State AG Opinions
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How does a Tennessee stroke survivor who can't write execute a financial power of attorney?
A Tennessee adult who is impaired (e.g., by stroke) and cannot write may still execute a financial power of attorney by marking an X, by directing a third party to sign on their behalf with witnesses …
Who counts as a 'qualified elector' for a Florida special-district referendum?
In informal, advisory comments, the AG's office read 'qualified electors of the district' to mean only the registered voters of the Spring Lake Improvement District in Highlands County, so only they c…
Can a Florida county hold a property owner responsible for code violations caused by their tenants?
Yes. The AG concluded that the Local Government Code Enforcement Boards Act (Part I, Chapter 162) did not preempt Brevard County from adopting an ordinance defining 'violator' to include owners of pro…
Can a Florida school district hand out its student code of conduct online instead of on paper?
Mostly yes, with a catch. The AG concluded that because section 1006.07(2) does not specify how to distribute the student code of conduct, the Broward County School Board had discretion to choose the …
Who fills a vacancy on a Tennessee county board of education: the county commission, or the school board itself?
Vacancies on a Tennessee county board of education can only be filled by the county legislative body (commission) until a successor is elected, because a county school board member is a 'county office…
Could a Texas city apply a developer's credit for building an oversized water line against sewer impact fees owed by the same development?
Yes. GA-0788 concluded that chapter 395 did not require the credit to stay within the water-fee category, although a city could choose to limit the credit through its ordinance or agreement.
Is a Virginia locality's stormwater charge a tax or a fee, can it be enforced like a tax lien, and can landowners be 'grandfathered' or charged for runoff that originated on someone else's property?
The § 15.2-2114 stormwater charge is a fee, not a tax. The locality can enforce it with liens. Senate Bill 395 didn't delay enforcement. There is no statutory grandfathering, no waiver for impossible-…
Did Georgia's $125 judicial operations fund fee from House Bill 1055 apply to notary appointment certificates, raising the cost from $37 to $162?
Yes. The $125 judicial operations fund fee under O.C.G.A. § 15-21A-6.1(a) applies to 'all other proceedings of a civil nature,' which includes the issuance of certificates of appointment and reappoint…
If I'm over 65 and file a tax deferral, can a property tax loan company still force the sale of my home over unpaid taxes?
No, not while the deferral is in effect. The Attorney General concluded that if an individual age 65 or older properly files a tax deferment under Tax Code section 33.06, a property tax lender holding…
Can a Virginia town pass an ordinance preventing two spouses from holding interrelated elected offices at the same time?
No. The Virginia Constitution sets the qualifications to hold elective office, and the General Assembly has not authorized localities to add a 'no two spouses' restriction. Such a local ordinance woul…
Can the same person serve on both a Texas water utility district board and a community college board of trustees at the same time?
Probably not, but the answer depends on the facts. The Attorney General concluded that holding a seat on the board of the Agua Special Utility District and a seat on the South Texas College District b…
Can Tennessee remove a school board member or withhold state funding from the school district if a board member skips required annual training?
Yes. Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-2-202(a)(5) explicitly lets the Commissioner of Education remove a popularly elected school board member from office for failing to attend the annual training required by the…
Does filing an unfair labor practice complaint with Delaware's labor board count as 'litigation' that lets a public university withhold records under FOIA?
Not clearly enough to win, the AG found. A PERB proceeding has some litigation-like features but no formal right to discovery, and when a public body's claim to the pending-litigation exemption is dou…
Can a Florida notary notarize a signature over live video instead of in person?
In informal comments, the AG's office read section 117.107(9) to require the signer's actual physical presence before the notary, so a live video teleconference would not satisfy the 'presence' requir…
Do TN state agencies have to get local air-pollution permits from cities and counties with certified local programs (Davidson, Hamilton, Knox, Shelby)?
No. Tennessee state agencies are not subject to local air-pollution-control permits, even in counties that operate certified local programs (Davidson, Hamilton, Knox, Shelby). The Tennessee Air Qualit…
Are the meetings of a private economic-development council's committees open to the public under Florida's Sunshine Law?
