Request By:
Dr. James L. Booth
Department of Speech and Theatre
Murray State University
Murray, Kentucky 42071
Opinion
Opinion By: Robert F. Stephens, Attorney General; Walter C. Herdman, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
This is in answer to your letter of June 19 in which you raise the question as to whether or not under current law a university professor can become a candidate for state legislature and, if elected, hold said office and at the same time continue to serve as a university professor.
Our response to your question would be in the affirmative in view of House Bill 145, Chaper 16 of the 1978 Acts, which became effective February 23, as emergency legislation.
The Act in question amended KRS 6.800 of the Legislative Ethics Act. Subsection (2) of the amended statute reads as follows:
"(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1) of this section, a legislator may serve on the faculty of any of the state universities or community colleges without resigning his membership in the general assembly. "
Under the above amendment to KRS 6.800, a legislator may serve on the faculty of anys tate university or community college without resigning his membership in the general assembly. Thus, if a member of the legislature can now serve on the faculty of any university or community college, a faculty member can, in turn, become a candidate for membership in the state legislature and, if elected, serve as such and at the same time continue to serve in his university capacity.