No. 7-80
Opinion Letter to The Honorable James L. Mathewson
Cite as Mo. Op. Att'y Gen. No. 7-80
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..JEFFERSON CITY
..JOHN ASHCROFT
ATTO RNEY GENE:RAL.
65102
May 7, 1980
OPINION LETTER NO. 7
(Answer by Letter-Schroeder)
The Honorable James L. Mathewson
Representative , 113th District
Room 407 , Capitol Building
Jefferson City, Missouri
65101
Dear Representative Mathewson:
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This is in response to your request for our opinion as to
whether the Missouri Dental Board is required by law to draft
certain of its rules in a permissive, rather than prohibitive ,
style or format, to specifically enumerate by list those duties
that dental auxiliary personnel can perform , rather than to
state just the functions which may not be delegated by a dentist
to his dental assistants or dental hygienists , as do the present
rules of the Missouri Dental Board.
The referenced rules are
4 CSR 110- 2 . 120 and 4 CSR 110- 2.130.
Please be advised that Sections 536 . 010-536 . 050, RSMo 1978,
which generally govern the promulgation and adoption of rules
by a state agency , contain no provisions which require that
rules be phrased so as to specifically grant one the authority
to act , rather than to prohibit certain types of conduct .
Like-
wise , we are aware of no other statutory or constitutional pro-
vision , or case law, which requires that a rule be phrased in a
permissive sense, as a specific grant of authority , instead of
a format wherein only certain conduct is prohibited .
The specific
statutory grant of rulemaking authority for the Missouri Dental
Board, contained in Section 332 . 031 , RSMo 1978, contains no such
constraint .
Honorable James L. Mathewson
It is the opinion of this office that the Missouri Dental
Board is not required to draft its rules so as to specifically
list the duties that auxiliary dental personnel can perform,
but may phrase its rules so as to permit or prohibit certain
conduct , as it deems necessary and proper, within the scope of
its rulemaking authority .
Very truly yours ,
~ROFT
Attofney General
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