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 city commissioner automatically resign by running for school board?
The Attorney General concluded that the office of trustee of a consolidated school district board is an 'office of profit or trust' under article XI, section 11 of the Texas Constitution. So a home-ru…
Did the 1999 amendments fix Texas's unconstitutional water quality protection zone law?
The Attorney General concluded that the 1999 amendments to section 26.179 of the Water Code did not save the statute. In FM Properties Operating Co. v. City of Austin (2000), the Texas Supreme Court h…
Can a Texas homeowner opt out of HOA deed restrictions changed under chapter 204?
The Attorney General concluded that a property owner cannot use the chapter 201 'exclusion statement' procedure to keep his property out of deed restrictions that a property owners' association added …
Can a Texas economic development corporation spend sales-tax money on a park voters didn't list?
The Attorney General concluded that the Industrial Development Corporation of the City of Sonora was not barred, as a matter of law, from using its section 4B sales and use tax proceeds for a proposed…
Can a Texas county hand its school-land duties to the local school district?
The Attorney General concluded that the Llano County Commissioners Court could not delegate to the Llano Independent School District its authority to sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of the county's …
If a Maine plant changes hands and then closes, does severance pay cover years the employee worked under previous owners?
The Maine AG concluded that under 26 M.R.S.A. § 625-B(2), severance pay is calculated by the employee's total years of work in the establishment, regardless of any change in ownership during that serv…
Can a Dutchess County E-911 senior fire alarm dispatcher also serve on the county fire and safety advisory board and as a volunteer firefighter?
Yes. The AG concluded that the senior fire alarm dispatcher position and membership on the county fire and safety advisory board are compatible: neither is subordinate to the other, the board's duties…
Are the licensing fees collected by the North Carolina Board of Nursing considered 'State funds,' and if so, does that mean Board members must be paid the standard $15-per-day per diem that applies to state board members generally?
Yes and no. The 2001 NC AG opinion concluded that fees the Board of Nursing collects are 'State funds' under the Executive Budget Act, N.C.G.S. § 143-1, because that statute defines State funds to inc…
Could a 2002 Idaho initiative legalize tribal video gaming machines without running afoul of the Idaho Constitution's casino-gambling ban?
The proposed initiative tried to authorize video gaming machines on tribal lands, but the AG concluded the machines, as defined, would almost certainly be treated as 'slot machines' or simulations of …
Do excused medical absences count toward the 90% attendance a Texas student needs to get class credit?
The Attorney General concluded that the 90 percent attendance requirement for class credit in section 25.092 of the Education Code applies to every student, even one who is exempt from compulsory scho…
Can a Texas county pay the employer payroll tax on a county judge's state salary supplement out of the state supplement itself?
The Attorney General concluded that a county could not use a county judge's $10,000 state salary supplement under section 26.006 of the Government Code to pay the employer's share of Social Security a…
Could a Texas felon who received a full pardon legally possess a firearm?
The Attorney General concluded that a felon who received a full, unconditional pardon was not subject to section 46.04 of the Penal Code, the statute that bars a convicted felon from possessing a fire…
Can a Texas district attorney sign a multiyear equipment lease that binds county funds?
The Attorney General concluded that a district attorney had no authority to sign a contract committing county funds, so a 51-month postal-meter lease that the prior DA had signed was void as a matter …
Could a Texas county hospital district give free or discounted health care to residents regardless of immigration status?
The Attorney General concluded that the federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), specifically 8 U.S.C. 1621, barred the Harris County Hospital District…
If you can't pay the fines on several Texas Class C tickets, does the jail time run together or stack up?
The Attorney General answered three questions about people convicted of multiple Class C misdemeanors who could not pay their fines and court costs. First, if a person is already confined for defaulti…
What can the Georgia State Board of Education and its chairperson do without first consulting the State School Superintendent or getting her approval, given the post-1996 division of authority?
The Board sets policy and the chairperson sets the agenda. The chairperson can require Department of Education employees to perform tasks for the Board after a reasonable attempt at consultation with …
After Idaho's 1982 amendment to art. 9, sec. 8, did the Land Board's sale-and-exchange constraints reach every parcel the state owns, or just the federal-grant endowment lands?
