Request By:
Mr. Phillip D. Scott
Greenebaum, Doll & McDonald
1400 Vine Center Tower
P.O. Box 1808
Lexington, Kentucky 40593-1637
Opinion
Opinion By: FREDERIC J. COWAN, ATTORNEY GENERAL; NATHAN GOLDMAN, ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL
You have asked for our opinion on the proposed purchase by the Kentucky High School Athletic Association of property owned by WHW Venture. Governor Wallace Wilkinson is a general partner of WHW Venture.
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association is a voluntary unincorporated association composed of public, parochial and private secondary schools. Pursuant to KRS 156.070(2) and 702 KAR 7:065, the Association has been designated by the State Board for Elementary and Secondary Education to manage interscholastic athletics in the common schools. The state board must approve the rules, regulations and bylaws of the Association and provide for an appeal to the state board of any decision made by the Association. KRS 156.070(2).
It would appear that the Association is not a state agency. See Ky. High School Athletic
Assn. v. Hopkins County Board of Education , Ky. App., 552 S.W.2d 685 (1977). KRS 45A.335(1) defines agency as:
"any of the departments of the state government, and any division, board, bureau, commission or other instrumentality within such department and any inbdependent state authority, commission, instrumentality or agency, but it does not include a school district or other political subdivision nor an authority, commission, instrumentality or agency created pursuant to compact or agreement between or among the state of Kentucky and another state or states."
Administrative Regulation 702 KAR 7:065, Section 1, designates the Association as the State Board's agent to manage high school athletics. This is the Association's only connection with the State. Section 2 of the regulation approves and adopts the Association's constitution, bylaws, tournament rules, due process procedures and officials rules handbook. These documents put certain duties and responsibilities on the Association. However, we do not believe that they transform the Association into a state agency. See OAG 78-583. where we opined, inter alia , that the Association was not a state agency.
Consequentaly, KRS 45A.340 would have no application to the Association. OAG 87-65 does not opine that Govenor Wilkinson may not do business with non-state entities. As such an entity, the Association may purchase property from WHW Venture without violating KRS 45A.340.