Yes. The AG concluded that the subcommittees of the Lake County Economic Development Advisory Council, though run by a private nonprofit, had to follow the Government in the Sunshine Law. The county h…
Can Florida cities use local option fuel tax money to pay electric and water bills for street lights and traffic signals?
No. The AG concluded that local option fuel tax (LOFT) revenue under section 336.025 could not be used to pay the operational costs (electricity and water) of running street lights, traffic signals, a…
Do city zoning and land use rules apply to a county fair association's grounds inside the city?
Yes. The AG concluded that the City of Brooksville's land use and zoning ordinances applied to property inside the city occupied and operated by the Hernando County Fair Association. Chapter 616, whic…
After Senator Robert C. Byrd's death in 2010, did the Governor of West Virginia have legal authority to call a special election to fill the rest of his Senate term, and on what timetable?
Yes. The AG concluded that W. Va. Code § 3-10-3, read in light of the Seventeenth Amendment's command that Senate vacancies be filled by election, authorized Governor Manchin to proclaim a special ele…
Can a Virginia city's police department use license plate readers and police vehicles to distrain property and collect delinquent municipal accounts?
No. Virginia police officers have no general authority in civil matters and may not act as collection agents to seize property for unpaid city debts. Distraint must be carried out by the treasurer, sh…
Where does a Virginia circuit court clerk file a foreign spousal-support order that names no specific dollar amount?
Because the foreign judgment did not state a specific monetary amount, the Virginia circuit court clerk may enter it in the judgment docket, the order book, or any other record deemed suitable, in acc…
Do Florida police officers who work 911 dispatch have to be certified as public safety telecommunicators?
Yes, if their duties fit the definition. The AG concluded that under section 401.465(2)(a), as amended by Chapter 2010-188, any public agency employee whose duties include answering, receiving, transf…
What counts as a 'subcounty special district' for Florida's local tourist development tax?
The AG said the phrase 'subcounty special district' in section 125.0104(3)(b) is not defined, so it appears to mean any special district that meets the statute's requirement of embracing all or a sign…
When Washington timber-tax money runs short late in the year, can the county take back what already went to lower-priority school and bond districts and redirect it, or raise the school property tax rate mid-year to make up the gap?
No to both. Once timber excise tax revenues have been distributed quarterly to lower-priority taxing districts under RCW 84.33.081, the county cannot claw the money back to satisfy higher-priority deb…
Is a Tennessee home-foundation 'warranty' against future settlement damage actually unlicensed insurance?
Yes, both. A standalone 'foundation warranty' against future vertical-settlement damage, where the underlying service is just inspection (no repair work), is a contract of insurance under Tennessee la…
Can a New York town's fireworks-permit officer issue a permit for a private (non-public) fireworks display now that Penal Law § 405.00 was amended in 2009, even if the town's local fireworks law has not been updated?
Yes. Penal Law § 405.00 was amended in 2009 to allow permits for displays to municipalities, fair associations, amusement parks, persons, and organizations: eliminating the prior 'public displays only…
Did HB 3646 require my Texas school district to give me both the state raise and my local salary-schedule step increase in 2010-2011?
Yes, both. The Attorney General concluded that under Education Code section 21.402, as amended by House Bill 3646, a district that had adopted a 2008-2009 local salary schedule had to pay an educator …
Does a Texas sheriff have a conflict of interest in accepting bail bonds if his stepson works for the bail bond company?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the conflict-of-interest provisions of Local Government Code section 171.004 do not apply to a sheriff's performance of his statutory bail-bond and forfeiture d…
Can a Florida county require a public hearing before a farmer digs an aquaculture pond on agricultural land?
The office declined to comment directly, citing pending Miami-Dade litigation and the rule against opining on another government's actions. As general guidance, it explained that the Florida Right to …
If a Portsmouth mayor is removed in a recall election, does the city charter control how the vacancy is filled, or does a newly amended state vacancy statute control?
