Ahead of a scheduled hearing in Wake County Superior Court, Gov. Roy Cooper’s administration is dropping a lawsuit that challenged the composition of the N.C. Rules Review Commission. Filed in 2020, the lawsuit contends that current law giving the legislature all the appointments on the commission gives that branch of government “an unconstitutional veto authority over rules and regulations issued by the executive branch.” A number of environmental groups were supporting Cooper’s position in the lawsuit. The court filing to dismiss the case doesn’t detail reasons for the move. So I asked the governor’s office to explain. “The Rules Review Commission is clearly an unconstitutional obstacle hampering the ability of the executive branch to carry out its duties,” Cooper spokeswoman Mary Scott Winstead said in an email. “While this particular lawsuit is being dismissed at this time, the governor’s office and executive branch will consider a future challenge to a specific decision by the Rules Review Commission that unlawfully blocks executive action, and the governor will continue to guard against legislative overreach that hurts the people of North Carolina.” |