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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Can a Florida school district hire armed private security guards?
Likely yes, at the district's discretion. The AG advised that section 790.115 generally bans firearms on school grounds but allows them in support of an approved school-sanctioned activity, a term the…
Can my Virginia locality require me to pay for an archaeological survey before I develop my property in a historic district?
Yes, with limits. The opinion concluded that Va. Code § 15.2-2306 allows a Virginia locality, as a condition of developing property in a designated area of known historical or archaeological significa…
If a magistrate issues an emergency protective order giving someone possession of a pet, can the JDR court enforce it by contempt if the other party takes the animal anyway?
Yes. The opinion concluded that a Virginia juvenile and domestic relations district court may use its inherent contempt powers, specifically indirect contempt initiated by a show cause summons, to enf…
When can a Virginia clerk waive estate filing requirements for a small estate, and what counts as enough proof?
The opinion concluded that under Va. Code § 64.2-1302, only a creditor seeking qualification as personal representative needs to have a claim exceeding the value of the estate in order to qualify for …
Can a Virginia city use its zoning ordinance to ban advertising signs on bicycles or bike trailers ridden on public streets?
No, not through zoning. The opinion concluded that the City of Virginia Beach does not have zoning authority to prohibit or regulate advertising signs on bicycles or bicycle trailers ridden on public …
Are the meetings and records of a committee or subcommittee created by an Arkansas state board open to the public under the FOIA?
Records of committees and subcommittees of public bodies are subject to the FOIA across the board. Meetings depend on the committee's makeup and whether it has decision-making authority. Complete subg…
Can the Connecticut Department of Administrative Services (DAS) sign service contracts for state agencies under its own Chapter 58 procurement authority, or does it have to use the personal-service-agreement procedures in Chapter 55a?
Yes, DAS can use Chapter 58. The AG concluded that DAS's contracting authority under Title 4a, Chapter 58 reaches all types of services because § 4a-50(3) defines 'contractual services' broadly with a…
When someone applies for a job with an Arkansas public employer, are their interview scores released to other applicants under the FOIA?
It depends on whether the applicant was successful and whether they were already a public employee. Successful applicants: name and scores released. Unsuccessful applicants who are already public empl…
Under the Arkansas FOIA, must a city release internal complaint records to an employee who is the subject of a harassment complaint while the investigation is still ongoing?
Yes. The subject of a harassment complaint has FOIA access to records about the complaint regardless of whether they are classified as employee-evaluation records, because an employee can always acces…
Can two Washington county commissions hold a joint meeting in person across the county line, or do they have to use video conferencing?
The AG concluded that county commissioners cannot transact county business at a meeting held outside their own county unless a specific statutory exception applies. They can, however, hold a joint mee…
Is a Florida water management district a public entity of the state?
Yes. The AG confirmed that the South Florida Water Management District, created by the Legislature under section 373.069(1)(e), is a political subdivision and public entity of Florida under section 1.…
When can a Florida subdivision common element avoid separate property taxes?
Only when it is a true common element. The AG advised that under section 193.0235, a subdivision parcel escapes separate ad valorem taxation only if it was not sold into private ownership, is designat…
When can a Florida city raise its local business tax (occupational license tax) rates?
Only after meeting the statutory conditions. The AG advised that the Village of Pinecrest could not raise its business tax rates by up to 5% every other year because it never satisfied section 205.053…
Can a Florida public hospital keep its sale-or-lease evaluation secret as a strategic plan?
No. The AG advised that the evaluation a public hospital board must perform under section 155.40(5) before selling or leasing the hospital is not a 'strategic plan' under section 395.3035. The board c…
Can a Florida city use zoning to ban or limit vacation rentals?
No. The AG read section 509.032(7)(b) to let a city regulate vacation rentals but bar any ordinance that prohibits them or limits how long or how often a home is rented, so zoning could not be used to…
When a Virginia constitutional officer dies or resigns and the highest-ranking deputy takes over until a special election, does the deputy have to live in the locality?