The Portsmouth City Charter controls. Because the charter sets up a special recall procedure that fills the office simultaneously with the recall vote, and the new general state vacancy statute does n…
Do petitioners have to pay a deposit to call a local option alcohol election in a Texas city that sits entirely within one county?
No deposit is required in that situation. The Attorney General concluded that the county must initially pay the expense of holding the first election to legalize, and the first election to prohibit, t…
Can a company be hired as a city's construction manager-at-risk if a related company is already the project's design engineer in Texas?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that neither subsection (c) nor subsection (d) of Local Government Code section 271.118 bars a company from being selected as a construction manager-at-risk on a mu…
Did Virginia's Senate Bill 376 give the Gas and Oil Board power to decide who owns coalbed methane gas?
No. 2010 Senate Bill 376 did not expand the Virginia Gas and Oil Board's authority. The Board still has no power to decide ownership claims among conflicting claimants to gas royalties, to resolve pro…
If Tennessee transferred Department of Safety officers to Revenue, can it later put just those grandfathered officers back under mandatory retirement?
Tennessee can constitutionally bring transferred revenue regulatory agents (formerly Department of Safety officers, now in the Department of Revenue) back under the mandatory retirement age while leav…
Can a Florida fire district link its official website to its chaplain's religious webpage?
It depends on the content. The office advised that a fire district may run a website, including a fire-chaplain page, but only if the page relates to the chaplain's core crisis-support functions and n…
Can a Florida city council member temporarily serve as acting city manager without violating the dual office-holding ban?
Yes, under these facts. The office concluded that the Polk City Charter designated the duties of acting town manager as an ex officio function of city council members, so the vice mayor's temporary se…
Can a Virginia city or county use zoning to require a special use permit for payday loan stores?
Yes. Virginia's zoning enabling statutes (§§ 15.2-2280, 15.2-2286(A)(3)) and the Southland Corp. case let local governing bodies classify payday loan businesses as a special exception or special permi…
Can a Tennessee county mayor veto who the soil conservation district appoints to the county growth-plan coordinating committee?
No. The county mayor cannot block the soil conservation district board's appointment to the county coordinating committee under Tenn. Code Ann. § 6-58-104(a)(1)(E). The mayor has two of their own appo…
How should a Florida property appraiser assess a home damaged by defective Chinese drywall under the 2010 law?
The office offered informal comments rather than a binding opinion. Chapter 2010-170 (section 193.1552, Florida Statutes) requires a property appraiser to lower the assessed value of a single-family h…
Does Oregon's Medical Marijuana Act require a person to be an Oregon resident in order to receive a registry identification card?
No. AG John Kroger advised the Oregon Health Authority that the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act does not impose any residency requirement on registry identification card applicants. The legislature could…
Can a Texas water supply corporation refuse to extend water service to a new home when the subdivision's developer didn't follow its service rules?
It has a choice. The Attorney General concluded that under Water Code section 13.2502(a), when a water supply corporation documents that the subdivision's developer failed to comply with the corporati…
Can a Delaware town charge nearly $2,000 to retrieve a mayor's town-related emails from his home computer under a FOIA request?
Yes, the AG found, since the town had no employee capable of doing that kind of computer forensics work itself. Hiring an outside contractor to clone the hard drive, recover deleted emails, and sort o…
Did Tennessee accidentally legalize pirated movies and post-1972 music in 2009?
No, Tennessee did not accidentally decriminalize piracy. The 2009 amendment to Tenn. Code Ann. § 39-14-139 reflected federal copyright preemption (17 U.S.C. § 301), which bars state prosecution of pir…
What happens when a Florida city commissioner keeps serving after the term expired and no election was held?
The office declined to resolve it, calling these mixed questions of law and fact about local ordinances and recommending the city seek a court ruling. As general guidance, it suggested the city's four…
Does Florida's Sunshine Law apply to a fact-finding committee that only gathers information for a city council?
