When a county commission has voted no to a sheriff's request for a drug dog, can the sheriff accept a privately donated drug dog as a gift to the sheriff's office, and can the sheriff then go around the commission and amend the county's insurance policy to cover the dog?
Yes on the gift, no on the insurance. A sheriff has implied authority to accept gifts directly related to his statutory law enforcement duties, including a trained drug dog. But only the county commis…
Does the West Virginia Open Meetings Act force a local volunteer fire department to open its meetings to the public?
It depends on how the fire department was created. If a local government ordinance set it up as a public body, the Act applies (per the 1999 Whitesville advisory opinion). If it was incorporated as a …
Does a Virginia sheriff or regional jail have to pay the outside hospital bill when an inmate is treated for a medical condition that existed before they came into custody?
No (for payment), yes (for ensuring care). The AG concluded that § 53.1-126 exempts sheriffs, regional jails, and localities from paying outside healthcare providers for treatment of an inmate's pre-e…
How long does Virginia have to collect unpaid criminal fines, court costs, and restitution from someone in prison?
The AG concluded that the limitations period for civil enforcement of circuit-court fines and costs is 20 years from the date of offense or delinquency, not tolled by incarceration. Civil enforcement …
Could the State of Arkansas pay travel costs for Medical Marijuana Commission members to tour an out-of-state cultivation facility despite Amendment 98's no-reimbursement clause?
Yes, with caution. AG Rutledge concluded Amendment 98 does not prevent the State from paying AMMC members' out-of-state travel directly, but it forbids reimbursing commissioners for expenses they paid…
Can Arizona registered nurse practitioners order and interpret x-rays without a separate radiation license?
Yes. The AG concluded that 'use' of x-ray equipment in the radiation statute means physically operating the machine, not ordering or interpreting images. RNPs are licensed practitioners governed by th…
Can a West Virginia constitutional officer like the Commissioner of Agriculture sign long-term real estate leases in the final days of his term, after his successor has been elected? And can the new commissioner unilaterally tear up those leases?
Yes, the outgoing Commissioner had full constitutional authority to sign the 30- and 35-year farm-property leases in his last days. West Virginia has not adopted the Wyoming public-policy rule limitin…
Can Garland County hand AWIN radios to a private property owners' association in Hot Springs Village for free, or pay to maintain its dispatch center?
Not as a gift. AG Rutledge concluded Article 12 § 5 of the Arkansas Constitution bars Garland County from donating AWIN radios to the Hot Springs Village Property Owners' Association because the POA i…
Did the Arkansas AG decide whether Act 882 of 2015 applies retroactively to undo earlier Malvern annexations?
No decision. AG Rutledge declined to answer because the same questions were already pending in City of Malvern v. City of Rockport, and her office's standing policy is not to opine on matters before t…
Are fire-protection services provided to an Arkansas city automatically 'in kind,' and can the city charge the fire station rent?
Two answers. AG Rutledge concluded that fire-protection services delivered under an Ark. Code Ann. § 14-53-101 contract are not 'in kind' as a matter of state law, although a particular contract might…
Does a small Arkansas first-class city violate the federal Voting Rights Act by electing some council members at large and others by ward?
Not necessarily. AG Rutledge concluded that a mixed at-large and ward voting system in a first-class Arkansas city is not a per-se Voting Rights Act violation. Vote-dilution claims demand a fact-inten…
Does an Arkansas county have to get quorum-court approval before signing an ordinary office-copier lease?
Probably no. AG Rutledge opined that an ordinary office-copier rental is not the type of interest-bearing capital-finance debt Amendment 78 and the Local Government Short-Term Financing Obligations Ac…
Can volunteer committee members violate Delaware's open-meetings law by discussing and deciding a request over email instead of at a public meeting?
Yes, according to this opinion. Three of five members of a Village of Arden community-center committee exchanged emails and reached a consensus decision to deny a resident's parking-lot request, and t…
When does a Texas search warrant affidavit become a public record?
The AG read the words literally. Article 18.01(b) says the affidavit 'is public information if executed.' The AG concluded a court would likely hold that an affidavit is 'executed' when it is sworn to…
Can a Texas school district's illegal homestead exemption repeal change its state funding?
The AG said no. In 2015 the Legislature froze local option homestead exemptions at their 2014 level and barred school districts from repealing or reducing them (Tax Code 11.13(n-1)). The education com…
Why did the Arkansas AG reject Mary Berry's second 2017 recreational-marijuana ballot title?
Rejected. AG Rutledge declined certification of Mary Berry's second 2017 recreational-marijuana proposal. The revised version retained the same two ambiguities the AG had flagged two weeks earlier (Op…
In 2017, was Tennessee's bill letting assessors presume mobile homes attached to real property are residential constitutional?
Mostly yes, with a limit. The AG concluded HB 768/SB 907 was consistent with Article II, Section 28 only when applied to property with no more than one rental unit. The Tennessee Constitution requires…
Can Texas deposit sales-tax money into the highway fund after the fiscal year ends?
The AG said yes, through substantial compliance. Article VIII, section 7-c(a) of the Texas Constitution tells the Comptroller to deposit up to $2.5 billion of net sales-tax revenue into the state high…
When a West Virginia police officer suspects someone working in the state may be present unlawfully, what can the officer actually do without risking a federal civil rights lawsuit?
Going to a workplace and demanding ID from workers based only on suspicion of unlawful presence will likely violate the Fourth Amendment under *Santos v. Frederick County* (4th Cir. 2013), exposing th…
In Tennessee, who can legally perform microneedling and microblading on a client?
A licensed aesthetician cannot do either at a cosmetology shop or a medical spa because the procedures affect the dermis. Microneedling at a medical spa requires the physician/nurse exemption in Tenn.…
Does the Connecticut Constitution require the Education Cost Sharing formula to weight a town's ability to pay 90% on property wealth and 10% on income?
No specific weighting is required. The Connecticut Supreme Court (Horton III) demanded that the state move toward equalizing educational opportunity but left the specific formula to the legislature, w…
Why did the Arkansas AG reject Barry Emigh's Fairplay Holdings casino-gambling amendment?
Rejected. AG Rutledge declined Barry Emigh's casino amendment, his seventh submission of essentially the same proposal. Two threshold problems prevented review: the proposal did not specify how the 'F…
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