Missouri Attorney General Opinions

Training funds collected under Section 590.140, RSMo Supp. 1988, cannot be used to pay a private business to develop personnel and jail administration policies but can be used to train department personnel on such policies.

The curriculum for the training program for newly-elected sheriffs required by Sections 590.170 and 590.175, RSMo, need not be identical to the curriculum for the training program for peace officers required by Sections 590.100 to 590.150, RSMo, and newly-elected sheriffs must complete the required training by the end of the six-month period after their election as sheriff.

A municipal housing authority, established under Chapter 99, , which does not own or maintain property or projects as defined in Chapter 99, RSMo, is subject to the requirements of Section 99.055, RSMo Supp. 1988, that the board of commissioners conduct an annual audit and hold public hearings.

(1) The “grandfather” provisions in Section 590.115, RSMo Supp. 1988, exempt certain peace officers and reserve officers from being certified, and the director of the Department of Public Safety may not issue a certificate to such officers unless the officers have completed the required training, (2) the director may establish training requirements for reserve officers who are exempt from certification, but voluntarily choose to seek certification, (3) under subsection 2 of Section 590.115 only peace officers who were working as a peace officer prior to December 31, 1978, and were working for the same department after August 15, 1988, as they were working for on August 13, 1988, are exempt from certification, and (4) reserve officers appointed after August 15, 1988, must receive the same training as peace officers in order to be certified.

It would be a conflict of interest, as a matter of public policy, for a county assessor to appraise property in his individual capacity as a private appraiser within the county for which he serves as county assessor.

The phrase “duly chartered educational institution” as used in Section 345.025.1(1), RSMo 1986, does not include preschool entities, day care centers and rehabilitation centers which are primarily custodial but include educational or instructional terms in their charters, and the phrase “in the employ of” as used in Section 345.025.1(1) does not include independent contractors.

The sentence in Section 77.450, RSMo 1986, providing “[t]he council shall approve the person recommended by the mayor” grants the council discretion to approve or disapprove the person recommended.

Opinion letter to The Honorable D. Blunt

Opinion letter to The Honorable D. Blunt

Opinion letter to The Honorable D. Blunt and The Honorable Margaret Kelly,

Opinion letter to The Honorable D. Blunt

Opinion letter to The Honorable D. Blunt

Opinion letter to The Honorable D. Blunt

Opinion letter to The Honorable Ted House

Opinion letter to The Honorable Anthony D. Ribaudo

Section 375.936(11)(b), RSMo 1986, is not applicable to self insured governmental medical care plans.

A county collector in a third class, nontownship county collecting taxes pursuant to Section 242.540, RSMo 1986, for drainage districts organized in circuit court must collect on behalf of the county the fees provided for in Section 52.275, RSMo Supp.1988, and deposit these fees into the county general revenue fund, unless the collector and the county have contracted to allow the collector to retain these fees, or a part of them, pursuant to subsection 3 of Section 52.269, RSMo Supp. 1988.

Opinion letter to The Honorable D. Blunt

Opinion letter to The Honorable D. Blunt

1. Section 175.020, RSMo 1986, requires that one of the nine members of the board of curators of Lincoln University be a full-time student at Lincoln University and this “student curator” is vested with the same powers, duties and responsibilities as are the other eight members of the board of curators. 2. The “student curator”, pursuant to Sections 175.020 and 175.030, RSMo 1986, receives from the ordinary revenues of the university his actual expenses for attending the meetings of the board of curators; however, the “student representative” under Section 175.021, RSMo 1986, is prohibited by subsection 6 of that section from receiving expenses. 3. The “student curator” is prohibited from entering into employment as a research assistant or departmental tutor in one of the academic departments at Lincoln University; however, there is no such prohibition in regard to the “student representative” entering into such employment. 4. The board of curators at Lincoln University consists of nine members, and no more; one of those members being the “student curator” provided for in Section 175.020, RSMo 1986.

If a public governmental body retains copies of records of the information set out in Section 290.290, RSMo 1986, they are public records as defined in Section 610.010(4), RSMo Supp. 1988, and must be made available for inspection and copying pursuant to Section 610.023, RSMo Supp. 1988.

A constitutional charter city has the power to alter its boundaries so as to exclude territory from its corporate limits and such city is empowered to develop its own procedures to accomplish this.

(1) A county assessor who retains as an employee a relative within the fourth degree, by consanguinity or affinity, which relative was employed by the prior county assessor, does not violate Article , Section 6 of the Missouri Constitution, the nepotism provision, and (2) pay increases or increases in other benefits incidental to the original employment do not result in the county assessor violating the nepotism provision.

