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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Does a Texas community college's service area grow when it teaches courses outside its assigned territory?
Texas law assigns each junior (community) college district a fixed 'service area,' a defined territory that matters for things like real-property powers, annexation, and reduced tuition. The Alvin Com…
What did Idaho's AG say about the 'Idaho Judicial Accountability Act of 2006' ballot initiative, the second JAIL-style judicial-accountability proposal aimed at Idaho?
The AG concluded the proposal would create the 'Idaho Judicial Accountability Commission' as a fourth branch of government, independent of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, which is p…
Can a Delaware citizen force a school district to create a new report instead of just handing over the underlying records?
No. The opinion found that once a school district hands over all the underlying documents responsive to a records request, Delaware's FOIA does not require it to also compile or reformat that data int…
Can the Maine Legislature amend or override a school funding law that voters approved by citizen initiative?
The AG concluded the Legislature had constitutional authority to amend or repeal a citizen-initiated law and that P.L. 2005, c. 2's five-year phase-in toward the 55% state-share goal was a lawful exer…
Can a state agency that makes student loans (the Georgia Student Finance Authority) accept electronically signed promissory notes from student borrowers, or does the requirement that promissory notes be 'negotiable instruments' force the use of paper documents with wet signatures?
Yes, electronic promissory notes are valid here. Georgia's Electronic Records and Signatures Act (O.C.G.A. § 10-12-4) generally allows electronic signatures, but excludes 'negotiable instruments.' A n…
Could a Maine town commit its 2005 property taxes before a new homestead-exemption law took effect, and could it later have to redo those commitments retroactively?
The AG advised that municipalities could not apply the increased homestead exemption before P.L. 2005, ch. 2 took effect, but the safest approach was to delay commitment until the act became effective…
Can a Texas county force a justice of the peace to use the county's collection company for unpaid court fines?
Brazoria County's commissioners court hired a private attorney to collect overdue justice-court fines, fees, and costs (with a 30% collection fee under Code of Criminal Procedure article 103.0031), an…
Does working as a prosecutor in another state count toward a Texas assistant prosecutor's longevity pay?
No. The opinion concluded that time spent working as an assistant prosecutor for a district attorney's office in another state does not count toward the four years of lifetime service credit Texas Gov…
Can a Texas appraisal review board schedule a property tax protest hearing before the property owner has filed a written protest?
No. The opinion concluded that an appraisal review board has no authority to schedule a hearing on a property tax appraisal protest, or to notify the property owner of a hearing date, until the proper…
Does showing Maine's Circuit Breaker property tax program as a 'tax expenditure' rather than a General Fund appropriation violate the state constitution's appropriations clause?
The AG concluded that listing the Circuit Breaker (Maine Residents Property Tax) program as a 'tax expenditure' deducted from total revenue rather than as a General Fund appropriation did not violate …
Could Vermont's nineteenth-century abortion statute, 13 V.S.A. § 101, be applied to physician assistants and advanced practice nurses, or only to people without medical training?
The statute did not apply to licensed physicians, osteopaths, physician assistants, or advanced practice nurses if the procedure was within their approved scope of practice. It could be applied to peo…
Can Maine sell its future lottery revenues for an upfront payment without voter approval, and could the state retirement system buy the resulting bonds?
The AG concluded the Legislature could authorize the sale of future lottery revenues without voter approval if the transaction was structured so it did not pledge the State's full faith and credit, ty…
Does a Texas funeral home need a signed cremation authorization form if the deceased already chose cremation in a prepaid funeral contract?
No. The opinion concluded that when a person who bought a prepaid funeral contract already specified in that contract that their remains be cremated, the funeral establishment does not also need a sep…
Can a Delaware zoning board use its written case decisions as its meeting minutes, and can it charge $4 a page for a hearing transcript?
No to both, under the law as it stood in 2005. The AG found the Rehoboth Beach Board of Adjustment violated FOIA by not posting a complete agenda seven days ahead of a meeting, by relying on its writt…
Does federal securities law stop the Texas Comptroller from selling unclaimed, unregistered stock at public sale?