Article 9, section 8 of the Idaho Constitution applied to lands granted to Idaho on statehood (endowment lands) and to lands the state acquired from the federal government after 1982. It did not apply…
Does HIPAA's 'health plan' definition cover North Carolina state agencies like the Divisions of Aging, Vocational Rehabilitation, and Services for the Blind?
No, not most of them. The NC AG concluded in 2001 that after the federal HIPAA Privacy Regulations took effect on April 14, 2001, the definition of 'health plan' specifically excluded government-funde…
Does the Good Funds Settlement Act let a North Carolina closing attorney disburse loan proceeds right away when the funds come in on a check from Carolina Farm Credit or another federally chartered agricultural credit association?
Maybe. The NC AG said in 2001 that the statute was ambiguous. The Good Funds Settlement Act allows immediate disbursement on checks drawn on the State of North Carolina, the United States, or a 'polit…
Could Idaho require every candidate for public office to take the local high school exit exam and have the score published in the press?
The proposed initiative would have required candidates to take their school district's 'high school exiting standards test' and publish the score, but most Idaho districts had no such test, the First …
Can the North Carolina Governor sweep money from a dedicated wireless 911 fee fund to plug a state budget hole?
Yes. The NC AG concluded in 2001 that the Governor has constitutional authority under Article III, Section 5 to keep the state budget balanced, and that authority extends to ordering a transfer from t…
Can a Maryland county without home rule, like Somerset County, borrow money and issue general obligation bonds to pay for landfill improvements without getting separate permission from the state legislature each time?
Yes. The opinion concluded that Article 25, §14A already gives county commissioners in a non-home-rule county like Somerset County the authority to borrow funds for landfill capital improvements and t…
Do North Carolina's qualifications-based selection rules for architects and engineers reach private subcontracts and design-build projects?
No on both. The NC AG concluded in 2001 that the Mini-Brooks Act (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 143-64.31) applies only to procurement by state and local government entities, not to subcontracts let by private fi…
If a Texas emergency services district overlaps a rural fire district, is its property tax capped at two cents?
The Attorney General concluded that when a proposed emergency services district in a smaller county would overlap with an existing rural fire prevention district, the commissioners court may only orde…
Can an employee of a private company that lives off a state contract still be paid as a Texas MUD board director?
The Attorney General concluded yes. Article XVI, section 40 of the Texas Constitution lets people who get all or part of their pay from state funds serve on local governing bodies like a municipal uti…
Do engineers working on federal defense contracts in Texas need a Texas state engineering license?
The Attorney General concluded that to the extent engineers practice engineering under contracts the federal government procured under its own procurement laws and regulations, which already let the g…
Can a Texas county pay its constables different salaries, and can it pay one almost nothing?
The Attorney General concluded that a commissioners court does not have to pay every constable the same. Salaries can vary between precincts when one constable has more extensive duties, for example b…
Can North Carolina insurance companies just decide not to sell insurance in certain ZIP codes or counties, and can the General Assembly force them to cover the whole state?
Yes companies can choose, and yes the legislature can force them to write statewide, with limits. The NC AG concluded in 2001 that insurance companies can choose not to write insurance or appoint agen…
Can an agent of a New York animal cruelty society from one county exercise peace officer powers in another county that has its own society?
Mostly no. The AG concluded an agent of an SPCA from an adjacent county cannot issue appearance tickets, summon, or arrest people for Agriculture and Markets Law Article 26 violations within a county …
If a North Carolina court expunges a DWI charge that was dismissed, does the Division of Motor Vehicles have to wipe out the 30-day civil license revocation too?
No. The NC AG concluded in 2001 that the criminal expungement statute, N.C. Gen. Stat. § 15A-146, did not reach civil drivers license revocations under N.C. Gen. Stat. § 20-16.5. The criminal case and…
When a Vermont sheriff's department is sued and the county-purchased liability policy has a $10,000 deductible, who pays the deductible?
