Request By:
Mr. Bert Eyster
Chairman
Kentucky Health Department
269 Main Street
Paris, Kentucky 40361
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
Mr. Frank Gross met with your organization on day 27. He was representing the Kentucky Association of Counties and their public liability insurance plan for county employees. It seems that this plan, as you put it, calls for automatic coverage of all employees who are a part of the county's regular budget.
Your specific question reads:
"Since health departments are supported by special taxing district or special appropriation funds, are they a part of the county's budget? "
Actually, your question is: What is the precise budgetary relationship of a county health department with the central county government?
KRS 68.240 requires the fiscal court, in enacting a county budget, to use, inter alia, the budget unit of "General health and sanitation." See KRS 68.240(2)(c). KRS 67.083(3)(d), specifically provides for county expenditures under the heading of "provision of hospitals, ambulance service, programs for the health and welfare of the aging and juveniles, and other public health facilities and services;" (Emphasis added).
Pursuant to the procedure outlined in KRS 212.040, the fiscal court may maintain a health department. Upon the creation of a county health department, the liscal court is required to appropriate a sufficient amount for the creation, establishment and maintenance of the county health department. See Jefferson County v. Jefferson County Fiscal Court, 269 Ky. 535, 108 S.W.2d 181 (1937) 183; and Estill County v. Noland, 292 Ky. 698, 167 S.W.2d 707 (1943) 709. Under the above budgetary circumstances, a county health department is a creature of the county government. See also KRS 212.080, relating to establishing a county health department by vote of the people.
Thus under the above statutes, the county health department is a legitimate governmental object of the fiscal court's budgeting authority, and thus is a working part of the county's budget when county appropriations are so provided. This is true, although the county health department has a certain autonomy pursuant to KRS 212.245.
See also KRS 212.850, relating to the establishment of and funding of district health departments by fiscal courts.