Request By:
Mr. Theron Kessinger
Ohio County Judge/Executive
Courthouse
Hartford, Kentucky 42347
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Charles W. Runyan, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
You raise questions concerning the fiscal court's funding of ambulance service in your county.
The Ohio County Emergency Ambulance Service, Inc. is a Kentucky Corporation created under KRS 273.161, et seq., as a nonprofit, nonstock corporation, for the purpose of providing ambulance service for emergency and general purposes in Ohio County, Kentucky.
A motion was made and passed at a fiscal court meeting on June 24, 1980, providing that any general fund surplus of the county be used solely to fund ambulance service in Fordsville.
You first ask whether such general fund surplus can be expended without a public notice and hearing.
Under KRS 68.290 the fiscal court, under the conditions mentioned, may transfer money from one budget fund to another. However, we are not aware of any Kentucky statutory requirement for a public notice and hearing.
You ask whether the motion providing only for funding ambulance service in Fordsville is legal. On its face it appears that this departure from the county-wide system of ambulance funding might be deemed to be arbitrary. See § 2,
Kentucky Constitution, and Pritchett v. Marshall, Ky., 375 S.W.2d 253 (1963). See KRS 65.710 et seq.
A motion was made and passed on June 24, 1980, proposing to amend the Ohio County budget such that $7,000 in the revenue sharing account be transferred into an account funding ambulance service in Fordsville.
We have covered questions arising in this motion above. An amendment of the budget may be effected under KRS 68.280 to provide for expenditure of unanticipated income. That has no application here. We have dealt with a transfer of funds under KRS 68.290, above.
Of course, prior to the adoption of the county budget by fiscal court, under KRS 68.260, the county judge/executive is required to cause a copy of the budget to be posted in a conspicuous place in the courthouse near the front door, and be published pursuant to KRS Chapter 424, at least 10 days before final adoption by the fiscal court. Any taxpayer or group of taxpayers may petition the fiscal court in respect to the budget or any part thereof before final adoption.
It is true that counties receiving revenue sharing funds must hold a public hearing on the proposed or possible uses of the money and a public hearing on the budget, i.e., one public hearing on the county's proposed uses for entitlement funds in relation to its entire budget. See 31 CFR §§ 51.13 and 51.14, a copy of which is enclosed. It would appear that under the above federal regulations any fundamental change in the budget, by way of a budget item transfer, would require an additional public hearing.
A motion was made in fiscal court and passed on August 12, 1980, authorizing the county treasurer to transfer the balance in account #70-C-7A to account #30-C-5 for funding ambulance service in Fordsville. Account #30-C-5 is a flat rate contribution for salaries to be paid in connection with the ambulance service. The account #70-C-7A is a miscellaneous current expenses account.
We have answered this above. Transfers may be made under KRS 68.290; however, the diversion solely for the Fordsville area is doubtful as to legality.