Land, 111918 KYAGO, AGO OAG 18-17

• Case Date: November 19, 2018
• Court: Kentucky

Sean S. Land, Counsel to Board of Education AGO OAG 18-17 No. OAG 18-017 Kentucky Attorney General Opinion Commonwealth of Kentucky Office of the Attorney General November 19, 2018          Subject: Whether a spouse of a school board member may be employed as a substitute teacher by the school district.          Requested by: Sean S. Land, Counsel to Board of Education of Daviess County          Written by: Taylor Payne, Assistant Attorney General          Syllabus: The spouse of a school board member may be employed as substitute teacher by the school district in accordance with the provisions set forth in KRS 160.380(2)(h).          Statutes Construed: KRS 160.180; KRS 160.380          OAGs cited: OAG 92-160           OPINION OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL          On behalf of the Board of Education of Daviess County, attorney Sean S. Land requests an opinion from this office as to whether a spouse of a school board member may be employed as a substitute teacher by the school district. We advise that the spouse of a school board member may be employed as a substitute teacher in the school district in accordance with the provisions set forth in KRS 160.380(2)(h).          In 1990, as part of the Kentucky Education Reform Act, the legislature enacted an anti-nepotism statute for school board members, KRS 160.180. OAG 92-160. That statute provides, in part: "No person shall be eligible for member-ship on a board of education: . . . (i) Who has a relative as defined in this subsection (1) of this section employed by the school district. . . ." KRS 160.180(2)(i). Under the Act, the legislature also "removed the school board from direct personnel involvement and placed the employment decisions in the hands of the superintendent." OAG 92-160 (citing KRS 160.270 and KRS 160.380(l)(a)). To that end, the legislature also prohibited a superintendent of a school district from employing a relative of a school board member. See KRS 160.380(2)(f).          During the 2017 General Session, the General Assembly amended KRS 160.380(2), adding subsection (h), which states:          A...