No, generally. The opinion concluded that the Texas Comptroller is not acting as a securities 'underwriter' under federal law when she sells unclaimed, unregistered shares of stock that have escheated…
Could a Rockland County village dissolve its police department on a permissive referendum, or did a 1936 special state law force the question to a mandatory referendum?
Mandatory referendum. Chapter 524 of the Laws of 1936 is a special, county-specific statute requiring a mandatory referendum to abolish a police department in any Rockland County village. The 1972 rec…
Can a New York county apply its anti-nepotism rule to a county clerk's pick of her own deputy, even though the clerk is elected and has state-law authority to appoint deputies?
Yes, the policy applies. The County Clerk's authority to appoint deputies under County Law § 526 does not put her above generally applicable county rules. Just as the common-law rule against incompati…
Can a Texas commissioners court take a vehicle away from one county office and give it to another department?
Yes, with a limit. The opinion concluded a commissioners court may adopt a county budget that reallocates a county vehicle, like one previously assigned to the district attorney's office, to a differe…
Can someone serve as both a Texas school district trustee and a director of an improvement district that covers the same area?
No. The opinion concluded that, because the East Montgomery County Improvement District's boundaries match the New Caney Independent School District's, and both bodies retain meaningful authority to t…
Does a Texas deputy constable automatically lose their job if indicted for a felony?
No. The opinion concluded that, unlike a deputy sheriff (whose appointment is automatically revoked by statute on indictment for a felony), Local Government Code sections 85.003 and 86.011 do not auto…
Can a Delaware town call a rushed special meeting to fire its solicitor if the agenda just says "Town Solicitor"?
No, under the law as it stood in 2005. The AG found the Town of Frederica violated FOIA when it called a special meeting on three days' notice to vote out its Town Solicitor without stating why the no…
Can a county marshal or deputy marshal in Georgia operate a speed detection device (radar or lidar) and pull drivers over for speeding?
No, not without a separate, specific local law granting that authority. County marshals and their deputies are constables for magistrate courts, not general-jurisdiction peace officers. Under O.C.G.A.…
If I file one application to amend my New York pistol permit to add two new handguns and remove one old one, do I pay a single amendment fee or one fee per change?
One fee per amendment, not per gun. Penal Law § 400.00(14) authorizes a $3 fee 'for each amendment' to a firearms license. Section 400.00(9) lets one amendment add 'one or more such weapons' and cance…
Can a Texas city pay a private developer from a tax increment fund for work that wasn't competitively bid?
Only in limited circumstances. The opinion concluded a tax increment fund is a 'municipal fund' under Local Government Code chapter 252, so chapter 252's competitive bidding rules can apply to it. If …
Can a Texas city give a new tax abatement for equipment added to a site that already got a 10-year abatement?
Yes, according to this 2005 opinion. A prior ten-year tax abatement on specific business personal property did not bar a municipality from separately abating different personal property added later at…
Can village constables in a New York village run sirens or red and white flashing lights on the village-owned cars they drive while on duty?
No. Village constables cannot operate vehicles equipped with sirens or red and white flashing lights. Under VTL § 375, those devices are reserved for 'authorized emergency vehicles,' which include 'po…
During a local emergency, can a New York town supervisor close a county road inside town limits and order the county's ambulance dispatcher to switch ambulance companies?
Two answers. (1) Yes, a town supervisor may declare a local emergency and issue orders affecting property owned by another government inside the town's borders (Executive Law § 24 makes no distinction…
Does a Delaware city council violate open meetings law by holding a properly noticed meeting at an unusual time, place, or without a tape recording?
No, under the law as it stood in 2005. The AG found the New Castle City Council did not violate FOIA by holding two properly noticed budget meetings at an unusual day, time, and location, without an e…
Must NC DMV redact personal information from accident reports under the federal Drivers Privacy Protection Act, and what about local law enforcement copies and tax records?
Yes for DMV-released accident reports. The AG concluded DMV must redact DPPA-protected personal information before releasing accident reports. Local law enforcement agencies, however, were not directl…
When does a South Dakota felon get the right to vote back: at release from prison, at the end of the original court sentence, or at parole completion? Does a suspended imposition of sentence count as a conviction that takes away voting rights? What does a former inmate actually have to do to register again?
