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Home / ND AG to Legislature – Power not AbsoluteND AG to Legislature – Power not Absolute
Last Updated on Friday, 5 June 2009 11:46 Written by rslcpol Friday, 5 June 2009 11:46
From Bismark Tribune:
Although North Dakota lawmakers are responsible for the state’s budget, they do not have free rein to order the governor how to compile his own suggestions on spending, Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem says.
“Certainly, the crafting of a budget is one of the more complex areas of state government,” Stenehjem wrote in a legal opinion issued Thursday to state Rep. Al Carlson, R-Fargo, the House majority leader.
Spending bills submitted by the governor and executive branch agencies “are just recommendations, and the Legislature has the power to approve, disapprove, or amend these recommendations,” Stenehjem wrote.