Request By:
Benjamin J. Lookofsky, Esq.
Graves County Attorney
Graves County Courthouse
Mayfield, Kentucky 42066
Opinion
Opinion By: Robert F. Stephens, Attorney General; By: Thomas R. Emerson, Assistant Attorney General
This is in reply to your letter asking whether the Symsonia Water District, as a subdivision of the county government which is in turn a subdivision of the state government, is required to pay filing fees to the county court clerk for the filing of easements obtained for water and sewer lines. The water district, organized pursuant to Kentucky statutes and an order of the Graves County Court, is in the process of acquiring easements for the construction of sewer lines within the district.
We assume you refer to a water district organized pursuant to KRS Chapter 74. Such a district is a political subdivision and a quasi-municipal corporation. See Louisville Extension Water Dist. v. Diehl Pump & Supply Co., Inc., Ky., 246 S.W.2d 585 (1952) and OAG 77-329, copy enclosed.
KRS 453.010, concerning the Commonwealth's liability for costs, states:
"No judgment for costs shall be rendered against the Commonwealth in any action prosecuted by or against the Commonwealth in its own right; provided, however, that in any civil action filed in any court of competent jurisdiction by or against the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the costs may be paid by the Commonwealth when such costs are approved and allowed by the judge of the court in which the case was filed. Costs shall not exceed the fees allowed for similar services in other civil actions."
In OAG 68-475, copy enclosed, we discussed KRS 453.010 and the nonpayment of court costs by a political subdivision of the Commonwealth in connection with a lawsuit. However, if we correctly understand your situation, you are referring to the recording fees related to right-of-way easements granted to a water district. We said in OAG 76-532, copy enclosed, that the county clerk should collect $4.50 for recording a deed of easement granted to a water district (assuming the document does not exceed three pages) under KRS 64.010 and $1.00 for the state tax on each conveyance of real property under KRS 142.010 for a total of $5.50. No exceptions are provided for local governmental units.
Thus, in our opinion the water district, even though it is a political subdivision, is required to pay to the county court clerk the applicable statutory fees in connection with the recording of a right-of-way easement granted to the water district.