Request By:
Honorable Sherman Dean, Jr.
County Judge/Executive
Jessamine County Court House
Nicholasville, Kentucky 40356
Opinion
Opinion By: Robert F. Stephens, Attorney General; By: Walter C. Herdman, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
This is in answer to your letter of May 5 in which you, on behalf of the Jessamine County Fiscal Court, request answers to the following questions:
"1. Jessamine County and the City of Wilmore have a joint planning and zoning Commission in which membership is composed of five (5) members from Jessamine County and five (5) members from City of Wilmore. Jessamine County has a much larger population than the City of Wilmore and needs to know if the membership of the Commission can be based on population actual work load or some other method other than equal division of members?
"2. What procedure is necessary if the City of Nicholasville wants to join the joint planning and zoning Commission and how would membership on the newly composed Commission be determined?"
Our response to your initial question would be in the negative in view of the clear provision of KRS 100.133(2) which reads in part as follows:
". . . If one (1) city only joins with one (1) county, then each shall have equal representation. . . ." (Emphasis added).
In view of the above, it is clear that where only the county of Jessamine and the city of Wilmore have formed a joint planning commission, the membership of said commission must be equally divided. See OAG 68-198. It is only when multiple cities have formed with the county that the membership of the joint planning commission can be varied by agreement among the various participating units. See OAG 70-334.
In response to your second question, it would be necessary for the city of Nicholasville to initiate the interrogation procedure provided in KRS 100.177 with the county and the city of Wilmore, as well as any other cities within the county for permission to participate in a joint planning and zoning commission. Of course, if it is refused permission, then the city can plan independently.