No. The opinion concluded that when the powers of a vacant Virginia constitutional office are assumed by the highest-ranking deputy under § 24.2-228.1(B), the deputy need not be a resident of the loca…
Can the Texas psychology board destroy a psychologist's patient records that a court placed in its custody?
The AG concluded that the boxes of a psychologist's patient records a court placed in the custody of the State Board of Examiners of Psychologists are likely not 'state records' under chapter 441 of t…
Can someone with a moral-turpitude misdemeanor become a bail bond surety again after judicial clemency in Texas?
The AG concluded that a person disqualified from acting as a bail bond surety because of a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude can likely act as a surety again if a judge granted 'judicial clemency'…
Is a video recording of a Florida school board meeting a public record?
Likely yes. The AG advised that a video of a school board meeting, made at a board member's direction and intended to perpetuate the discussion, appears to be a public record under Chapter 119, especi…
Can a Texas agency photocopy and keep a police officer's ID when the officer asks to keep their info private?
The AG concluded that section 552.1175 of the Government Code neither requires nor forbids a governmental entity from photocopying the credentials a law enforcement official submits to verify status w…
Can a Texas county juvenile board hire its own full-time in-house attorney instead of relying on the district attorney?
The AG concluded that the Dallas County Juvenile Board could hire an attorney as a full-time, in-house employee to provide legal services to the board and its juvenile department, so long as the board…
If an Arkansas DWI offender already paid the statutory fee for an alcohol treatment program, can the state make them pay it again for an alcohol education program?
No. A person ordered to a treatment program who paid the A.C.A. § 5-65-115 fee for that program cannot be required to pay the same fee a second time for an education program. The Office of Driver Serv…
Can Arlington County put the proposed Columbia Pike streetcar on the ballot as a non-binding advisory referendum?
No. The opinion concluded that Arlington County does not have authority to conduct an advisory referendum regarding the proposed 7.4-mile streetcar system (Columbia Pike and Crystal City segments). Un…
Can Florida tourist development tax money pay for boat ramps and parks?
Generally not for boat ramps. The AG advised that under section 125.0104(5)(a)5., tourist development tax revenue for inland lakes and rivers must relate to the physical preservation of the water body…
Can an Arkansas city pay its outside contract attorney for time spent answering FOIA requests, or does the FOIA forbid it?
The FOIA does not govern what a city pays its outside counsel for FOIA work, as long as those fees are not passed on to the requester. The act regulates what custodians may charge requesters, not what…
Does an Arkansas law requiring consolidated school districts to donate or lease unused buildings to charter schools and other entities apply to districts consolidated before 2013?
No. A.C.A. § 6-21-108(b)(3), enacted in 2013, does not apply retroactively to school districts whose consolidation and two-year vacancy window both predated the statute's effective date. The statute a…
What did the Arkansas AG do with the Arkansas Hemp and Marijuana Amendment ballot title in 2014?
The AG certified the popular name as submitted and substituted a more suitable ballot title. The substituted title kept the proposal's substance while warning voters that the activities remain unlawfu…
Did the Connecticut $3,000 property tax exemption for disabled veterans (§ 12-81(20)) require the veteran to have served during wartime, the way the parallel exemption in § 12-81(19) does?
No. The AG concluded that § 12-81(20) imposes no wartime-service requirement. The text says only that the applicant must have 'served, or is serving' in the armed forces and meet a disability rating o…
Do National Guard firefighters who are classified as state employees have the right to collectively bargain under Delaware law, or only federal law?
Both, according to this opinion. The AG concluded that Delaware National Guard firefighters classified as state employees could use Delaware's Police Officers' and Firefighters' Employment Relations A…
Can a Virginia city refuse a building permit until the landowner dedicates land for street widening and rebuilds the drainage ditch?
Only when the need is generated by the proposed development. The opinion concluded that a Virginia local governing body may require dedication of land for street widening and construction of drainage …
Is a pharmacy a 'health care entity' under Tennessee's physician self-referral law, so that a doctor with an ownership stake in a pharmacy generally cannot send prescriptions there?
