Kentucky Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Kentucky, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Can a Kentucky city annex a strip of road or land because its utility lines run through it?
Yes, if the utility lines already exist. The Attorney General concluded that a city's existing gas, water, and sewer lines running through a corridor of land are a real, present municipal purpose suff…
Can a Kentucky county magistrate also serve as a certified court security officer?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a county magistrate and a certified court security officer are functionally incompatible under the common law, so one person may not hold both. A court security…
Can a Kentucky sheriff use court security officers to transport newly arrested prisoners to jail?
Yes, under the facts. The Attorney General concluded that if the fiscal court has designated the Spencer County Sheriff as the prisoner transportation officer under KRS 441.510(4)(c), the sheriff may …
Can a Kentucky mayor or council member take the oath of office over video?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the oath of office required by KRS 62.010 may be administered either in person or by virtual means. The statute is silent on how the oath must be given, and th…
Is Kentucky's 100-foot electioneering ban measured from the polling place door or from the end of the line of voters?
From the entrance. The Attorney General concluded that Kentucky's 100-foot electioneering ban in KRS 117.235(3)(a) is measured from the entrance to the polling place, not from wherever the line of wai…
Can a Kentucky domestic relations commissioner also serve as an elected city commissioner?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that serving as a domestic relations commissioner is not incompatible with holding the office of city commissioner. A domestic relations commissioner is treated lik…
Can a Kentucky city let restaurants keep the restaurant tax they collect instead of paying it to the tourist commission?
No. The Attorney General concluded that Harrodsburg's Resolution 2020-03-23(a), which told restaurants to keep the restaurant tax they collected for March and April 2020 instead of turning it over to …
Could Kentucky order religious schools to close during COVID if they followed social distancing and hygiene guidelines?
No. The Attorney General concluded that during the COVID-19 emergency the Governor, the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, and other state and local officials could not order religiously affiliat…
Who hires the head of the Kentucky State Fair Board and the Fish and Wildlife commissioner, the board or the governor's cabinet?
The boards do. The Attorney General concluded that under KRS 247.130 the State Fair Board alone appoints its president and CEO and sets that person's compensation, and under KRS 150.061 the Fish and W…
Can a Kentucky fiscal court refuse to pay the CPI raise for elected county officials?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the Fulton County Fiscal Court may not decline to pay the Consumer Price Index salary increase for its elected county officials. KRS 64.5275 requires the Depart…
Did Kentucky's COVID order against utility shutoffs stop a water company from disconnecting a meter someone turned on without permission?
No. The Attorney General concluded that Louisville Water Company would not violate Governor Beshear's executive order suspending utility disconnections if it shut off a water meter that had been turne…
Is a Kentucky utility board member's resignation effective if the mayor refuses to accept it?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a member of the Glasgow Electric Plant Board who tendered his resignation remained on the board because the mayor refused to accept it and never appointed a rep…
When did laws passed in Kentucky's 2020 legislative session take effect?
July 15, 2020. The Attorney General concluded that, under Section 55 of the Kentucky Constitution, most legislation passed in the 2020 Regular Session took effect on Wednesday, July 15, 2020, ninety f…
Can a Kentucky governor undo a board appointment after the Senate confirms it, by declaring the order void?
No. The Attorney General concluded that Executive Order 2020-178, which purported to rescind the appointments of Fish and Wildlife Commissioners Karl Clinard and Paul Horn, was void and without legal …
Can a Kentucky governor suspend election laws during a state of emergency, or only move the election date?
Only what the statute allows. The Attorney General concluded that during a declared emergency the Governor's election authority is not limited to merely moving the election date but does not extend to…
During COVID-19, did a Kentucky public agency still have to provide a physical location for people to attend a video-teleconference meeting?
Not during the COVID-19 emergency. The Attorney General concluded that under KRS 61.840's 'insofar as is feasible' clause, the public health emergency made it not feasible to require a public agency t…
Does a Kentucky utility regulation that deducts coal severance taxes when comparing fuel bids violate the Commerce Clause?
No. The Attorney General concluded that 807 KAR 5:056 § 3(5), which tells the Public Service Commission to evaluate utility fuel costs after subtracting any coal severance tax 'imposed by any jurisdic…
Does a Kentucky legislator have to abstain from a vote if a family member owns stock in a company the bill could affect?
No. The Attorney General concluded that House Speaker David Osborne was not required by Section 57 of the Kentucky Constitution to abstain from voting on House Bill 137, the 2020 sports-wagering bill,…
Can a Kentucky county adopt a Second Amendment sanctuary resolution without violating the state firearms preemption law?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the proposed Marshall County and McLean County resolutions declaring Second Amendment 'safe harbor' or sanctuary status did not violate KRS 65.870, Kentucky's …
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 afte…
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Attorney general opinions in Kentucky are written by the Kentucky Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.