Mississippi Advisory Opinions March 07, 2008: No. 2008-00075 (March 7, 2008)

Mississippi Attorney General Opinions

2008.

No. 2008-00075.

DOCK: 2008-00075

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Dear Ms. Dill:

Attorney General Jim Hood received your letter of request and assigned it to me for research and reply.

Background

You state that you anticipate a referendum will be ordered by the Tishomingo County Board of Supervisors on the issue of whether a new water district will be created in the county pursuant to Mississippi Code Annotated Section 19-5-151 et seq. (Revised 2003). You state that, in accordance with Section 19-5-157, the referendum could be held as soon as thirty days from the date of the Board's order.

We understand that a proper petition protesting the creation of the water district in question thereby forcing a referendum on the question was filed pursuant to Section 19-5-157.

Issues Presented

You ask the following questions:

1. Will absentee voting be allowed, and if so, what would the time frame be for absentee voting?

2. What notice should I give for voter registration cut-off?

3. Will the poll managers for this election be from our county precinct where the district will be located, or will they need to be residents from that particular area designated as the water district? and

4. Is a simple majority vote required in order to require the creation of a new water district?

Responses

In response to your first question, absentee voting is required for this type of election and since it appears that the election may be ordered and set for a time that will not allow for the normal forty-five day absentee voting period, absentee voting would begin as soon as ballots could be prepared.

In response to your second question, we find no statutory requirement that a county registrar give notice of a voter registration deadline that must be met in order for one to be eligible to vote in a particular election.

In response to your third question, the poll managers must only be qualified electors of the county.

In response to your fourth question, there must be a three-fifths vote in favor of the creation of the proposed water district in order for the district to be created.

Applicable Law and Discussion

Section 23-15-715 authorizes any elector who desires an absentee ballot to make application for same.

It provides in part:

. . . except that if the ballot has not been printed by forty-five (45) days preceding the election, the elector may appear and file an application anytime before the election. Then the absentee ballot shall be mailed by the circuit clerk to the elector as soon as the ballot has been printed.

We have previously opined that it is permissible to prepare "in-house" absentee ballots rather than waiting on the regular printing and possibly disenfranchising voters, provided that any such ballots are strictly accounted for. MS AG Op. Fortenberry (September 27, 1995).

In regard to the poll managers, Section 23-15-231 provides in part:

. . . Provided, however, any person appointed to be manager or act as manager shall be a qualified elector of the county in which the polling place is located.

In regard to the "super majority" vote required to create a water district, Section 19-5-159 provides:

If no petition requiring an election be filed or if three-fifths (3/5) of those voting in said election provided in Section 19-5-157 vote in favor of the creation of such district, the board of supervisors shall adopt a resolution creating the district as described in the resolution of intention.

Sincerely,

JIM HOOD, ATTORNEY GENERAL

By: Phil Carter

Special Assistant Attorney General