Request By:
Mr. J. R. Williamson
Magistrate, District 3
Flat Lick, Kentucky 40935
Opinion
Opinion By: Robert F. Stephens, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
In your letter of April 17 you explain that a majority of the Knox County Fiscal Court had approved use of the newly purchased grader in only four of the eight county districts, and you requested our opinion as to what legal grounds are available to compel use of the grader throughout the county. It is the opinion of this office that on the facts as presented there are no legal grounds compelling use of the grader on a countywide basis.
Pursuant to KRS 67.080 the fiscal court is empowered to "provide for the good condition of the highways in the county." In furtherance of this power the fiscal court is authorized to purchase machinery from the county fund or from the proceeds of bonds issued for such purposes. KRS 179.170. The "county may construct, reconstruct and maintain its roads and bridges by means of road and other machinery in any manner the fiscal court provides. . . ." KRS 178.130.
In exercising the powers here listed the fiscal court is constrained only by the fact that it must act as a body. Leslie
County v. Keith, 227 Ky. 663, 13 S.W.2d 1012 (1929). KRS 67.040(3) requires that a quorum be present at the meeting of the fiscal court and that a majority of those members present approve the proposed action. A quorum is present when a majority of the fiscal court members are present. If a quorum was present at the meeting of the Knox County Fiscal Court and a majority of those present approved the proposition that the grader should be used in only the four districts, that act is valid and binding.
Inasmuch as KRS 67.080 is a discretionary statute giving the fiscal court the authority to see to the condition of county roads, there are no legal grounds compelling the fiscal court to make machinery available for usage on a county-wide basis. The fiscal court in its discretion may authorize the use of machinery on a limited basis.
The facts, as presented, are insufficient to determine if there would be any grounds for appeal under § 2 of the Kentucky Constitution. If the facts and evidence could be developed such that the action of the Knox County Fiscal Court in assigning the use of the grader to only four districts was arbitrary and absolute within the meaning of the Constitution, there would be a basis for appeal from that action on these grounds.