Kansas AG Opinions, 1976

The City of Fort Scott, Kansas, has general municipal jurisdiction over the property on which has been constructed a water storage reservoir and dam, and may exercise its police jurisdiction there so as to preserve the public peace and order. *

Venue for the prosecution of the offense of intentional failure to file any report required by the Campaign Finance Act, K.S.A. 25-4101 et seq., to be filed with the Commisison or with the Secretary of State lies only in Shawnee County, and accordingly, the district attor- ney of Shawnee County is the appropriate district at- torney to be notified of any such violations pursuant to K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 25-4125. * *

A municipality which grants a franchise to a public utility, a gas company, which is subject to the regu- lations of the State Corporation Commission may not reserve to itself the unlimited right to require the company to make repairs to its lines in such city. Any provision whereby the fixed charge required by K.S.A. 12-2001, Fifth, may be amended during the term of the franchise or any extension thereof without opportunity for submission to the voters in accordance with K.S.A. 12-2001, Sixth, is void and unenforceable. Acceptance, either formal or implied, is necessary to render a franchise

K.A.R. 48-3-2 which permits attorneys at law who are admitted in other jurisdictions to appear in admini- strative proceedings before the Division of Employ- ment Security does not relieve such attorneys from the requirement of K.S.A. 7-104 that they associate for that purpose with local counsel. * *

Requirement to appoint board of hospital trustees is not mandatory but directory. Board of county commissioners having entered into agreement with a corporation pursuant to K.S.A. 19-1846 for the operation and maintenance of hospital need not ap- point new board of trustees.

A regulation of a unified school district which requires that a student be enrolled in a minimum of five hours per day is not prima facie discriminatory, and purely as a matter of law, the rule is not beyond the authority of the board in the exercise of its general administrative power to adopt reasonable rules and regulations for the governance of the school.

December 16, 1976 ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 76- 370 The Honorable Ben Foster State Representative 920 Olive W. Garvey Building 200 West Douglas Wichita, Kansas 67202 Re: Banks--Bank-holding Companies--Interstate Commerce Synopsis: In the event a Kansas corporation acquired con…

K.S.A. 16a-3-305 prohibits all wage assignments made in connection with a consumer credit transaction. Wage assignments granted apart from such transactions are not prohibited, nor are such assignments statutorily required to be revocable. A wage assignment is a transfer of interest or right to a specified amount of an individual's regular, periodic compensation arising from an employment relationship. A "deduction" from compensation for purposes of K.S.A. 16a-3-305 is any lawful subtraction from a person's salary which is not otherwise a wage assignment and over which the employee retains the

A foreign limited partnership which has no activity in this state other than holding title to nonoperat- ing working interests in oil and gas producing pro- perties is not doing business as that term is used in K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 56-123b, and is not required to obtain authority to do business in this state as a foreign limited partnership for that activity.

Under Kansas law, a city may annex property only by action of the governing body, and there is no provision for submitting the question of annexation to a legally binding election by the voters of the city. An election which is purely advisory may be called and held on proposed annexation, although such an election is of no legal force and effect and is not binding upon the governing body.

Members of the board of directors of an irrigation dis- trict who are elected as provided by K.S.A. 42-702 are not elected at an election which is conducted by a county election officer. The recall provisions of sec- tions 18 through 31 of ch. 178, L. 1976, apply only to elected public officials who are provided by law to be elected at an election conducted by one or more county election officers. Thus, members of the board of di- rectors of an irrigation district elected as provided in K.S.A. 42-702 are not subject to recall pursuant to §§ 18-31, ch. 178, L. 1976. *

December 14, 1976 ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 76- 365 Mr. James J. Smith Attorney at Law 610 Bridge Humboldt, Kansas 66748 Re: Counties--Mental Health Centers--Withdrawal by County Synopsis: The right of a county to withdraw from an agreement establishing a multi-county center p…

