State AG Opinions
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Can a Texas licensing board make you give your Social Security number to renew your license?
The Attorney General concluded that section 7 of the federal Privacy Act of 1974 barred the Texas Real Estate Commission from refusing to renew a license just because the licensee would not disclose a…
Can North Carolina increase the penalty for habitual felons and still use prior felonies committed before the new law's effective date to count toward the recidivist designation, without violating the ex post facto clause?
Yes. The ex post facto problem is solved by an effective-date clause keyed to the date of the triggering (latest) felony. As long as the triggering felony occurs after the new penalty takes effect, th…
Can Idaho's property tax law treat developers who hold six or more subdivision lots more favorably than someone who owns a single similar lot, by valuing the developer's lots based on how long it will take them to sell?
Not as a discount limited to multi-lot owners. Idaho Constitution art. 7, §§ 2 and 5 require uniform property valuation across similar parcels. House Bill 389's 1993 amendment to Idaho Code § 63-202 c…
Are Orange County teachers who earned Career I or Career II status under the 1985 Career Development Pilot Program entitled to keep their enhanced pay after Orange County adopted a differentiated pay plan?
The AG concluded the 'hold harmless' provision in G.S. 115C-363.11(c) was triggered when Orange County adopted a differentiated pay plan in 1990-91 under the School Improvement and Accountability Act …
If the county commissioners in South Dakota want a light bar and county decals put on the sheriff's county-owned car for safety and identification, and the sheriff doesn't want them, can the commissioners buy the equipment and force the sheriff to use it?
Commissioners can buy and install the equipment under SDCL 7-12-12, but they cannot force the sheriff to use it. South Dakota law gives county commissioners no general authority over the sheriff's ope…
In Texas, do you go to justice court or county court for passing a stopped school bus?
The Attorney General concluded that because a first offense of overtaking and passing a school bus (section 104 of article 6701d) was punishable by fine only, it fell within a justice court's constitu…
Did the Texas Open Meetings Act apply to four insurance-solvency and guaranty boards, and could they meet privately or by telephone?
Yes. All four insurance-related governing bodies were statewide governmental bodies subject to the Open Meetings Act, with notice posted by the secretary of state at least seven days before a meeting.…
If someone on unemployment is offered a job that depends on passing a drug test and they fail the test, can the state cut off their unemployment benefits?
The AG concluded yes. Under the unemployment statute, failing without good cause to accept suitable work disqualifies a claimant from benefits. If a claimant on benefits is offered a job contingent on…
Can a Texas county add a courthouse security fee to court filings, including probate cases?
The Attorney General concluded that section 291.007 of the Local Government Code let a county commissioners court set a security fee of up to $5, collected once in each civil case filed in a county co…
Who gets the interest on cash bail money and county jail inmate funds in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that cash paid in lieu of a bail bond is held in trust under chapter 117 of the Local Government Code. A district clerk may put it in a separate or interest-bearing acco…
Can the State Board of Education deduct a school district's debt to the state schools from its available school fund?
The Attorney General concluded no. Education Code section 21.507 let the commissioner of education deduct a district's share of state-school costs only from foundation school program payments, not fro…
If a court sets up a special-needs trust funded by a personal injury settlement, do the new Medicaid trust rules under OBRA 1993 treat that trust as if the disabled person established it themselves?
Yes. The AG concluded that 42 U.S.C. § 1396p(d) reaches a trust funded with settlement or judgment proceeds even when a guardian or court formally creates it, because the proceeds are the property of …
Can North Carolina recover Medicaid expenditures from a deceased recipient's estate if Congress requires it, or does the General Assembly have to pass enabling legislation first?
NC must pass enabling legislation. The AG concluded that even though federal OBRA 93 required states to establish Medicaid estate recovery programs, NC lacked any state statutory mechanism for the Div…
If investors put money into a North Carolina business in November or December 1993 and the Secretary of State registered the business as a Qualified Business Venture later in December, did the investors qualify for the state Qualified Business Venture investment tax credit?
Yes, for investments made through December 31, 1993. Chief Counsel John R. McArthur officially adopted the prior Boylan interpretation: registration with the Secretary of State at any time during the …
If two Texas laws define 'gambling device' differently, which one controls?
