AGO 1996-166.

• Case Date: March 27, 1996
• Court: Alabama

Alabama Attorney General Opinions 1996. AGO 1996-166. 1996-166March 27, 1996Honorable Dottie Blair Cieszynski Director, Department of Industrial Relations 649 Monroe Street Montgomery, AL 36131 Industrial Relations Department - Unemployment Compensation Law - Collections - Investigators - Debt.Unemployment Insurance Investigators who are peace officers per _ 25-4-146 may be assigned duties relating to collection of non-fraud overpayments made by Department of Industrial Relations, but may not be required to use, or threaten the use of criminal sanctions in doing so. Such assignment will not reduce the law enforcement officer subsistence pay for such InvestigatorsDear Ms. Cieszynski: This opinion is issued in response to your request for an opinion from the Attorney General. QUESTION May peace officers appointed to enforce the provisions of the Alabama unemployment compensation law and other specified state criminal statutes be used to collect non-fraud overpayments as part of their duties so long as they do not use the criminal laws of the State of Alabama for the purpose of collecting civil debt, and only use those civil remedies available under the provisions of the Alabama Rules of Civil Procedure? FACTS, LAW AND ANALYSIS The employees in question have peace officer status because of the provisions of _ 25-4-146, Code of Alabama 1975, as last amended. That statute reads as follows: "(a) Employees of the Department of Industrial Relations classified as unemployment insurance claims investigators and those supervisors charged with the direct enforcement of the fraud provisions of the Alabama Unemployment Compensation Law, as designated in writing by the Director of the Department of Industrial Relations, are hereby constituted peace officers of the State of Alabama with full and unlimited police powers and jurisdiction as any other state police officers in this state, to enforce the provisions of the Alabama Unemployment Compensation Law and those provisions of state criminal law relating to forgery, larceny, embezzlement and fraud when the offense of forgery, larceny, embezzlement or fraud is directly related to a check issued by the Department of Industrial Relations or a check issued in conjunction with a program administered by the Department of Industrial Relations and to maintain order in offices operated by said department. "(b) All claim investigators given arrest...