Veto procedures and override sessions.
Those were some of the subjects the Legislative Procedure and Arrangements Committee are studying. And it has approved a bill draft to deal with Governor's vetoes.
That was the result of a mistake made when Governor Armstrong had vetoed a small section of a spending bill – which he laid out in a letter. But when the bill itself was returned, an entire section of that bill, containing other spending, had been marked with an “X.”
Attorney General Drew Wrigley ruled the language in the letter laid out the intent of the veto. But some legislators took issue with that.
Legislative Council Legal Division Director Emily Thompson told the Committee the bill draft is meant for clarification.
"If it's a bill that's been vetoed, but only in part, and not a full veto, this states very clearly that the Governor is required to strike, on the base of the bill, any language to which the Governor objects," Thompson said. "Any of those item vetoes are required to be stricken."
Thompson said this is not meant to infringe on the Governor's veto power.
"It's not changing the amount of time the Governor has to veto," Thompson said. "It's not putting any restrictions on what the Governor may or may not veto. It's strictly a procedural bill that clarifies that it needs to be marked. Ideally, they will match — but if it doesn't match, this is directing the public and the Legislature and the courts what would trump if they don't match."
The Committee has forwarded the bill draft to the Legislative Management Committee, which had given the procedures and arrangements panel 90 days to come up with such a draft.
One day veto override session?
The Committee is also discussing whether to recommend that the Legislature set aside a one day session after adjournment to deal with vetoes.
The Legislative Council had written a proposal that one could be called by the Legislative Management Committee after a poll of the members. Under it, if two-thirds of lawmakers agreed, they would come back to deal with the vetoes. The Council would do the polling.
But members of Legislative Procedures and Arrangements weren’t keen on that idea.
"The decision to override a veto — it's part policy analysis, but politics are involved," said Senate Majority Leader David Hogue (R-Minot). "I would hate to see the Legislative Council get involved in that."
Hogue said the way the Legislature calls itself back for a special session is the caucuses — both parties in both chambers — are polled, and a decision is made after that.
"It's best to stay with that process," Hogue said. But he did like the idea of a one-day session, set aside for overriding vetoes. That was suggested by Sen. Kristin Roers (R-Fargo).
The matter will be discussed again at the next Committee meeting.
