Judges: WINSTON BRYANT, Attorney General
Filed Date: 4/14/1997
Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 7/5/2016
The Honorable Mike Beebe State Senator 211 West Arch Searcy, Arkansas 72143
Dear Senator Beebe:
This is in response to your request, on behalf of a constituent, for an opinion regarding the validity of a municipal ordinance. The correspondence attached to your request poses three questions concerning an ordinance enacted by the City of McRae:
1. Can a city impose criminal penalties for the failure to pay a debt to the Water and Sewer Department or is this ordinance unconstitutional in that it violates the equal protection clauses of both the U.S. and Arkansas Constitutions?
2. If a city may impose criminal penalties for this behavior, is this specific ordinance void for vagueness in that it does not require a mens rea and has a presumption of guilt for the simple nonpayment of a debt?
3. If a city may impose criminal penalties for this behavior, is this power granted by A.C.A. §
14-43-603 , which states that no city of the first class may enact any ordinance that constitutes a felony, but omits mentioning misdemeanors, and is there thus a presumption that cities may enact ordinances that classify behavior as misdemeanors?
It is my opinion that a city may generally establish criminal penalties for the failure to pay a debt to the Water and Sewer Department; however, it is also my opinion that the ordinance enacted by the City of McRae is contrary to state law.
Rather than answer your questions in the order posed, I will initially set out the general authority for a city to establish criminal penalties, and then I will review the specific ordinance enacted by the City of McRae. Municipalities are creatures of the legislature and as such have only the powers bestowed upon them by statute or the constitution. Jones v. American Home Life Ins. Co.,
As noted in the letter attached to your request, A.C.A. §
(a) The town or city council in all cities or incorporated towns in this state are authorized and empowered to prescribe penalties for all offenses in violating any ordinance of the city or town not exceeding the penalties prescribed for similar offenses against the state laws by the statutes of this state.
(b) It shall be unlawful for any town or city council in this state to prescribe, by city ordinance, less severe penalties for all offenses in violation of any ordinance of the city or town than are prescribed for similar offenses against the state laws by the statutes of this state.
A.C.A. §
In addition, I have opined that municipalities have the authority to punish acts which the laws of the state do not make a misdemeanor; however, the municipality may not prescribe a penalty of imprisonment for such offenses. Op. Att'y Gen. No.
Turning to the specific ordinance in question, Ordinance 95-11 of the City of McRae provides in part:
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NUMBER 93-2 SO THAT CRIMINAL PENALTIES ARE IMPOSED FOR FAILURE TO PAY WATER AND SEWER FEES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.
* * *
SECTION ONE: Ordinance #93-2 is hereby amended to add the following language and codified as Section 1 therein:
CRIMINAL PENALTIES: Violation of this ordinance by a users failure to pay their monthly bill in whole or part for a period of sixty (60) days from the date of first billing shall give rise to a presumption that the user/subscriber is engaging in the theft of services. It shall be prima facie evidence that the water/sewer bill was not paid in whole for a period of sixty (60) days from the date of first billing to sustain a conviction.
The subscriber shall be presumed the person responsible for the use and payment of the bill. . . .
Upon conviction of a violation of this ordinance the defendant shall be fined a sum not less than double the amount owing nor more than $1,000.00.
The General Assembly has enacted a law entitled "Theft of services" which provides in part:
(a) A person commits theft of services if, with purpose to defraud:
(1) He purposely obtains services, which he knows to be available only for compensation, by deception, threat, or other means to avoid payment for such services; or
(2) Having control over the disposition of services to which he is not entitled, he purposely diverts such services to his own benefit or to the benefit of another person not entitled to them.
(b) In circumstances where payment is ordinarily made immediately upon the rendering of service, absconding without payment or offer to pay shall give rise to a presumption that the actor obtained the services with the purpose of avoiding payment.
A.C.A. §
The state theft of services statute prohibits an offense similar to the offense prohibited in the City of McRae ordinance. As previously mentioned, a municipality may punish and prohibit any act which the laws of the state make a misdemeanor. A.C.A. §
A municipal corporation is not authorized to pass any law contrary to the general laws of the state. Ark. Const. art.
In addition, the McRae ordinance only provides for a fine if someone is convicted of a violation. The relevant provision of the state statute provides that theft of services is a Class A misdemeanor. A Class A misdemeanor is punishable by a sentence of imprisonment not to exceed one year and/or a fine not to exceed $1,000. A.C.A. §
Finally, the McRae ordinance is contrary to A.C.A. §
The foregoing opinion, which I hereby approve, was prepared by Assistant Attorney General Warren T. Readnour.
Sincerely,
WINSTON BRYANT Attorney General
WB:WTR/cyh
dr-dow-pursley-dr-doty-murphy-rev-mark-brooks-and-rev-paul-sagan-v , 820 F.2d 951 ( 1987 )
City of Little Rock v. Raines , 241 Ark. 1071 ( 1967 )
Pursley v. City of Fayetteville, Ark. , 628 F. Supp. 676 ( 1986 )
State v. Pulaski County Circuit-Chancery Court , 316 Ark. 473 ( 1994 )
Wilkins v. City of Harrison , 218 Ark. 316 ( 1951 )