It depends on what the committee actually does. The Attorney General's office advised that a body created and used strictly for fact-finding, gathering and reporting information with no decision-makin…
Does the Texas law banning transfer-fee deed restrictions wipe out covenants that were already recorded before the law took effect?
No. The Attorney General concluded that Property Code section 5.017(b), which voids deed restrictions and other covenants requiring a fee on a future transfer of residential property, operates prospec…
Could Tennessee constitutionally bar registered sex offenders from living in Board of Regents student housing, including retroactively?
A proposed Tennessee bill barring students who are registered sex offenders from residing in any Board of Regents student housing would apply only to Board of Regents institutions (not the UT system) …
Does serving on the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority count as a public 'office' under Florida's dual office-holding ban?
The office would not give a clean answer. An Ethics Commission member asked whether also sitting on the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority would violate Article II, section 5(a). Because the Authority…
Can a Florida water control district claim roads it maintained under the statutory presumption of dedication?
No. The AG concluded that section 95.361, Florida Statutes, which presumes a road dedicated to the public after four years of continuous government maintenance, applies only to counties, municipalitie…
Can a Florida town dissolve itself through a charter amendment, or only by the statutory dissolution process?
No. The AG concluded that section 165.051, Florida Statutes, sets the exclusive ways to dissolve a Florida municipality: a special act of the Legislature or an ordinance of the governing body approved…
Can a Florida city pause or cut its local business tax outside the every-other-year review?
No. The AG concluded the City of Titusville could not revisit its business-tax reclassification ordinance before the scheduled biennial review or cut individual classifications by more than 5 percent,…
How does a Florida tax collector refund a tax-deed buyer when the property was taxed in error?
The AG concluded that section 197.432(10), Florida Statutes, and Rule 12D-13.057, Florida Administrative Code, govern how a tax collector refunds a tax-deed purchaser when the deed was sold on an impr…
Can a Florida county add its own conditions before a mobile home park is rezoned or redeveloped?
No. Chapter 723, Florida Statutes, preempts local regulation of mobile home parks. The AG concluded a county could not adopt an ordinance imposing extra conditions on redeveloping or rezoning a park o…
Can a Florida county score price along with qualifications when picking an engineering firm under the CCNA?
No, on the first question. The AG concluded the Consultants' Competitive Negotiation Act (section 287.055) is a qualifications-based selection process, and nothing in it lets an agency weigh compensat…
Can a Florida city commissioner or code-enforcement board member also serve as a special magistrate?
No. The AG concluded that a city commissioner, a planning and zoning commission member, a code enforcement hearing officer, or a regional planning commission member with final-action authority all hol…
After the 1976 private act transferred county-chairman judicial powers to Jackson County's General Sessions Court, who has probate jurisdiction there today?
The 1976 private act did transfer all judicial powers of the abolished Jackson County Chairman, including probate jurisdiction, to the General Sessions Court. But Chapter 16 of the Private Acts of 199…
When Tennessee distributes TVA payments-in-lieu-of-taxes to counties by acreage, does TVA-owned underwater land (reservoirs) count toward each county's share?
Yes. When Tennessee distributes the 10% share of TVA payments-in-lieu-of-taxes that is allocated by TVA-owned acreage in each county, the Department of Revenue should count both dry land and inundated…
Can Tennessee automatically extend a wireline carrier's ETC designation to its wireless services without separate FCC or state review?
Likely no. A proposed Tennessee amendment that would automatically extend the TRA's prior designation of a wireline carrier as an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier to that carrier's wireless service…
In Tennessee, who can appoint a courtroom bailiff or court officer authorized to carry a weapon, and what training is required?
The county sheriff appoints bailiffs and court officers, except in Davidson County (Nashville's metropolitan government), where trial judges appoint their own. Deputy sheriffs assigned to courts must …
Do government employees who do locksmithing for their employer need a TN locksmith license, and is the rule different for lockout-only services?
Yes, state and local government employees performing locksmithing services at work need a Tennessee locksmith license. Businesses that only unlock vehicles for their owners (lockout services) are stat…
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