The Attorney General concluded the two 1993 amendments did not truly conflict. Because Senate Bill 1067 carried its own transition rule (section 13.02) for handling other same-session Penal Code amend…
Can the Maine House of Representatives remove and replace its Speaker by a simple majority vote, or does that require impeachment or some supermajority procedure?
Majority vote. The AG concluded that Me. Const. art. IV, pt. 1, § 7 simply provides that the House 'shall choose their speaker, clerk, and other officers' and does not fix a term of office, a particul…
Can a county commissioner's company sell materials to the county in Texas?
The Attorney General concluded that chapter 171 of the Local Government Code lets a county do business with a company a commissioner owns, to the same extent as other local governments, and that the o…
Does North Carolina's RICO Act treat federal currency-structuring violations (breaking up cash deposits to dodge the $10,000 bank reporting rule) as 'money laundering' activity?
Yes, according to this 1993 AG opinion. Although NC's RICO Act doesn't define 'money laundering,' the AG read it broadly enough to include structuring a currency transaction in violation of 31 U.S.C. …
In a NC county building shared by sheriff's office staff and other county business, who decides where people can smoke: the county commissioners or the sheriff?
Both, depending on the room. County commissioners have broad authority under G.S. § 153A-121 (health ordinances) and § 153A-169 (county property supervision) to regulate smoking in county buildings, i…
When is a 'non-profit' volunteer fire department itself an OSHANC-covered employer, and what factors should the Department of Labor weigh in deciding?
The principal factor is whether any member receives compensation for service. If at least one member is paid (wages, sick pay, vacation pay, bonuses, etc.), an employer-employee relationship exists an…
Do Texas county school administrations have to follow the school-district lobbying limits?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the Dallas County Schools, a county school administration operating under chapters 17 and 18 of the Education Code, is a 'school district' within the meaning o…
Can unlicensed practice of architecture be prosecuted in a Texas justice court?
The Attorney General reached a two-part answer. Unauthorized practice of architecture under article 249a, section 13 cannot be tried as a class C misdemeanor, because its fine range of $250 to $1,000 …
Do Texas insurance mandates apply to a county's self-funded employee health plan?
The Attorney General concluded that several Texas Insurance Code provisions, including the HIV/AIDS data article (1.24C), the chemical dependency coverage article (3.51-9), and the dental benefits art…
Under the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act, does the Penobscot Indian Reservation include islands in the West Branch of the Penobscot River, or only the islands in the main stem from Old Town to Mattawamkeag?
The Penobscot Indian Reservation under 30 M.R.S.A. § 6203(8) includes only islands in the main stem of the Penobscot River from Old Town to Mattawamkeag, not islands in the West Branch or any other br…
Are video poker machines that involve skill and pay out only merchandise credit legal in NC after the recent amendment to the anti-slot-machine statute?
Maybe. The amended N.C.G.S. § 14-306 contains an exemption for machines used for amusement that involve skill. A particular video poker machine fits the exemption only if both conditions are factually…
If a Texas teacher transfers retirement credit to the state employee system, who pays the early retirement incentive?
The Attorney General concluded that the Teacher Retirement System (TRS) must pay its proportional share of an early retirement incentive for a member who transfers service credit to the Employees Reti…
Can a Texas public funds investment pool write covered call or put contracts?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the Public Funds Investment Act gives a public funds investment pool a specific, exclusive list of permitted investments, and covered call and covered put contr…
Can a Texas county commissioners court create its own civil process office?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a county commissioners court has no express or implied statutory authority to set up a civil process department that operates separately from the sheriff. The o…
Can a funeral home get in trouble for having an unlicensed person on staff if the funeral home didn't know the employee's license had lapsed?
Yes. The AG concluded that a funeral establishment has an affirmative duty under Board regulations to verify the current license status of each licensed employee when applying to renew the establishme…
Are the Idaho State Tax Commission's rules that multiply a mine's net profits by five (then tax that multiplied figure as the property's value) actually authorized by statute?