Voting rights come back when the full sentence is discharged, not when the inmate walks out the prison gate. A suspended imposition of sentence does not count as a conviction at all (because the court…
If a newspaper files a Public Information Act request for a Maryland fire department's ambulance dispatch record, does the medical information in that record have to be released, and can a parent whose parental rights were legally terminated authorize its release?
The medical details must be withheld, but the identity of who was transported can be released. The opinion concluded a Fire Department ambulance dispatch record is not a 'medical record' under Marylan…
In a New York county that hasn't adopted a charter, can the board of supervisors appoint a county manager to a four-year term when most supervisors only serve two-year terms?
No. Under the common-law 'term limits rule,' a governing board acting in its governmental capacity cannot bind its successors. Appointing a county manager is a governmental act. The exceptions (a clea…
Can a New York village (or town) write a local law letting cars park closer to a crosswalk or stop sign than state law allows, to free up downtown parking?
Yes. Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1202(a)(2)(b) and (c) lets a local government with parking-regulation authority post 'official signs, markings or parking meters' setting 'a different distance' from a c…
If council members pass a critical letter around and sign it one by one, does that count as an illegal secret meeting under Delaware's FOIA?
Yes, under the law as it stood in 2005. The AG found the Town of Smyrna Town Council violated FOIA when one council member drafted a letter criticizing a fellow member and, one-on-one, showed it to an…
If a lender presents a satisfaction-of-mortgage certificate but the county clerk's records don't show the lender as the last recorded assignee, can the clerk mark the mortgage discharged?
No. Under Real Property Law § 321(1), a county clerk may mark a mortgage 'discharged' only when presented with a satisfaction certificate signed by the mortgagee or the last assignee of record (or the…
Could a Texas county officer close his office and still pay employees for a day the Governor declared an official day of mourning?
Yes, according to this 2005 opinion. An elected Texas county officer had authority to close his own office and give employees the day off, as long as the closure served a public purpose, and the count…
Can an out-of-state vendor's contract with a Texas county use another state's law to override Prompt Payment Act late fees?
No, according to this 2005 opinion. A Texas county's implied authority to negotiate contract terms does not extend to a choice-of-law clause that imports another state's law to override or negate chap…
Can a Texas county cremate a deceased pauper's remains instead of burying them?
Yes, according to this 2005 opinion. Health and Safety Code section 694.002 lets a commissioners court dispose of a deceased pauper's remains by donation, cremation, or burial, and section 691.023(b),…
Does a Texas school employee's vacation-time payout count toward Teacher Retirement System pension benefits?
No, according to this 2005 opinion. Even if an employment contract labels a payment for accumulated vacation time as salary, Government Code section 822.201 excludes payments for unused vacation from …
Does soliciting bail bond business inside a jail count as a crime of moral turpitude in Texas?
No, according to this 2005 opinion. A bail bond surety convicted of illegally soliciting business inside a police station, jail, or detention facility did not commit a crime of moral turpitude, so the…
Can Texas seize the profits when a death row inmate sells his artwork online?
It depends on facts this opinion did not resolve. The Code of Criminal Procedure lets the state forfeit income from selling property whose value was increased by notoriety from a conviction, but wheth…
Can a Texas city loosen the International Residential Code when it adopts local building code amendments?
Yes, according to this 2005 opinion. Local Government Code section 214.212(c)(1) lets a municipality adopt local amendments to the International Residential Code without limiting those amendments to o…
Can the Texas Commission on Fire Protection pay for a firefighter's room and board while attending training school?
Yes, according to this 2005 opinion. The Commission's authority to set guidelines for scholarship amounts implicitly lets it treat room and board as an integral part of a Fire Department Emergency Pro…
Can two Texas county road commissioners share one road crew across their precincts?
No, according to this 2005 opinion. Under the ex officio road commissioner system, each commissioner's hiring and supervisory authority is limited to his own precinct, so two commissioners cannot join…
Can the Texas Railroad Commission use the Oil Field Cleanup Fund to clean up a commercial waste disposal site?
