Request By:
Mr. Wendell Moore
Oldham County Judge/Executive
Courthouse
LaGrange, Kentucky 40031
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
Your problem and questions were written as follows:
"Under agreements with the residents of subdivisions the road department provides maintenance to the streets, then are reimbursed by the residents of the subdivision through the road committee.
"My question is how should the reimbursed funds be handled by the treasurer to reimburse the budget road account?
1. Should the reimbursed funds be considered as General Road Revenue to the budget or could these monies be placed directly into the account that was used to pay for the work?
"2. Should reimbursed funds to any of the accounts of the budget be considered as additional income, such as reimbursement for telephone calls, etc?"
As relates to the maintenance of subdivision roads or streets in the unincorporated area of the county, the fiscal court, if it decides to maintain such streets, must do one of two things: (1) By a formal order of fiscal court such streets must be accepted as a part of the county road system, under KRS 178.010, 178.115 or 178.080 or (2) By a formal order of fiscal court such streets must be accepted as a part or the county road system pursuant to KRS 179.470. See
Sarver v. County of Allen, Ky., 582 S.W.2d 40 (1979) 41, 42.
The fiscal court cannot maintain such subdivision streets without formally accepting such streets or roads as a part of the county road system.
Next, as relates to roads accepted as a part of the county road system pursuant to KRS 178.010, residents for a reimbursement of maintenance expenses or costs is not authorized by statute. Further, as concerns roads accepted as a part of the county road system pursuant to KRS 179.470, an agreement with the subdivision residents for a direct money payment reimbursement of maintenance expenses or costs is not authorized by statute.
Roads maintained under KRS 178.010, 178.115, and 178.080, are paid for out of the county road fund. Roads maintained under KRS 179.470 are financed through special assessments made against abutting property owners. For assessment alternatives and account procedure, see OAG 80-636, copy enclosed.
Your letter apparently contemplates direct reimbursement payments from affected subdivision residents, not based upon KRS 179.470. As we said above, that system is not authorized by law.
As we suggested in OAG 80-636, the reimbursement of maintenance expenses of subdivision roads through special assessments under KRS 179.470 would accrue to that part of the county road fund allocated for the maintenance of such subdivision streets, not to the general road fund. In addition, the special assessments are arrived at through the statutory method of assessment, as mentioned in OAG 80-636.
Where the fiscal court adopts the road project under KRS 179.470 before the fiscal court finally adopts the budget, the cost of the road project can be set up under a special road account and mention made that the cost will be paid from special assessments. Where the road project under KRS 179.470 is approved by fiscal court after the budget has been adopted by fiscal court, the budget would have to be amended pursuant to KRS 68.280, as a matter of setting up the special road project and unanticipated revenue by way of the special assessments.