No. Idaho Code § 63-2801 directs assessors to value mining property based on net profits without any multiplier. The Tax Commission's IDAPA Rule 585.04 and 585.05 (and similar provision in Rule 580 fo…
Does North Carolina's school-involvement leave statute (four hours per year) apply to public school employees, and is the 'year' a calendar year, a fiscal year, or something the employer can pick?
The NC AG concluded that N.C.G.S. § 95-28.3 applies to public school employees and other state and local government workers, that the four hours is a minimum the employer must allow (not a maximum), a…
Could Idaho repeal the proportionality-review piece of its automatic death-sentence review statute without making the state's death penalty unconstitutional?
Yes. The U.S. Supreme Court held in Pulley v. Harris (1984) that the Eighth Amendment does not require comparative proportionality review (comparing each death sentence to similar cases) as long as th…
Can North Carolina pass a local act letting a city promise not to annex a manufacturer's property for years in exchange for payments in lieu of taxes, or does that violate the state constitution?
The AG concluded the Eden-Miller Brewing preannexation local act (Chapter 418 of the 1993 Session Laws) is facially constitutional. The legislature has plenary power over municipal boundaries under Ar…
When is a volunteer fire department considered part of a municipality or county such that the city or county itself becomes responsible for OSHANC compliance, including citations and penalties, for fire-department safety violations?
Only when the municipality or county exercises sufficient control over the volunteer department, shown by clear and convincing evidence. The AG identified five major factors: ownership of land and equ…
Can the NC Banking Commission raise or lower the maximum interest rate on larger consumer finance loans, or only on the smaller loans?
Only on the smaller loans. The Banking Commission has explicit authority under G.S. § 53-173(f) to redetermine and refix the maximum interest rate for consumer finance loans made under § 53-173 (up to…
Can a North Carolina consumer-finance company sell new types of credit insurance to its borrowers, including joint accident and health policies and single or dual interest motor vehicle physical damage coverage?
Yes for credit joint accident and health insurance, no for single or dual interest motor vehicle physical damage insurance unless the Commissioner of Banks gives written permission. Joint accident and…
Is a cancer center's patient lodging exempt from property tax in Texas?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center's Jesse H. Jones Rotary House International, a center where cancer patients and their families stay during treatment, was exemp…
When a North Carolina consumer-finance licensee applies to do other business at the same office where it makes loans, is the licensee entitled to an evidentiary hearing, and what role does the State Banking Commission play in reviewing the Commissioner's decision?
Yes to an evidentiary hearing when there is any likelihood the application will be denied. The Administrative Procedure Act applies. The State Banking Commission reviews the Commissioner's decision on…
Can a Texas public university limit which companies sell retirement annuities to its faculty?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that section 830.004 of the Government Code delegates to the governing boards of state institutions of higher education the authority to structure the optional reti…
Would the 1993 Idaho Citizens Alliance initiative (Proposition 1) that banned anti-discrimination protections for gay people, banned same-sex marriages, restricted public-school discussion of homosexuality, blocked public funds and library access, and addressed sexual behavior in public employment, survive constitutional challenge?
No. The AG concluded the initiative authorized discrimination and denied gay people equal access to the political process (violating Equal Protection), restricted protected speech in public schools an…
How many paid vacation days do Texas police officers and firefighters get?
The Attorney General read two vacation provisions in section 142.0013 of the Local Government Code together rather than as a conflict. In a city with a population over 30,000, a firefighter or police …
How long is a Texas water control district director's term, and when must the elections be held?
The Attorney General concluded that directors of the El Paso County Water Control and Improvement District (Westway) serve two-year terms. Westway was created by a 1961 special law that set two-year s…
Can a Texas county donate its surplus or salvage property to a local charity?
On its face, yes. The Attorney General concluded that House Bill 2087, a 1993 law letting a county commissioners court donate salvage or surplus property to a local civic or charitable organization, d…
Can a married couple both hold local elected office in Texas if their districts overlap?
Yes, on the facts presented. The Attorney General found no conflict of interest that would disqualify either spouse from office. Texas's local conflict-of-interest law (chapter 171 of the Local Govern…
How many votes does a member of a Texas agricultural marketing cooperative get?
