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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Could the Texas Attorney General decide whether a county had to pay a judge-approved appointed-counsel fee claim?
No. Because a judge had already entered an order directing payment, the Attorney General declined to review the order or resolve whether the claimed preappointment services and expenses were compensab…
When did related loans to a credit-union member, spouse, partnership, or company count together under the ten-percent loan limit?
The opinion did not create one automatic aggregation rule. It concluded that the credit-union commissioner had primary authority to decide violations using the borrowers' actual liability, ownership, …
Under Idaho law, when can a creditor charge a late fee on a credit card or other consumer credit account, and how does the late fee have to be disclosed?
The 1987 AG opinion concluded that late charges may be lawfully imposed on open-end credit accounts (such as credit cards) as part of the finance charge. For interest-bearing consumer credit transacti…
Could a Texas county commissioner hire another county commissioner's son as a road hand in the commissioner's precinct?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the commissioners court retained authority to approve or disapprove an ex officio road commissioner's hiring decisions, so the county nepotism statute barred th…
Who counts as a qualified voter for signing a Maryland town's annexation referendum petition: someone registered before the vote, or anyone who registers in time?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that under Article 23A, §19(g), a person who meets a municipality's voter qualifications at the time a referendum petition is presented for signatu…
Could a Texas county finance construction of a jail under the Public Property Finance Act by calling the building personal property?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the jail was ordinarily real property and that the parties could not change the statute's scope by contractually labeling it personal property.
Does Maryland's crime victims compensation fund pay for disfigurement or scarring alone?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded Maryland's Criminal Injuries Compensation Board could award compensation for disfigurement alone if it caused serious financial hardship, could pay…
Could a Texas county bail-bond board cap the total bail bonds written by a state-authorized corporate surety?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the statute expressly exempted corporate sureties from the ten-times-security limit and made the state insurance certificate conclusive evidence of security, so…
Does charging sales tax on the paper and ink used to print a free community newspaper violate freedom of the press?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that Maryland's retail sales tax, which taxes the materials used to produce free publications while taxing the final sale price of publications sol…
Could the Texas dental board reinstate a dentist's license after it had remained unrenewed for two years?
No. Under the statute then in effect, a license expired for two years or longer could not be renewed; the former licensee had to seek a new license through reexamination and the original licensing pro…
Does North Carolina's Medical Database Commission, after 1987 amendments allowing collection of patient social security numbers, comply with federal alcohol and drug abuse patient confidentiality regulations?
Yes. Article 11 of Chapter 131E was amended in 1987 (Session Laws ch. 592) to allow the Medical Database Commission to receive social security numbers for accuracy in linking patient data across provi…
Did a Texas health-facilities development corporation have to follow the Open Meetings Act?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the nonprofit public corporation did not fit any state or local governmental-body category in the former Act, and its enabling statute did not independently req…
How much rulemaking authority did a Texas public-health district's administrative board have?
The board could adopt only rules and regulations specifically authorized by state law. Its rules also could not conflict with state law or an ordinance of a member city or county.
When the office of county prosecuting attorney falls vacant, who fills it, and what happens if the county can't find a qualified replacement?
The 1987 AG opinion concluded that the board of county commissioners has the duty under Idaho Code § 59-906 to fill a vacancy in the prosecuting attorney's office with a person qualified to be elected…
Could Texas voters use the former Tax Code rollback election to reduce a county tax rate set for constitutional county funds?
The Attorney General concluded that they could not under the 1987 provisions. He treated the constitution as granting the commissioners court authority to set those rates within stated ceilings, which…
Who could represent the Texas Commission on Human Rights in employment-discrimination lawsuits?
The Attorney General had authority to represent the commission. Staff or outside lawyers hired by the commission could appear in court only under the Attorney General's supervision and direction.
Could a Texas city let tenants repair a landlord's neglected property defect and deduct the cost from rent?
No, under the law considered in JM-790. The Attorney General concluded that Property Code chapter 92 occupied the field of landlord repair duties and tenant remedies and did not authorize a city-creat…
Could a Texas county require a subdivider to deed fee-simple title to subdivision streets before approving the plat?
No. The Attorney General concluded that chapter 232 authorized road standards and dedication for public use but did not authorize a county to demand fee-simple ownership rather than an easement.
Could a Texas county spend public money to challenge a state radioactive-materials license amendment?
Yes, if the county could show actual injury or economic damage and its commissioners court found the spending served the county's interest. The county could fund lawyers and experts, contest the agenc…
Did Maryland's prepaid dental plans have to follow the general Insurance Code, or just their own special dental-plan law?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that prepaid dental plans licensed under Subtitle 42 of Article 48A were insurers generally subject to the rest of Maryland's Insurance Code, excep…
Did a Texas school district have to pay registration fees for a vehicle it leased rather than owned by title?
No. A school district or other listed government body that had the legal right to possess or control a leased vehicle counted as its owner and qualified for the registration-fee exemption if the vehic…
If a DC zoning, liquor licensing, or other agency decision affects neighborhoods on both sides of an ANC boundary, do both Advisory Neighborhood Commissions get formal notice and the right to weigh in?
