State AG Opinions
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Can a 501(c)(3) nonprofit give away college football tickets as door prizes at a fundraiser without breaking Arkansas gambling law?
Yes, if attendees aren't paying anything specifically to win the tickets. If they pay just to attend the event and the door prize is a free drawing among attendees, that's not gambling. If they pay fo…
When a prosecutor needs probation supervision records (like a failed drug screen) to prove a probation revocation, does West Virginia Trial Court Rule 44.01 require the probation officer to get a written court order before turning the records over?
No. Trial Court Rule 44.01 covers third-party requests for confidential probation records, not discovery owed to counsel in an active revocation proceeding. Probation officers must turn over supervisi…
When U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi issued Order 6370-2025 in August 2025 vesting DEA Administrator Terry Cole with all powers of the DC Chief of Police, did MPD officers have to start obeying Cole?
No. The Bondi Order was unlawful. Section 740 of the Home Rule Act lets the President direct the Mayor to provide MPD services for federal purposes during emergencies; it does not let the President or…
When can a New Mexico racetrack casino legally have its gaming machines on, and does it have to set aside money for racing purses?
A racetrack casino can run gaming machines only on days the racetrack is conducting live or simulcast horse races, up to 18 hours per day and 112 hours per week (with the week resetting Tuesday 8:00 a…
Can two proposed New Mexico hydrogen projects that produce hydrogen from natural gas qualify for grants from the state Energy Transition Economic Development Assistance Fund, which the statute reserves for projects 'unrelated to fossil fuel development or use'?
No. Both projects propose to use steam-methane reforming with natural gas as the feedstock. Natural gas is a fossil fuel under any ordinary definition, and the Fund's enabling statute, Section 62-18-1…
In South Carolina, is it a crime to publish the name of an alleged sexual assault victim even if the assault was never reported to police?
Yes. South Carolina § 16-3-730 makes publishing the name of any victim of criminal sexual conduct, alleged or actual, a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $1,000 fine or three years in prison. The AG f…
Is Arizona's Proposition 308, which gives in-state tuition to students without lawful immigration status who graduated from an Arizona high school, consistent with federal law?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that Proposition 308 satisfies the federal carve-out in 8 U.S.C. § 1621(d), which lets states extend public benefits to noncitizens not lawfully present through a s…
Does an old Kansas city-school joint recreation commission have to update its membership rules to match the current state statute?
No. The Attorney General concluded that because the Independence/U.S.D. 446 joint recreation commission's membership rules matched state law when the commission was created in 1979, K.S.A. 12-1926(b)'…
Does HIPAA let a Kansas hospital refuse a law enforcement subpoena for medical records?
No. The Attorney General concluded that once a law enforcement subpoena or court order meets HIPAA's procedural requirements, Kansas healthcare providers are legally obligated to disclose the protecte…
When can a county commission go into closed executive session, and what has to be in the meeting notice?
Notice of every anticipated executive session must be in the public meeting agenda. Once in executive session, the discussion must actually fit one of the narrow statutory exceptions (here, attorney c…
A federal court in Texas struck down the federal ban on home distilling. Does that mean Arkansas's ban on home stills is also unenforceable?
No. The Texas decision applied only to the federal ban and only to the parties in that case. Arkansas's law against owning, possessing, or transporting illicit stills is a state law based on Arkansas'…
Is Arkansas's loitering law (the version updated in 2023) constitutional, and can police give tickets to people who hang around on a sidewalk or roadway?
The 2023 version is presumed constitutional and likely survives First Amendment challenge because it's content-neutral and narrowly targets harassing, alarming, or traffic-blocking conduct. Police off…
If a bank or brokerage holding my retirement savings collapses, can the bank's creditors take my money to pay the bank's debts?
Mostly no, but not absolutely. Under Arkansas's UCC Article 8, your financial assets at a brokerage are not property of the brokerage. In an insolvency, federal law (the Securities Investor Protection…
Can a Delaware municipality wait two years to produce meeting minutes from a rezoning vote?
Partial violation. The Delaware AG ruled the City of Rehoboth Beach violated FOIA by failing to maintain and produce meeting minutes from a June 16, 2023 rezoning vote for over two years. But the AG c…
Can the Arkansas AG review whether a police department properly redacted call-for-service and incident reports under FOIA?
Not under the special opinion-request statute the requester invoked. That statute (A.C.A. § 25-19-105(c)(3)(B)(i)) only lets the AG opine on personnel records and employee-evaluation records. Call-for…
Is PrizePicks' single-player daily fantasy sports game illegal under West Virginia's sports wagering law, or does the statute's exclusion for 'Daily Fantasy Sports' protect it?
Maybe, and the AG could not give a definitive answer. The single-player game does meet West Virginia's statutory definition of 'sports wagering' because it accepts wagers on individual athletes' perfo…
Does an Arizona police officer who draws blood during a DUI stop need medical malpractice insurance?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a DUI blood draw is forensic evidence collection, not a medical procedure, and that a law enforcement officer trained in Arizona's Law Enforcement Phlebotomy Pr…
Can a Delaware vehicle owner use FOIA to obtain their own toll-violation history and toll-payment records from DelDOT?
No. The Delaware AG ruled DelDOT properly denied a vehicle owner's FOIA request for her own toll-violation history and toll-payment records. The records are 'motor vehicle records' protected by 21 Del…
Can a Tennessee qualified electronic monitoring provider also own, operate, or work for a professional bail bondsman, given that the legislature passed two laws in 2025 that seem to clash on the question?