The county. 24 V.S.A. § 73 obligated the county to provide liability insurance for the sheriff and deputies, and the AG concluded that the deductible was an operating cost of the sheriff's department …
Does North Carolina's old swine-keeping ban around state institutions also keep hog farms a quarter-mile away from local public schools and churches?
No, on both counts. The NC AG concluded in 2001 that N.C. Gen. Stat. § 143-153, enacted in 1909, did not apply to churches because they are not 'State' entities, and likely did not apply to local publ…
Does a senator filling in as Texas lieutenant governor have to serve on the redistricting board?
The Attorney General concluded yes. When the lieutenant governor's office is vacant, article III, section 9 of the Texas Constitution lets the Senate elect one of its own members to perform the lieute…
Does a county have to specifically describe a multi-million dollar bond application on its meeting agenda before voting to approve it?
Yes, under the law as it stood in 2001. The AG found Sussex County's agenda item, which only said "Application - PATS Inc." and later just "IRB Committee Report," failed to alert the public that the c…
Did the federal E-SIGN Act force New York county clerks to accept real estate deeds and other recordable instruments bearing only electronic signatures (and not handwritten ones)?
Probably not. The Attorney General concluded in 2001 that there was a substantial possibility that E-SIGN did not preempt Article 9 of New York's Real Property Law, because real-property recordation i…
When a state agency's incentive bonus program produces budget savings, and the underlying funding source is a 'Special Fund' rather than the General Fund, where do those savings go: back to the Special Fund per its own statute, or to the General Fund under the general incentive-bonus statute?
It depends on what the Special Fund statute says. If the Special Fund statute directs how surplus or unspent money is to be handled, that direction controls. If the Special Fund statute is silent on w…
Can city police, not just the county sheriff, serve a mental-health emergency detention warrant in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that a municipal peace officer, as well as a county peace officer, may execute an emergency-detention warrant under section 573.012 of the Health and Safety Code and tra…
Can a Texas city force-sell my homestead if I don't pay a public improvement district assessment?
The Attorney General concluded that a city may collect delinquent public improvement district assessments using the same procedures it uses to enforce an ad valorem tax lien on real property, but not …
Can a Texas county commissioner also serve as a volunteer firefighter?
The Attorney General concluded yes, a county commissioner may serve as a volunteer firefighter for an unincorporated town in his county. Article XVI, section 40 of the Texas Constitution, which bars h…
If a North Carolina city's attorney gave the council legal advice about an employee five years ago, does the local newspaper have a right to see that advice now?
Not if the advice contains confidential personnel information. The NC AG concluded in 2001 that N.C. Gen. Stat. § 160A-168(a), the municipal personnel-file confidentiality statute, supersedes the thre…
Can the North Carolina Rural Internet Access Authority give grant money to for-profit companies to set up telecenters in rural counties?
Yes. The NC AG concluded in 2001 that the Rural Internet Access Authority (RIAA), a state agency, can award telecenter grants from its MCNC contributions to for-profit applicants. North Carolina const…
If a Texas county grows past 8,000, does the combined district-and-county clerk lose office right away?
The Attorney General concluded that the offices do not split mid-term. Under the constitution and the Government Code, a county under 8,000 people elects a single 'joint clerk' to do both the district…
Can a Texas county pay health insurance premiums for retirees who weren't promised that benefit when they retired?
The Attorney General concluded that a county may not start paying group-health-insurance premiums for retirees who were not promised that benefit when they retired, because under article III, section …
Can a Texas city hire an independent contractor to do its plumbing inspections instead of a city employee?
The Attorney General concluded that a local plumbing inspector under the Plumbing License Law must be an actual employee of the city or other political subdivision where the inspector works. The job c…
Can a Texas optometric glaucoma specialist use only that title, or must they also list 'optometrist'?
The Attorney General concluded that an 'optometric glaucoma specialist' may not use that phrase as their only professional title. The statute that created the new specialty says such a practitioner 's…
Can a Texas district attorney also serve as a legal officer in the Air Force Reserve?