K.S.A. 12-705b contains no requirement that plats be approved by the city governing body prior to fil- ing with the register of deeds. *

December 13, 1976 ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 76-363 Mr. David M. Jancich Assistant City Attorney City of Overland Park, City Hall 8500 Santa Fe Drive Overland Park, Kansas 66212 RE: Housing Law--Cities--Municipal Housing Law-- Commissioners--Incompatibility of Office Synopsis: …

December 13, 1976 ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 76-362 Mr. Douglas W. Flatt Board of Technical Professions 6111 S.W. 29th Street Topeka, Kansas 66614 RE: Corporations--Professional Corporations--Directors, Officers and Stockholders--Engineers, Architects and Land Surveyors Synopsi…

December 9, 1976 ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 76-361 Mr. Howard Blanchard, Chairman Board of Technical Professions c/o Blanchard Vanderweide & Fillmore, Architects P.O. Box 814 802 East Hazel Street Garden City, Kansas 67846 RE: Board of Technical Professions--Practice of Land Su…

A proposition for the establishment of an airport under K.S.A. 3-309 may be submitted at any "general election" as that term is defined by K.S.A. 25-2502. * *.

A professional corporation organized pursuant to the Kansas Professional Corporation Act, K.S.A. 17-2701 et seq. is not eligible to hold the office of city attorney of a Kansas city.

A motor vehicle service contract, offered by regis- tered Kansas motor vehicle dealers to purchasers of motor vehicles, providing for the repair or replace- ment of specified mechanical breakdowns, or reim- bursement therefor, and for payment or reimbursement of towing charges and car rental use incidental to such breakdowns, does not constitute a contract of insurance subject to the Kansas insurance code. *

Ordinance providing for the creation of "Mayor's Police" in the City of Topeka is a valid exercise of the legislative power of the city, and does not conflict with K.S.A. 13-2006. * *

Board of county commissioners may authorize the in- vestment of "idle funds" in . certificates of deposit which are purchased in its name and also authorize the county treasurer to purchase additional certifi- cates of deposit in his or her name and official capacity all pursuant to K.S.A. 12-1675.

The decision of the Board of Supervisors of Panels to Aid Indigent Defendants regarding the amount of com- pensation to which an attorney is entitled to for ser- vices provided to an indigent defendant or movant for post conviction relief after appointment by the dis- trict court is final, and binding upon counsel and the court which appointed counsel, and no payment of com- pensation in excess of that approved by such Board from any fund other than the "aid to indigent defendants fund" is authorized by law.

A proposed contract for purchase of solid waste equip- ment which creates no actionable indebtedness against the county does not violate the cash-basis law. Solid waste service charges assessed under K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 65-3410 do not constitute ad valorem taxes which are subject to the aggregate limitations of K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 79-5001 et seq. * *

A county attorney has no authority by virtue of his office to prosecute violations of city ordinances.

A person who has been adjudged a delinquent, miscre- ant or wayward as a child is not ineligible thereby to hold public office in the State of Kansas.

K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 79-5012 does not authorize the sub- mission to the voters of a question to suspend the aggregate tax limitations of K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 79-5001 et seq. for a specified and particular levy.

Under the statutory authority of K.S.A. 65-3410(a)(4) counties and cities may collect delinquent fees or charges for solid waste collection in the same manner as ordinary county ad valorem property taxes are collected. Such delinquent fees shall constitute assessments against respective parcels of land and are a lien on the property for the amount of such delinquent fees.

The cost of medical treatment provided a prisoner after he is placed under confinement by a sheriff shall be borne by the county when the prisoner is indigent and unable to pay the cost thereof. *

The Kansas industrial revenue bond act does not autho- rize cities which issue bonds thereunder to exercise the power of eminent domain to acquire sites for facili- ties which are financed by the proceeds of industrial revenue bonds.