From July 1, 2025 through December 31, 2025, no. Public Chapter 253 imposes an unqualified ban on a professional bondsman owning, operating, directing, or being an employee or agent of a qualified ele…
Can a Mississippi state agency add a third-party processing fee on top of regulatory fees when users pay online, or does that count as raising the fee without statutory authority?
Yes. Section 27-104-33 expressly allows a Mississippi state agency to assess users a processing fee, paid directly to a third-party vendor, on top of statutory regulatory fees. The user pays the full …
What fiscal impact did Missouri approve for Spencer Toder's initiative petition 2026-070?
The approved summary reported an unknown impact on Southeast Missouri State University, at least $427,516 in annual attorney general operating costs, and possible Legal Expense Fund costs above $1 mil…
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-109?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-109 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-108?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-108 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-107?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-107 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Under Kentucky's Senate Bill 181, how can public school teachers and volunteers text or message students, and what are the limits?
Senate Bill 181 (KRS 160.145) requires every Kentucky public school district to designate a 'traceable communication system' as the only way its employees and volunteers may electronically communicate…
Does a school board committee violate Delaware FOIA when it discusses an unrelated proposed policy that wasn't on the meeting agenda?
Yes. The Delaware AG ruled that the Christina School District's Policy Review Committee violated FOIA at its July 1, 2025 meeting by discussing a proposed new policy on board-presidency qualifications…
When you appeal a California sales tax or income tax bill to the Office of Tax Appeals, can the OTA panel decide that a tax regulation conflicts with the governing statute and refuse to apply that regulation to your case?
Yes. OTA panels can evaluate whether applying a tax regulation to a taxpayer's circumstances conflicts with the governing statute, and if so, decline to apply the regulation to that taxpayer. The pane…
Can a police officer get her own body-camera-review evaluation forms from her department under FOIA, even though those forms are normally exempt from release to the public?
Yes. The FOIA has a special rule (A.C.A. § 25-19-105(c)(2)) that gives a public employee a right to her own personnel records and evaluation records, even when those records would otherwise be exempt …
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-106?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-106 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-105?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-105 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-104?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-104 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-103?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-103 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Can the Spartanburg City Council relocate or demolish the downtown Bicentennial clock tower without legislative approval?
Probably not. If the 1976 Spartanburg Bicentennial clock tower qualifies as a Heritage Act monument or memorial on public property (a fact-specific call), only the South Carolina General Assembly can …
Whose interpretation of the 2023 bail-bond premium rules controls in South Carolina, the Attorney General's or the Department of Insurance's?
The Attorney General modified its earlier opinion to defer to the South Carolina Department of Insurance's reading of Section 38-53-170(e) on bond premiums. Bail bondsmen and runners should follow the…
Can a Delaware resident use FOIA to get police incident reports and service-call summaries about their own home and neighborhood?
No. The Delaware AG ruled the Delaware State Police properly denied a resident's FOIA request for police incident reports and service-call summaries about her own home and surrounding community. The i…
If an electronic deed was notarized out of state, who has to certify the paper copy filed with a Kansas register of deeds?
The same notarial officer who executed the notarial certificate in the original electronic record, even if that notary acted in another state, must be the one who certifies that a printed (tangible) c…
If my Oklahoma property is sold at tax sale for more than I owed in delinquent taxes, do I get the leftover money, and how long do I have to claim it?
Yes, you get any excess. Section 3131(D) requires the county to hold leftover proceeds for you for one year after the sale. The U.S. Supreme Court's 2023 Tyler v. Hennepin decision struck down a Minne…
Can a part-time Tennessee general sessions and juvenile court judge in one county also serve as an appointed juvenile magistrate in a different county?
Likely no. Article VI, Section 7 of the Tennessee Constitution forbids judges of inferior courts from holding any other 'office of trust or profit.' Under the controlling Frazier v. Elmore precedent, …
What happens to a South Carolina commissioner whose six-month holdover period expires before a successor is appointed, and can their votes still count?
Once a South Carolina commissioner holds over past the statutory six-month limit, the seat is legally vacant and should be filled. The commissioner becomes a de facto officer; their votes still count,…
Can a Delaware school district redact parent names from special education settlement agreements released under FOIA?
No violation. The Delaware AG ruled Indian River School District did not violate FOIA when it redacted parent names from six special-education settlement agreements before producing them to a News Jou…
If a public agency hires me, can someone get my whole job application (resume, cover letter, references) under FOIA?
Yes, with redactions. Your application, resume, and cover letter are personnel records subject to release. Personal information (date of birth, SSN, contact info) is redacted. Your prior salaries from…
What does it take to get a proposed Arkansas constitutional amendment's popular name and ballot title approved by the AG before signatures can be collected?
The popular name has to clearly identify the measure. The ballot title must accurately describe the measure and (under Act 602 of 2023) be written at an eighth-grade reading level on the Flesch-Kincai…
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-102?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-102 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-101?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-101 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-100?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-100 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-099?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-099 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-098?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-098 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-097?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-097 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-096?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-096 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-095?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-095 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-094?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-094 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-093?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-093 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Can South Carolina's Board of Paroles and Pardons grant a pardon for a crime that has already been expunged, what counts as a quorum, and when does a social gathering of board members trigger the open-meetings law?
An expunged conviction can still be pardoned. The seven-member board needs four members for a quorum; three-member panels can decide most parole matters but probably not pardon applications. A purely …
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-092?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-092 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-091?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-091 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-090?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-090 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-089?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-089 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-088?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-088 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-087?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-087 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
Did Missouri approve the form of Jamie Howard's initiative petition 2026-086?
Yes. The attorney general approved petition 2026-086 as to form, but the secretary of state retained final authority to approve or reject it, and the opinion did not decide substantive sufficiency.
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