Yes. More than one ANC can be 'affected' by a single DC agency action and both must get the 30-day notice. An ANC is 'affected' when the action would have a substantial and predictable effect on peopl…
Could a Texas budget rider bar high school exit tests from covering material students had not reasonably been taught?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the rider was valid because it merely stated what the Education Code already implied: an exit exam given in eleventh grade had to test material eleventh grader…
Could Maryland's Racing Commission let a track hold Arabian horse races with betting in 1987, and did it need to write new regulations first?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that Maryland's Racing Commission had authority under its original 1920 licensing statute to permit Arabian horse racing with wagering at a thoroug…
Did a subpoenaed Texas state employee receive paid leave, per diem, and travel reimbursement for a court appearance?
Only when the employee appeared in an official state capacity did the appearance count as work and qualify for per diem and travel reimbursement. For a private-capacity appearance, the agency had disc…
Can a Maryland hospital association publish reports on doctors' practice patterns using ID numbers instead of names?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded a hospital association's report analyzing physician practice patterns across hospitals, using confidential ID numbers rather than names, did not vi…
When an Idaho prisoner had multiple consecutive sentences and was eligible for parole on the first one, could the parole board release them onto parole while still keeping them in prison to serve the next sentence?
The 1987 AG opinion concluded yes, for crimes committed before February 1, 1987 (the effective date of the Unified Sentencing Act). The Commission of Pardons and Parole could parole an inmate from an …
Can a Texas commissioners court shift unspent road-and-bridge money between precincts, and must it find an emergency to amend the county budget?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that a commissioners court using the default road-supervisor system could reallocate unencumbered road-and-bridge funds among precincts and consider prior carryover…
Could a Texas sheriff buy food and other county-jail supplies without following the County Purchasing Act?
No. The sheriff controlled the jail's daily operation, but purchases for the jail remained subject to the County Purchasing Act, including competitive-bidding rules and commissioners court approval wh…
The 1987 Legislature created the Department of Labor Employees Retirement Board to administer a retirement program established under SDCL 61-2-15. What is the scope of the Board's authority? Does it merely oversee the Department of Labor's administration of the plan, or does it actually administer the plan itself, including investment decisions, eligibility determinations, contribution and benefit amounts?
The Board administers the plan, fully. AG Tellinghuisen ruled that the 1987 Chapter 386 transferred the entire administrative authority from the Secretary of Labor (under SDCL 61-2-16) to the new Boar…
Could a Texas landowner divide and sell land by metes and bounds without subdivision plat approval if no public road was dedicated?
Not automatically. The Attorney General said plat requirements depended on the purpose and facts of the division, and neither a private-road label nor the absence of a public dedication was enough by …
When Maryland expunges a driver's record, can the MVA still keep a hidden copy on file, and can a hearing officer look at someone's alcohol-related probation before judgment?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that a driving record the MVA is required to expunge must be completely removed from inspection by anyone, including the MVA and other government a…
Did Idaho's Medicare supplement insurance law cover policies sold to disabled people on Medicare, or only people on Medicare 'by reason of age'?
The 1987 AG opinion concluded that Medicare supplement policies could be sold to persons eligible for Medicare by reason of disability (not just by age), and the Director of the Department of Insuranc…
Could a Texas city define its own local community standard for deciding whether material was obscene?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the proposed Lewisville ordinance conflicted with state and federal law because Texas used a statewide community standard and juries had to decide prurient appe…
Did a Texas district attorney have to pay the county clerk to record a judgment abstract from a bond forfeiture case?
No. The Attorney General concluded that article 3912e barred the county clerk from collecting the recording fee from the district attorney because the charge was not a litigation cost payable by the s…
Could the Liberty County Court at Law hear a lawsuit to foreclose a lien for delinquent property taxes?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the statute creating the Liberty County Court at Law gave it jurisdiction concurrent with the district court over delinquent-tax foreclosures, as long as the a…
Did Texas prosecutors have to charge loss of mental faculties and loss of physical faculties as separate DWI offenses?
No. The Attorney General concluded that loss of normal mental or physical faculties described one way of committing DWI and could be pleaded in a single count.
Can Maryland's legislature fix a town's mistaken boundary description from decades ago, or does the town have to do it itself?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded the Maryland General Assembly could not amend Highland Beach's 1922 act of incorporation to correct its boundary description, because the Home Rule…
Could a Texas district attorney hire an investigator whose spouse owned a bail-bond business?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the investigator could serve without violating article 988b because an arrest decision was not a vote or decision on a matter involving the spouse's bail-bond …
Did an irrigation district tax assessor-collector need property-tax certification if the district charged a flat benefit-plan fee instead of ad valorem tax?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the certification statute applied through the Tax Code definition of a taxing unit, which covered entities imposing ad valorem property taxes, not this benefit-…
Can a Maryland savings bank develop real estate through a limited partnership?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded a Maryland-chartered mutual savings bank could engage in real estate development activities to the same extent as a federal savings bank, but only …
Could the Texas Veterans Land Board charge an $80 paid-in-full deed fee when an older land contract promised the veteran a deed without another payment?
