Request By:
Mr. Phillip R. Spangler
Director
Division of Local Health
Cabinet for Human Resources
Frankfort, Kentucky 40601
Opinion
Opinion By: David L. Armstrong, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
OAG 84-335 deals with the applicability of KRS 424.220 (publication of financial statements) to a "District Health Department. "
A district health department is composed of two or more counties joining together to form a district health department. See KRS 212.840 and 212.850. KRS 212.850(2) provides in part that "When a district department of health is created all powers and duties of the county boards of health, except as otherwise provided in KRS 212.920, under existing statutes are transferred to the district board of health." As you say, the district health department is an organizational unit designed to provide the management for the county health departments making up the district health department.
You apparently believe that certain financial statement requirements contained in KRS 424.220 apply to a district health department.
First, we pointed out in OAG 84-335 that since a district health department is not a taxing district under §§ 157 and 158 of the Kentucky Constitution, KRS 65.070, including the optional publication features of KRS 65.070(1)(c), has no application. See KRS 65.070, defining "district" as used in KRS 65.070, as including public health taxing districts, created pursuant to KRS 212.720 to 212.760. The term "district", as defined in KRS 65.060, and as used in KRS 65.070, does not include district health departments.
Now let us turn to the question as to whether or not the financial statement requirements of KRS 424.220 apply to a district health department.
KRS 424.220 provides in part that "every public officer of any school district, city, county, or subdivision or district less than a county, whose duty it is to collect, receive, have the custody, control or disbursement of public funds, and every officer of any board funds, and every officer of any board or commission of a city, county or district whose duty it is to collect, receive, have the custody, control or disbursement of funds collected from the public in the form of rates, charges or assessments for services or benefits," shall prepare a financial statement etc. (Emphasis added).
Keeping in mind that the district health department is composed of county health departments, the district board of health having all of the powers and duties of the county boards of health (except as provided in KRS 212.920), we note that KRS 212.025 provides that any local health department, with the approval of the Cabinet for Human Resources, may provide home nursing care services and other health services and may charge fees therefor. See KRS 212.230, 212.240, and 212.245, relative to powers and duties of county boards of health and county health departments, which include the disbursement of public funds. See
Jefferson County v. Jefferson County Fiscal Court, 269 Ky. 535, 108 S.W.2d 181 (1937) 183.
CONCLUSIONS
(1) KRS 65.070, relating to publication of financial statements, has no application to a district health department. provisions of KRS 424.220 apply to a district health department.
OAG 84-335, is modified accordingly.