Fourteenth Amendment to United States Constitution prohibits classification premised solely on alienage without reasonable basis therefor. Citizenship re- quirement in K.S.A. 47-824 is constitutionally im- permissible. *

In order to be effective, a resignation from public office must be made with the intention of relinquishing the office, and it is not effective until it has been accepted by the proper authorities, or until they have done some act equivalent to acceptance. Acceptance is not necessary, however, to effectuate a resignation from a position of employment, as distinguished from an office.

A county mental retardation governing board which does not itself operate a community facility for the men- tally retarded, but which provides mental retardation services only through grants to and contracts with independent nonprofit organizations and facilities is not itself an eligible grantee under the Kansas Community Mental Health and/or Community Facility for the Mentally Retarded Assistance Act.

Unclaimed moneys deposited with the county treasurer pursuant to K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 59-1508 should be held in the custody of such treasurer for a period of ten years. At the end of that. period, all undistributed unclaimed moneys should be remitted to the state treasurer pursuant to K.S.A. 20-2801.

House Bill No. 3038, if enacted, would authorize partial termination of natural gas leases for breach of a condi- tion imposed on such leases by the bill itself, and thus, if enacted, could not constitutionally be applied to any lease executed prior to the effective date of such law. * *

The hearing held by the fact-finding board appointed by the Public Employee Relations Board pursuant to K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 75-4332(c) is required by the Kansas open meeting law, K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 75-4317 et seq., to be open to the public.

A member of the retirement system who has reached and passed either the normal or, mandatory retirement age prescribed by the act, but who has not yet retired and applied for monthly benefits thereunder, may elect to withdraw his or her accumulated contributions therefrom in a lump sum.

Contracts for services of professional consulting engineers entered into by the Secretary of Transpor- tation pursuant to K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 68-407 are subject to the competitive bidding requirements of K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 75-3737, and may not be obtained by negotiation.

November 9, 1976 ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 76- 339 Mr. Calvin A. Strowig Chairman Governmental Ethics Commission 109 West Ninth Topeka, Kansas 66612 Re: Governmental Ethics--Information--Confidentiality Synopsis: The Governmental Ethics Commission is authorized to transmit inf…

A county may in the exercise of its home rule powers under K.S.A. 19-101a amend the application of K.S.A. 47-441 and -442 to such county by charter resolution.

The reimbursement liability of the county under K.S.A. 19-261 extends to the reimbursement of the total costs of furnishing ambulance service incurred by the taxing subdivision, regardless of the recoupment of all or any portion of those costs through service charged, in the proportion mandated by statute. There is no provision for alteration of the reimbursement rights of taxing subdivisions by contractual adjustments therein. *

The fact that those bonds issued pursuant to K.S.A. 12-1740, et seq. do not constitute general obligations of the issuing municipality prohibits the application of those statutory provisions contained in Chapter 10 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated to industrial revenue bonds. Thus, municipalities which issue bonds pursuant to K.S.A. 12-1740 are not required to record such bonds in the register maintained pursuant to K.S.A. 10-107. * Dear Mr. Stockwell:

A foreign conviction shall not be utilized to increase the penalty upon subsequent conviction in Kansas under the Uniform Controlled Substances Act. * * Dear Mr. Hahn:

An attorney at law may appear and prosecute or defend a claim in his or her own behalf under the Small Claims Procedure Act, K.S.A. 1975 Supp. 61-2701, for in doing so, such person does not act as an attorney, i.e., as a representative or agent of another person.

The penalty of $5.00 per day for each day after November 1 that the county clerk fails to deliver the certified tax roll to the county treasurer is mandatory, and may not be waived or excused by the board of county commissioners.

The preparation of a resolution respecting the estab- lishment of a county sewer district falls within the statutory duties of the county attorney for which no additional compensation is required.

Under K.S.A. 75-107, the Governor is empowered to acknowledge acceptance by the United States of exclu- sive legislative jurisdiction over federal military reservations in the state, and no further steps are required to perfect the cession of such jurisdiction.