Kansas AG Opinions — 2015

If fantasy sports leagues fall within the definition provided in 2015 Senate Substitute for HB 2155, then fantasy sports leagues are games of skill and therefore are not lotteries. Further, because the Legislature has the exclusive authority to legislate and may determine what conduct may be punished as a crime, we conclude that Section 19 of 2015 Senate Substitute for HB 2155 does not violate the constitution.

K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 75-3721(f) requires that the Judiciary’s budget estimate as submitted to the Director of the Budget shall be included in the governor’s budget report. However, K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 75-3721(f) does not vitiate the governor’s obligation pursuant to K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 75-3721(b) to include a budget message, a recommendation, and draft legislation in the Governor’s Budget Report on each state agency budget estimate as a starting point for the Legislature in the appropriations process.

The portion of a county administrator’s salary directly related to the negotiation of contracts for services necessary to implement the county’s solid waste management plan may be paid out of revenues received from fees collected pursuant to K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 65-3410(a). Fees collected pursuant to K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 65-3410(a) may only be expended for purposes that directly relate to purposes specified in that statute, and not for purposes that are merely incidental to those primary purposes. Cited herein: K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 65-3410; K.S.A. 75-704; K.S.A. 2006 Supp. 65- 3410.

Article 15, § 3d of the Kansas Constitution is not self-executing. Only after the Legislature has exercised its constitutional authority to legislate on the licensing, conduct and regulation it deems appropriate will charitable raffles by certain nonprofit, religious, charitable, fraternal, education and veterans organizations be legal in Kansas. Further, the Kansas Department of Revenue is without authority to promulgate rules and regulations without the Legislature enacting a law authorizing charitable raffles.

K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 21-5419(b) does not violate Section 1 of the Kansas Bill of Rights. Unless a statute is clearly unconstitutional, the Attorney General is required to defend the statute.

A city would exceed the city’s home rule powers by adopting an ordinance that is preempted because it conflicts with a uniform state criminal statute. Thus, the ordinance would be void.

The Personal and Family Protection Act (PFPA) allows state and municipal buildings, public schools, public postsecondary institutions, state or municipal-owned adult care homes, community mental health centers, indigent health care clinics, state or municipal-owned medical care facilities, the Kansas State School for the Deaf and the Kansas State School for the Blind to regulate, restrict or prohibit concealed carry inside those institutions’ buildings.

A county treasurer has the legal authority pursuant to K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 8-145(b) to fund employee positions exclusively or partially working on statutorily imposed state duties without complying with a county commission’s pay plan. To the extent an employee performs state duties, that employee is not subject to the county pay plan. A county treasurer, however, should determine the percentage of time a specific employee devotes to county and state duties, and then calculate salaries based on that percentage.

A person selected by the Secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to serve as a Deputy Secretary in the Division of Environment does not hold a "public office by appointment," and therefore is not prohibited from simultaneously serving as a nonattorney member of the Supreme Court Nominating Commission.

Before vacating a road on its own motion, a board of county commissioners must follow the statutory notice requirements contained in K.S.A. 68-102a. The viewing and report requirements contained in K.S.A. 2015 Supp. 68-104 and K.S.A. 68-106 only apply when a road is installed, altered, or removed following a petition of any adjacent landowner. Cited herein: K.S.A. 68-102; 68-102a; 68-103; K.S.A. 2015 Supp. 68-104; K.S.A. 68-106; L. 1931, Ch. 243, § 2; L. 1981, Ch. 173, § 67; L. 1999, Ch. 146, §§ 1, 2.

The Personal and Family Protection Act (PFPA) does not authorize a city to adopt a “prescreen” process whereby certain members of the public may apply to be approved to bypass security measures at the public entrances to the city hall.

State law preempts local building and electric codes for school buildings as a matter of statewide concern. A city may not condition the grant of a building permit for a school building on compliance with local building codes.

K.S.A. 12-1225(h) authorizes a municipal library organized under K.S.A. 12-1218 et seq. to invest an unrestricted gift or donation in the manner the board believes will best serve the interests of the library, but such investment is not limited to the investments authorized in K.S.A. 2015 Supp. 12-1675. Gifts and donations received by the library board are public funds. Investments must be prudent in order to insure the financial integrity of such public funds, and the library board must retain the power to control the investments and cannot delegate such power to a private entity.

The defense of compliance with the National Firearms Act (NFA) is available to a person in possession of a firearm sound suppressor that is manufactured in Kansas and remains within Kansas state borders. State law requires a person to comply with the NFA if he or she wishes to lawfully possess any firearm sound suppressor in Kansas, including those that are manufactured in Kansas and remain within Kansas state borders.

July 23, 2015 ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 2015- 13 The Honorable Don Hill State Representative, 60th District 1720 Luther Emporia, KS 66801 RE: Counties and County Officers—Hospitals and Related Facilities; Definitions; Deposit of Hospital Moneys, Transfer of Money to Not-for- P…

A member of a community college’s board of trustees shall not be an employee of the community college; there is no provision allowing a member of the board of trustees to defer his or her term while working as an employee of the community college.

The definition of “state or municipal building” in the Personal and Family Protection Act (PFPA) excludes county-owned buildings leased in their entirety by private entities. A private non-profit entity that leases a county- owned building is not required to install adequate security measures in order to prohibit the carrying of concealed handguns inside the building. The PFPA shields private entities from increased liability following the 2013 amendments to the PFPA.

State employees who utilize a private device and do not utilize public resources to send an email from his or her private email account (private email) are not a “public agency” as defined by the Kansas Open Records Act (KORA) in K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 45-217(f). Accordingly, their private emails are not records subject to the provisions of the KORA. Cited herein: K.S.A. 45-216; K.S.A. 2014 Supp. 45-217; K.S.A. 45-218.

January 13, 2015 ATTORNEY GENERAL OPINION NO. 2015- 1 The Honorable John Rubin State Representative, 18th District 13803 W. 53rd Street Shawnee, Kansas 66216 Re: Public Health—Health Care Providers—Do Not Resuscitate Orders or Directives; Definitions; Immunity from Liability Prob…