Request By:
Gilbertsville Fire Protection District
Opinion
Opinion By: ANDY BESHEAR, ATTORNEY GENERAL; Sam Flynn, Assistant Attorney General
Opinion of the Attorney General
The Gilbertsville Fire Protection District, through Counsel, requested an opinion of this office as to whether its boundaries may be annexed or encroached upon by another fire protection district established under KRS 75.010 to KRS 75.080. For the reasons set forth below, we do not find that the Gilbertsville Fire Protection District's territory may be annexed or encroached upon in any manner not consistent with the statutory annexation procedures in KRS 75.020.
The Gilbertsville Fire Protection District was established in Marshall County, Kentucky on January 7, 1981 pursuant to KRS Chapter 75. The Marshall County Fiscal Court later expanded the boundaries and territory of the District.
In 1983, the Marshall County Fiscal Court established the East Marshall Fire Protection District and the Palma Briensburg Fire Protection District, pursuant to KRS 75.010 to KRS 75.080.
The Gilbertsville Fire Protection District specifically asks whether either of these later-established fire protection districts, formed under KRS Chapter 75, may annex or encroach upon its territory. We find that they are statutorily-prohibited from doing so.
In 2016, the General Assembly amended KRS 75.020 to expressly prohibit fire protection districts, or volunteer fire department districts, established pursuant to KRS 75.010 to 75.080, from expanding their respective service boundaries or annexing territory contained in another fire protection district, or volunteer fire department district established pursuant to KRS 75.010 to 75.080. See KRS 75.020 . Because Gilbertsville Fire Protection District, like both East Marshall and Palma Briensburg, was formed under KRS 75.010-KRS 75.080, neither may encroach upon or annex its territory under KRS 75.020(4). 1
Footnotes
Footnotes
1 We note that KR575.020(4) allows two fire protection districts to be merged into one protection district. The procedure for such mergers is provided in KR575.020(4)(a)-(f).