Alabama Advisory Opinions March 27, 1979: AGO 79-00132 (March 27, 1979)

Advisory Opinion Text

Senator Donald G. Holmes

State Senator 20th District

1915 Robin Hood Drive

Oxford, Alabama 36203

Municipalities - Oxford Civil Service Boards -Public Officers

Member already serving on city Planning Board cannot also serve on Civil Service Board.

Dear Senator Holmes:

Reference is made to your request for an opinion from this office as to whether a member of the Planning Board of the City of Oxford may also be appointed to the Oxford Civil Service Board considering Section 5 of the Oxford Civil Service Act found at Act No. 963, Acts of Alabama 1975, p. 1997.

Section 5 provides:

Any member of the board who becomes a candidate for, or is elected or appointed to another public office vacates his office as a member of the board.

This section prohibits a member of the Civil Service Board from accepting or being a candidate for another public office. Although it does not expressly prohibit one who is already serving in another public office from being appointed to the civil service board, it is the opinion of this office that it was the intent of the Legislature to prohibit any one who is on the Board from serving in another public office at the same time. Thus, it must be determined if a member of a municipal planning board is a public officer within the Act.

In an opinion of the Attorney General to the Honorable R. D. Dickson, dated February 5, 1957, it was stated that a member of a municipal planning commission is a "municipal official". This conclusion was reached by the fact that a "municipal official" is one who holds a municipal position of trust and responsibility with definite municipal powers, duties and privileges. This is basically the same definition on a municipal level as the definition given of a "public officer" in State v. Baumhauer , 244 Ala. 1, 12 So.2d 326, which said that "public officer usually means a person who by lawful authority has been invested with a part of the sovereign function of government and sometimes the person so invested has become an officer of a board or institution..." Using the above definitions, it is the opinion of this office that a member of the city Planning Board is a public officer within the meaning of Section 5 of the City of Oxford Civil Service Act and is prohibited from serving on the Civil Service Board.

If our office can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Very truly yours,

CHARLES A. GRADDICK Attorney General

LYNDA F. KNIGHT Assistant Attorney General.