Yes. A pharmacy is a health care entity under Tenn. Code Ann. § 63-6-601, so a physician with an investment interest in a pharmacy generally cannot refer patients to that pharmacy unless one of the § …
After a California court struck down that state's teacher-tenure law in Vergara v. State, were Tennessee's teacher-tenure and dismissal statutes also unconstitutional?
No. The AG concluded the Tennessee statutes differed in material ways from the California ones at issue in Vergara. Tennessee has a five-year tenure probation (vs. two), a faster and cheaper dismissal…
Do Tennessee's health-related licensing boards have to follow the state Central Procurement Office's rules when they hand out impaired-professional peer-assistance grants?
Yes. Health-related regulatory boards are not exempt from Title 12 procurement rules or the Central Procurement Office rules, and those rules apply to peer-assistance grant contracts authorized by § 6…
Can I legally drive my four-wheeler on a Tennessee state highway?
Only if you register it as a 'medium speed vehicle' (four-wheeled, top speed 30 to 35 mph, meeting federal safety standards or with helmet and eye protection), have a valid Class D license, and stay o…
Can members of a Tennessee county commission form a Democratic or Republican caucus, and do those caucus meetings have to be open to the public?
Yes, county commissioners can establish partisan caucuses. But if the caucus deliberates on actual county business that the commission has authority to decide, the meeting is a 'meeting' under Tenness…
Can an Arkansas county sheriff's department withhold a 13-year-old letter of reprimand and suspension issued to a deputy just because the underlying incident never became publicly controversial?
No, in the AG's view. Age and lack of public controversy alone are not enough to defeat the compelling-public-interest test for releasing a law enforcement officer's disciplinary record, especially wh…
Are unmarked police cars exempt from tolls in Florida?
No, not by statute. The AG noted that section 338.155 exempts only marked law enforcement vehicles on official business from paying tolls, so unmarked police cars are not covered. The office declined …
Under Arkansas FOIA, can a school district withhold documents that formed the basis for firing a teacher who worked daily with students?
The AG could not rule on the specific Bentonville records but said the documents likely qualified as employee-evaluation records, not just personnel records. If so, the public's compelling interest in…
Can a Tennessee hospital open an off-campus outpatient facility (including a 24/7 ER) without a certificate of need?
Sometimes. Hospitals could provide outpatient diagnostic and therapeutic services off campus, including 24/7 emergency-style care, under § 68-11-209(f) without a separate license, but a free-standing …
After Tennessee's 2014 expansion of the sex-offender 1,000-foot rule, do colleges and universities have to fire a registered offender hired before July 1, 2014?
No. Section 40-39-211(a)(2) regulates the offender's conduct (accepting new residence or new employment), not the employer's. A person already employed before the law took effect is not 'accepting emp…
Can an Arkansas city lower or eliminate its personal property tax while keeping the real property tax the same?
No. Amendment 79, § 4(b) of the Arkansas Constitution required the millage rate on personal property to equal the millage rate on real property in every taxing unit. The City of Benton could not elimi…
How did Tennessee's 2014 changes to arrest-warrant procedure affect security officers, merchants, and warrants already issued?
Chapter 531 created presumptions favoring summonses over warrants when private citizens (not police) seek criminal process, but did not change citizens' or security officers' warrantless arrest author…
Did the Seventh Circuit's 2014 ruling against Indianapolis's adult-bookstore hours rule mean Tennessee's similar restrictions are now unconstitutional?
No. Tennessee sits in the Sixth Circuit, where Richland Bookmart upheld Tennessee's hours-of-operation restrictions under intermediate scrutiny based on the secondary-effects doctrine. The Seventh Cir…
Can an Arkansas public hospital withhold settlement agreements with departing employees as a privacy invasion?
Probably not. The AG had not seen the records, but his office had repeatedly opined that public-entity settlement agreements are personnel records, and that the public's strong interest in settlement …
Does Stamford's local zoning code apply to a state-owned parking garage and adjoining transit-oriented development project that the state plans to lease to a private developer?
Mostly no. The AG concluded that local zoning did not apply to the state-owned parcel where the state would build and own the parking garage, nor to the state-owned parcel that would be leased to a pr…
Does an Arkansas county election board need a unanimous vote to close a polling place that violates the ADA or HAVA?
