Request By:
Mr. Marcus Mann
Magoffin County Attorney
Old Salyersville Bank Building
Salyersville, Kentucky 41465
Opinion
Opinion By: Robert F. Stephens, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
You ask whether Magoffin County can legally pay a $5,000 per year salary to the assistant commonwealth's attorney. The answer is "yes".
KRS 15.750(1) says that, although the salaries of the commonwealth's attorney and his staff are to be funded out of the state treasury [see KRS 15.760(4)], the statute is not to be construed as limiting, restricting, or terminating the authority of local governmental units, including cities, counties, and urban-counties, to provide financial support for the office of any prosecutor. See also KRS 32.011 and 67.083(3)(q).
We think the above statutes, when read together, authorize a fiscal court to contribute county money to the payment of the salary of an assistant commonwealth's attorney, subject to proper budgeting procedure under KRS Ch. 68.
We think KRS 15.750(1) is rather explicit on this point. The literal wording and ordinary meaning thereof suggest strongly this conclusion. Inter-County Rural Electric Coop, Corp. v. Reeves, 294 Ky. 458, 171 S.W.2d 978 (1943).
Question No. 2:
"If any such money is to be paid to an Assistant-Commonwealth Attorney, should it first be received by and distributed by the State Treasury?"
The answer is "no". The state treasury is the main source of payment. The county treasury is, by statute, a second and independent source. However, as a matter of coordination, we believe the fiscal court should notify the prosecutors advisory council of any such salary action by fiscal court. In this way the P.A.C. can more equitably and uniformly perform its budgetary duties. See KRS 15.750, 15.760 and 15.705.