AGO 85-12.

• Case Date: August 02, 1985
• Court: Colorado

Colorado Attorney General Opinions 1985. AGO 85-12. August 2, 1985Department of Law Attorney General Opinion FORMAL OPINION of DUANE WOODARD Attorney General Opinion No. 85-12 AG Alpha No. LO AD AGAOM Morgan Smith Executive Director Department of Local Affairs 1313 Sherman Rm. 518 Denver, Colorado 80203 RE: Application of Colo. Const. art. XII, sec. 13 to the tourism boardDear Mr. Smith: I am writing in response to your request of July 3, 1985 for an attorney general opinion. QUESTION PRESENTED AND CONCLUSION Is the Colorado Tourism Board (board) subject to the rules of the personnel system of the State of Colorado? The answer is yes. The board must follow the rules of the state personnel board. ANALYSIS The question in this case turns upon whether the board is a state agency or a political subdivision. I conclude that the board is a state agency which is subject to the rules of the state personnel board. Generally, statutes creating political subdivisions with statewide authority expressly specify that they are a separate political bodies and not agencies of the state. Application of Oklahoma Turnpike Authority, 416 P.2d 860, 868 (Okla. 1966); Siddeeq v. Tallahasee Memorial Hospital, 364 S.2d 99 (Fla. 1978). For example, section 35-65-401(1), C.R.S. (1984), which establishes the state fair authority, states: There is hereby created the Colorado state fair authority which shall be a body corporate and a political subdivision of the state. The authority shall not be an agency of state government, nor shall it be subject to administrative direction by any state agency except as provided in this article and except for purposes of the "Colorado Governmental Immunity Act", article 10 of title 24, C.R.S. Similarly, section 29-4-704(1), C.R.S. (1977), which creates the Colorado housing finance authority, states, There is hereby created the Colorado housing finance authority, which shall be a body corporate and a political subdivision of the state and shall not be an agency of state government and shall not be subject to administrative direction by any department, commission, board, bureau or agency of the state. When the legislature creates an entity with statewide jurisdiction which it does not intend to be a state agency, the legislature unequivocally provides that it is a "body corporate and a political subdivision,"...