Quote:
Originally Posted by fatlazyless
Could Gov Chris Sununu issue an executive order giving the Marine Patrol discretion to enforce this new federal wear-your-boat-lanyard rule or would it require a new state law passed by the legislature and signed by the governor?
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No he cannot, and federal law is not applicable to waterways that are not federally controlled. What could happen is the state legislature could introduce a bill that adopts in part or in whole the language of the federal law as a NH statue\law and put it up for a vote. If passed, only then is it up to the Governor to sign it into law.
The use of executive orders are not intended to circumvent the legislature and take legislative action. Obviously there are under extreme circumstances some aspects of emergency power that come into play but that is an entirely different subject not applicable here. Executive orders have been abused as of late to the point where the intended purpose of executive action and the constitutional limitations placed on them has strayed well beyond it's purpose. The governor and for that matter the President are not absolute rulers otherwise there would be no reason to have a legislature in the first place.