No. The Attorney General concluded that imposing the later $80 deed fee on a purchaser whose older Veterans Land Program contract promised a deed upon full payment would substantially impair the state…
Could a Texas independent school district use electronic funds transfer to deposit employee pay directly into an employee's bank account without express statutory authorization?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that school trustees could adopt electronic funds transfer for employee pay because the Education Code authorized payment but did not prescribe the payment method. …
Could the Texas governor distribute Exxon and Stripper Well petroleum-overcharge funds without a legislative appropriation?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the Texas Legislature, not the governor acting alone, had authority to allocate and appropriate petroleum-overcharge funds received through the Exxon judgment a…
Did a Texas school district board have to approve the transfer of its territory to another district under the 1987 Education Code?
Sometimes. The Attorney General concluded that the receiving district's board had to approve a section 19.022 transfer, and a transferring district also had to approve if section 19.008 covered it.
Could Texas Tech University form a joint venture with a private or municipal utility to build and operate a cogeneration plant?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a true joint venture would expose Texas Tech, and therefore the state, to shared liabilities in violation of article III, section 50 of the Texas Constitution.
When does a Maryland home seller have to give homeowners association fee and rule disclosures to a buyer, and can a buyer waive that right?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded a home seller had to obtain and disclose known HOA fee and rule information to the buyer before the contract was formed, not later, that a buyer's …
Could a Texas county clerk refuse to file a financing statement that appeared legally insufficient under the Uniform Commercial Code?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the clerk's duty was to accept, record, and index the statement when the filing requirements and fee were met, leaving legal sufficiency to the courts.
Was it constitutional for Texas law to shield a county from liability when a reserve deputy was injured while serving?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the liability exclusion did not violate the Texas due-course guarantee or the Fourteenth Amendment's due process and equal protection clauses.
Could a Texas sheriff bar peace officers from carrying guns while off duty as patrons in bars or nightclubs?
A sheriff could impose reasonable off-duty restrictions on the sheriff's own deputies when tied to proper law-enforcement duties, but had no supervisory power over officers employed by other political…
Did the county clerk who kept Texas commissioners court minutes have to be a certified shorthand reporter?
No. The Attorney General concluded that court-reporter requirements applied to courts conducting litigation, while a separate statute assigned commissioners court minutes to the county clerk.
Could one Texas county pay another county's sitting county attorney extra compensation for serving as a special prosecutor?
No. Because a county attorney was an 'attorney for the state,' article 2.07(b) made the special-prosecutor work an additional duty of the existing office without additional compensation.
Could Texas courts require probationers to use electronic home-monitoring devices without violating their rights or the rights of household members?
In 1987, the Attorney General concluded that electronic monitoring did not inherently violate the constitutional rights of a probationer or a person sharing the home, provided the probationer could la…
Could Maryland's Racing Commission let one track take telephone bets on a race running at a different track in 1987?
In this 1987 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that Maryland's telephone-betting statute authorized the Racing Commission's proposed regulation letting one licensed track accept and wire bets on…
Could a Texas constable enforce traffic laws outside the constable's precinct but still within the same county?
Yes, after September 1, 1987. The Attorney General concluded that amended article 6889 extended a constable's expressly authorized acts, including traffic enforcement, throughout the county.
Did Idaho's law requiring AIDS testing of incoming prisoners apply to existing inmates, and could prison officials keep an AIDS-positive prisoner quarantined past the end of their sentence?
The 1987 AG opinion concluded that Idaho Code § 39-604 required AIDS testing only for incoming inmates entering a detention facility, with the state covering medical costs at state facilities. AIDS-po…
Can a North Carolina public school principal who is also a county commissioner vote on the school board's budget request to the commission?
The AG concluded the offices are not formally incompatible, but advised abstention on specific votes that affect the school employee personally. Although the school employee is subordinate to the loca…
Could a Texas peace officer release a person charged with a misdemeanor on a personal bond without a judge or magistrate's approval?
No, except for the separate written-promise procedure in traffic cases. The Attorney General concluded that only the court handling the case or a magistrate could authorize a personal bond.
Could the Texas Department of Corrections give every incoming prisoner good-time credit for time previously spent in a county jail?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the director could presume good conduct and award county-jail good-time credit uniformly, so long as the statutory discretion was exercised consistently with c…
When could a Texas taxing unit stop paying into a reinvestment zone's tax increment fund after three years?
The Attorney General concluded that a taxing unit could stop after three years only if none of the three listed development events had occurred. Bonds, property acquisition, or the start of constructi…
How these opinions are useful
- Understand state law: AG opinions are authoritative interpretations of how state law applies.
- Persuasive authority: Not binding like court decisions, but they carry significant weight.
- Government guidance: Often clarify how state agencies and officials should interpret statutes.
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