Request By:
Mr. J. Stewart Schneider
Assistant Commonwealth Attorney
32nd Judicial Circuit
P.O. Box 491
Catlettsburg, Kentucky 41129
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Walter C. Herdman, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
This is in response to your letter of January 8, in which you relate that you are presently serving as Assistant Commonwealth Attorney in Boyd County. At the same time you have been offered a teaching position at the Ashland Community College and all your teaching would be at night. Under the circumstances you raise the question as to whether or not there would be any incompatability or conflict of interest if you held both positions at the same time.
Our response to your question would be in the negative. Your teaching position at the Ashland Community College would create a form of state employment. At the same time your position as Assistant Commonwealth Attorney constitutes a state office. Neither Section 165 of the Constitution nor KRS 61.080 prohibits a person from holding two state offices at the same time or a form of state employment and a state office at the same time. See
Coleman v. Hurst, 226 Ky. 501, 11 S.W.2d 133 (1928).
We also perceive no common law conflict conflict insofar as performing the duties of both positions at the same time because of the nature of the responsibilities and the fact your teaching position would be in the evening after normal working hours.
We, therefore, believe that you can accept the teaching position at the Community College and at the same time continue to serve as Assistant Commonwealth Attorney.