One. The Attorney General read section 52.085(a) of the Agriculture Code as a flat one-vote-per-member rule for agricultural cooperative marketing associations, with a single narrow exception for citr…
Do a Texas county retirement system's extra-interest checks to retirees count as an illegal gift of public money?
No. The Attorney General concluded that when the Texas County and District Retirement System pays annuitants extra interest out of its endowment fund's distributive benefit account, that is not an unc…
When a private doctor performs a child medical evaluation for DSS in a suspected abuse case, are the doctor's records confidential, or do they become public once they leave DSS custody?
They stay confidential. NCGS 7A-544 applies a blanket 'strictest confidence' rule to every part of a DSS protective services investigation. Administrative rules, state DSS policy, and the chain of con…
If the State of North Carolina keeps backup CDs of a commissioned sound sculpture in its building, can the public force the State to hand over copies under the public records law?
No. The AG concluded that an artist who retained federal copyright in a state-commissioned sound sculpture kept the right to control duplication, and federal copyright law preempted the state Public R…
Can a Texas county bail bond board limit how many bonds a corporate surety writes or question its property appraisals?
The Attorney General answered eight questions from Denton County and drew a consistent line: a county bail bond board may not pile requirements onto a corporate bondsman beyond what the bail bond stat…
Can Texas require EMTs and paramedics to pass an exam to keep their certification?
The Attorney General concluded that House Bill 241, passed in 1993, did not strip the Texas Department of Health of the power to require a recertification exam for emergency medical services personnel…
Can a Texas constable seize otherwise-exempt property to collect back child support?
The Attorney General drew a line based on whether a child support lien exists. On a plain writ of execution for child support arrears, attorney fees, and interest, a constable may seize only personal …
Can Texas impound an out-of-state driver's car after an accident if they can't show insurance?
The Attorney General concluded that section 4A of the Safety Responsibility Law (article 6701h), which lets Texas impound a vehicle not registered here when it is in an accident and the owner can't sh…
Can a Texas school district set up a permanent endowment fund, and what money can it use?
The Attorney General gave a split answer. A school board may establish an endowment fund for educational purposes using money willed or donated for that purpose, under its statutory authority to recei…
Can a Texas appraisal review board member rule on a property-tax protest when they also worked for the taxpayer?
The Attorney General concluded that Tax Code section 41.69 bars an appraisal review board member from participating in deciding a taxpayer protest in which the member has a direct personal or pecuniar…
Can a county board of health adopt a smoking rule that applies to a state university campus, and when does state preemption kick in?
Yes, the AG concluded, but only briefly. Because the Commission for Health Services had not issued a statewide smoking rule for state institutions, Orange County's local board of health could adopt a …
When a court orders someone on probation or parole to perform community service hours at a non-profit or government agency, is the worker an OSHANC-covered employee, and is the agency an OSHANC-covered employer responsible for worker safety?
No. Community service workers are not OSHANC-covered employees. The receiving agency cannot fire them (only transfer them back), pays no wages, and does not have ultimate control over their work envir…
Can a North Carolina state university issue students a campus debit card for buying books and meals, and can it open that same debit system up to private off-campus businesses?
On the first question yes, on the second no. ECU's closed-loop debit card for on-campus purchases was a prepayment-for-services arrangement, not a bank deposit, so it did not violate state or federal …
If a sitting city commissioner pleads no contest to embezzlement and the judge finds her guilty but suspends the imposition of sentence (no formal judgment of guilt entered), is she automatically disqualified from holding city office?
No. A suspended imposition of sentence under SDCL 23A-27-13 is not a 'conviction' for voter-disqualification purposes because the court never entered a judgment of guilt. The commissioner remains a qu…
What happens to unclaimed property-tax overpayments in Texas after the three-year refund period ends?
The Attorney General concluded that unclaimed overpayments of property taxes do not escheat to the state. Once the three-year period for a taxpayer to apply for a refund under Tax Code section 31.11 l…
If two doctors who owned a clinic before April 1, 1993 transfer the clinic's assets to a new corporation they also own, do they keep the grandfathered 'grace period' that lets them refer patients to that clinic until July 1, 1995?
Yes, but only for themselves. The doctors never relinquished their investment interest in the underlying clinic when they transferred its assets to a new corporation in which they also held stock. The…
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