Harrison County can increase the sales tax authorized by Section 67.547, RSMo Supp. 1988, from one-fourth of one percent to one-half of one percent if authorized by a majority vote of the governing body and approved by the majority of the voters casting a vote on the proposal when submitted at a county or state general, primary or special election.

Opinion letter to Charles E. Kruse

Pursuant to Section 79.230, RSMo 1986, the board of aldermen of a fourth class city may not employ special counsel without approval of the mayor.

A third-class county is not authorized to grant money without restriction to a private entity such as a chamber of commerce.

Opinion letter to The Honorable Joe McCracken and The Honorable Ken Legan

Opinion letter to The Honorable Raymond W. “Bill” Hand

Section 408.052, RSMo 1986, does not prohibit “late charges” on residential real estate loans when loan payments are untimely made.

Opinion letter to Dennis W. Smithmier

Land separated from an existing airport by a public road or highway and located in the same county as the county which created the airport authority is “adjacent to the existing airport” as that phrase is used in Section 305.307.2, RSMo 1986.

1. The Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, as applicable to this state through the Fourteenth Amendment, prohibits county health centers from providing speech therapy services and certain public health lectures to the students of sectarian schools on the premises of those schools during normal school hours. 2. Neither the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, nor Article I, Sections 6 and 7, nor Article IX, Section 8, of the Missouri Constitution prohibit county health centers from providing diagnostic and screening health services to the students of sectarian schools, whether or not on the grounds of those schools.

Opinion letter to Robert B. Paden

A county which provides health insurance to some of its elected officials is not required to provide health insurance to the county surveyor.

The Public School Retirement System of Missouri is authorized by Section 169.040.2(9), RSMo 1986, to engage in an investment procedure known as “securities lending.

Instructors who are employed by a local school district to instruct in programs funded pursuant to the Job Training Partnership Act, 29 U.S.C. Section 1501 et seq. , are “teachers” as that term is defined in Section 168.104(7), RSMo 1986, of the Missouri Teacher Tenure Act.

Directors of a fire protection district are eligible for health insurance benefits from the fire protection district pursuant to the provisions of Section 67.150, RSMo 1986.

(1) Based on the principles stated in Paul S. Davis v. Michigan Department of Treasury , No. 87-1020 (U.S. March 28, 1989), taxation of retirement benefits of federal civil service and military retirees under current Missouri income tax statutes is invalid, and (2) the State of Missouri must recognize timely income tax refund claims filed by federal civil service and military pensioners.

1. In a first or second class county or in a third or fourth class county whose board of education has adopted written compliance with Section 302.272, RSMo Supp. 1988 , Section 167.242, RSMo Supp. 1988 exempts an individual transporting four or fewer students in a privately owned automobile from being licensed as a school bus operator or as a chauffeur while under contract to transport with a public school or the State Board of Education. 2. There is no requirement under Section 167.242 that the operator be paid compensation for the exemption to be applicable but the operator must have a legally valid contract to transport. 3. A public school district employee's contract would be considered a “contract to transport” under Section 167.242 only if it contained an express provision regarding the employee's responsibilities to transport school children. 4. In a first or second class county or in a third or fourth class county whose board of education has adopted written compliance with Section 302.272, Section 167.242 does not exempt an individual transporting four or fewer students in an automobile owned by the school district from being licensed as a school bus operator because the exemption applies only to automobiles which are privately, not publicly, owned; therefore, the operator would be required to obtain a school bus operator's permit.

Fees charged by educational entities to provide coursework for high school credit, delivered to students via interactive satellite communication systems, must be paid from either the free textbook fund or the incidental fund.

Opinion letter to Frank V. DiMaggio

The Public Administrator appointed for Buchanan County on June 19, 1987 is to be paid for 1987 a pro-rata portion of the four thousand dollars ($4,000.00) authorized by Section 473.739, RSMo 1986, based on the time served in office.

Under Section 115.291, RSMo 1986, a notary public, or any other person of the voter's choice, may assist a voter in voting his absentee ballot if the voter is blind, unable to read or write the English language or physically incapable of voting his ballot.

Opinion letter to The Honorable Fred B. Brummel

A private physician who, for compensation, furnishes medical consultant services to a facility of the Division of Family Services for three or four hours a week is “holding any other … employment under the state of Missouri” within the meaning of Section 191.400, RSMo 1986.