No, a majority of the three-member county board could close a polling place that violated the ADA or the Help America Vote Act. But designating a replacement site, even just reassigning voters to an e…
Can a Florida police officer also be a city commissioner for another city?
No. The AG advised that a police officer for one city holding a city commissioner seat in another city violates the dual office-holding prohibition in section 5(a), Article II of the Florida Constitut…
Does West Virginia mine safety law require pre-shift examinations of an underground coal mine while the mine is idle and no miners are working underground?
No, with one exception. The AG agreed with the WV Office of Miners' Health, Safety & Training's long-standing position that W. Va. Code § 22A-2-1 et seq. requires a pre-shift examination only within t…
Why did the Arkansas Attorney General reject a citizen-proposed marijuana legalization amendment in 2014?
The AG rejected the second submission of the Arkansas Hemp and Marijuana Amendment because the text contained ambiguities that made an honest ballot title impossible. The licensing-cost language, the …
Does a company running a time-limited eBay-style online auction of property located in a Minnesota county have to hold a Minnesota auctioneer's license?
No. The AG concluded that time-limited online auction sales on platforms like eBay are not the 'business of an auctioneer' under Minn. Stat. ch. 330, and corporate entities cannot be licensed auctione…
Can Illinois election authorities run absentee and early-voting ballots through tabulators before 7:00 p.m. on Election Day, as long as the totals are not uploaded or combined with precinct results until after the polls close?
No. Attorney General Lisa Madigan concluded that running ballots through a tabulator is itself 'counting' under sections 19-8, 20-8, and 19A-25.5 of the Election Code, and the Code requires that those…
Can an Arkansas county lock itself into a 'forever' contract to house city prisoners for free, with no way out unless the city agrees?
No. A county can sign contracts for an indefinite term, but any county interlocal services agreement under A.C.A. § 14-14-910 must allow each party to terminate on six months' written notice. A mutual…
Can Arkansas pay health insurance subsidies for public school employees even though they aren't state employees, and could other groups sue for equal treatment?
Yes for the first question, no for the second. The legislature may direct public funds to any group, including non-state employees, as long as the expenditure serves a primarily public purpose under A…
Could Arkansas's 2014 SJR 7 amendment let the legislature veto Game and Fish Commission or Highway Commission rules?
The AG declined to interpret SJR 7 before the November 2014 vote, consistent with longstanding office policy and Arkansas's bar on declaratory judgments about unenacted measures. He noted the open leg…
If an Arkansas county interlocal agreement leaves out the six-month termination clause, can a party still withdraw on six months' notice?
Yes, if the agreement was silent. The statutory six-month withdrawal right in A.C.A. § 14-14-910(c)(3)(E) is read into a county interlocal agreement that does not address termination. But if the contr…
Can a Texas city sell a building and land sitting in the middle of a city street?
The AG did not resolve the City of Ivanhoe's specific sale, because deciding who actually owned the tract and building in the street turned on factual title questions the opinion process cannot answer…
When should an Arkansas state agency release the records that led to firing an employee?
The AG agreed with the AHTD HR director's decision to release four records connected to a former employee's suspension and termination. Three were employee-evaluation records that met all four statuto…
Are the slot-machine-style 'sweepstakes' games at internet cafes and cyber cafes legal in Colorado, or are they actually illegal gambling dressed up as a phone-card promotion?
They are illegal gambling. The AG concluded that Colorado's sweepstakes statute (§ 6-1-802(10), C.R.S.) by its terms excludes activity that is otherwise unlawful, and that the games at sweepstakes caf…
Does Virginia's 2013 drone moratorium stop a sheriff from flying a single camera-equipped quad copter under a search warrant?
Yes. The opinion concluded that the 2013 General Assembly's Chapter 755 moratorium, which barred state and local law enforcement from using an 'unmanned aircraft system' before July 1, 2015, covered e…
When every seat on an Arkansas city council is empty, can the Governor fill them?
Governor Beebe could appoint enough new aldermen to let the remaining council fill the other seats under A.C.A. § 14-44-104, or he could appoint all the vacancies at once. The power was discretionary,…
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