The Attorney General concluded that serving as a legal officer in the United States Air Force Reserve is not the 'private practice of law,' so it does not violate the Professional Prosecutors Act's ba…
Can a licensed acupuncturist in Texas perform spinal manipulation like Tui Na?
The Attorney General concluded that even if the acupressure technique called Tui Na counts as an 'energy flow exercise,' a licensed acupuncturist administering that exercise is not practicing acupunct…
When an asphalt plant company started construction work before getting its air quality permit from the Division of Air Quality, did Henderson County's local building inspector have to revoke the building permit under the mandatory-revocation provisions of state law?
No. The 2001 NC AG opinion concluded that the local Inspections Department was not required to revoke Tar Heel Paving's building permit for its asphalt plant. The reasoning rested on two definitional …
When Georgia changed its campaign-contribution limits to use 'election cycle' periods starting January 1, 2001, do contributions a candidate received before that date count against the new limits?
No. The Georgia AG concluded that pre-January 1, 2001 contributions should not count against the new election-cycle limits in O.C.G.A. § 21-5-41. Pre-2001 contributions are governed by the old electio…
When a Georgia school district or county collects an Education SPLOST or special county SPLOST and the money sits in an interest-bearing account before being spent, who gets the interest and what can it be used for?
The same projects. The Georgia AG concluded that interest earned on Education SPLOST and special county SPLOST proceeds must be used exclusively for the purposes specified in the resolution or ordinan…
Can the Governor of North Carolina appoint people who already work for the state to the State Board of Education, or are state employees disqualified the way they are from the UNC Board of Governors?
Yes, the Governor can appoint state employees to the State Board of Education. The 2001 NC AG opinion read N.C.G.S. § 115C-10 carefully and found that it disqualifies only a narrow set of people: (1) …
Do Texas charter school board members have to follow the state nepotism and conflict-of-interest laws?
The Attorney General concluded that the board members of a nonprofit corporation that runs an open-enrollment charter school, and the members of any separate board for the school itself, are not subje…
Can a Texas county let its tax-collection law firm decide when foreclosed properties get resold?
The Attorney General concluded that a taxing unit cannot adopt a 'blanket' resolution that hands its private tax-collection attorneys the power to direct the sheriff or a constable on when to resell t…
Can a Texas county pay court employees a one-time salary supplement from refunded judicial funds?
The Attorney General concluded that compensating court personnel is a 'court-related purpose,' so excess contributions refunded to a county under section 26.008 and earmarked for the judiciary under s…
Can a school nurse in North Carolina refer a student to the local Health Department for confidential medical care (like STI testing, pregnancy services, substance abuse help, or mental health care) without notifying the student's parents, and can a school board prohibit those referrals?
Both yes. The 2001 NC AG opinion concluded that N.C.G.S. § 90-21.5 lets a minor consent on their own to medical services for venereal disease, pregnancy, substance abuse, and emotional disturbance, an…
When a North Carolina citizen review board reviews a police disciplinary case, can the city release the officer's prior misconduct records and the underlying facts to the board and to the complainant?
Partly. The NC AG concluded in 2001 that the local Act creating the Charlotte/Mecklenburg Citizen Review Board permits (but does not require) the City Manager or Chief of Police to disclose to the CRB…
If a Wyoming town incorporates after the federal census but before a state mineral fund payout, can the new town receive a population-based share?
Yes. The AG concluded that a new town incorporated on or before July 1, 2001 (the date the Municipal Mineral Trust Fund was repealed) could participate in the population-based portion of the fund's di…
Can a Texas school board require the superintendent to attend its closed executive sessions?
The Attorney General concluded that a clause in a superintendent's employment contract requiring her to attend all of the board's executive (closed) sessions does not violate the Open Meetings Act. On…
Can a Texas land surveyor submit a competitive bid to a prime contractor on a government project?
The Attorney General concluded that the Professional Services Procurement Act covers any government contract that includes professional services as a component, including services bought through a pri…
Does a Texas school district subtract property in a tax increment financing zone from its taxable value?
The Attorney General concluded yes. Government Code section 403.302(d)(8) requires the Comptroller to deduct the captured value of property subject to a tax increment financing agreement under Local G…
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