The Honorable Jerry Torr
AGO 2017-1
Official Opinion 2017-1
Indiana Attorney General Opinions
State of Indiana Office of the Attorney General
February 9, 2017
The
Honorable Jerry Torr
The
Honorable Donna Schaibley
Indiana
State House
200 W.
Washington Street
Indianapolis,
IN 46204
RE:
Municipal Regulation of Golf Carts
Dear
Representatives Torr and Schaibley:
You
requested the opinion of the Office of the Indiana Attorney
General (OAG) as to what extent a municipality may prescribe
certain requirements for golf carts operating on public
streets and roadways within its jurisdiction.
REQUESTOR
STANDING
Ind.
Code § 4-6-2-5 contemplates that either house of the
General Assembly may request, by resolution, an official
advisory opinion of the Attorney General as to the
constitutionality of an existing or proposed piece of
legislation. The final clause of that same statutory
enactment grants to the Attorney General the discretion to
render (or decline to render) opinions sought by individual
state legislators about other matters, including questions of
statutory interpretation having statewide significance, and
which are likely to recur while evading judicial review.
QUESTION
PRESENTED
Can a
municipality, operating under Ind. Code § 9-21-1-3.3
("Ordinances Regarding Use of Golf Carts on
Highway"), require golf carts to be outfitted with
safety equipment that, by state law, is required for motor
vehicles generally (pursuant to Ind. Code, art. 9-19),
without violating Ind. Code § 9-21-1-3.3(a)(1), which
prohibits ordinances that "conflict
with or duplicate another state law"
(emphasis supplied)?
BRIEF
CONCLUSION
The
local ordinance in question, which incorporates safety
standards adopted by state statute for the regulation of
full-scale motor vehicles, and applies those standards to the
operation of golf carts on public streets and roadways within
the city limits, is clearly within the municipality's
realm of legitimate authority. Such an ordinance would not
violate applicable statutory provisions because the Indiana
legislature has made clear its intent not to pre-empt local
regulation of low-speed vehicles and golf carts. Further, the
particular ordinance in question does not "conflict
with" or "duplicate" any other state law
within the meaning of Ind. Code 9-21-l-3-3(a)(l), as those
terms have been interpreted most recently by the Indiana
Court of Appeals in Maraman v. City of Carmel,
47N.E.3d 1218 (Ind. Ct.App. 2015), trans, denied, 48
N.E.3d 317 (Ind. 2016).
ANALYSIS
Ind.
Code § 9-19-1-1(a) was amended by Pub. L. 150-2009, Sec.
7, to read, in relevant part:
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