Yes, according to this 2005 opinion. The Railroad Commission may use the Oil Field Cleanup Fund to plug abandoned wells, remediate well or lease sites, and even clean up commercial disposal sites not …
What does Delaware AG Opinion 2005-01-13-test (test) say?
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Can a Delaware city keep executive session minutes secret when they cover a city solicitor's pay instead of a city employee's?
No, under the law as it stood in 2005. The AG found the City of Newark properly kept confidential the portion of its executive session minutes discussing the City Secretary's raise, since she is a pub…
Does the Texas Permanent School Fund need a legislative appropriation to cover management fees on mutual funds it invests in?
No, according to this 2005 opinion. When a mutual fund or investment company deducts its management fee straight from the fund's own assets, that fee is part of the investment itself, not an 'expense …
Does the Texas electrical licensing exemption for industrial plants cover contract electricians who aren't direct employees of the plant?
This 2005 opinion declined to say. The AG concluded the exemption's key terms, 'person' and 'private industrial business,' are ambiguous and vague, and whether a specific worker counts as an 'employee…
Does a Texas physician have to report a pregnant patient's illegal drug use as child abuse?
No, according to this 2005 opinion. Even though a 2003 law expanded the definition of 'individual' to include an unborn child for wrongful-death and certain criminal statutes, that expanded definition…
Can the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality raise the lead cleanup level at just one contaminated site without changing its statewide rule?
No, according to this 2005 opinion. TCEQ's own rule sets a fixed 500 parts-per-million cleanup standard for lead in residential soil statewide, with no built-in variance, so applying a looser standard…
Does Maryland's Open Meetings Act require a school board to hold public hearings on employee discipline appeals?
The opinion concluded that a county school board's hearing on an employee's appeal of a superintendent's adverse personnel action was a 'quasi-judicial function' exempt from the Open Meetings Act, so …
Can a single New York village trustee, acting alone, order the village clerk to keep and publish minutes of board meetings?
No. Under Village Law §§ 4-400(1)(e) and 4-402, the mayor (not the board or an individual trustee) supervises the village clerk's day-to-day duties, including taking and publishing minutes. A trustee …
Can Texas deny a professional or occupational license to someone who refuses to give their social security number for religious reasons?
Yes, according to this 2005 opinion. Requiring a social security number on a license application is a neutral, generally applicable rule tied to child support enforcement, so it does not violate free …
If a Maryland child's biological parent had their parental rights legally terminated before the child died, does that parent still outrank the child's guardian in deciding whether to donate the child's organs?
No, the guardian outranks that parent. The opinion concluded that a biological parent whose parental rights were terminated as part of a guardianship proceeding no longer counts as a 'parent' with pri…
Can a Delaware school board stop a citizen from naming specific employees during the public comment period of an open meeting?
No, according to this opinion, at least not just because a personnel topic is involved. The AG found that once a public body opens the floor for public comment, it creates a forum where it cannot sile…
Can a sheriff refuse to accept a bail bond signed by an individual surety's attorney-in-fact instead of the surety personally?
Yes, according to this 2005 opinion. In a county without a bail bond board, article 17.08(4) of the Code of Criminal Procedure requires a bail bond to be signed personally by the surety, so a sheriff …
Does a Texas-licensed engineer have to place a Texas seal on plans for a project that will be built outside Texas?
Yes, according to this 2004 opinion. Section 1001.401 of the Occupations Code requires an engineer's seal on every plan, specification, plat, or report issued under a Texas engineering license, with n…
Who issues the New York fireworks-display permit when the show happens on land owned by a state regulating district inside a town?
The town, city, or village in which the land sits. Penal Law § 405.00 makes the local municipality the 'permit authority' for fireworks displays, not the property owner. Neither the Regulating Distric…
What penalties may a New York village impose for zoning violations, including for repeat offenders and for landlords who profit from illegal multi-family occupancy?
A village may impose both civil and criminal penalties for zoning violations under Municipal Home Rule Law § 10(4)(b). Criminal penalties must align with Penal Law classifications (violation, misdemea…
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