A Republican in South Dakota's House of Representatives wants to give the state's attorney general the power to review presidential executive orders and possibly void those considered unconstitutional.
Republican state Rep. Aaron Aylward proposed legislation to give the state's top legal officer the authority to review executive orders, which bypass congressional approval.
Aylward introduced HB 1194, an act "to authorize the review of certain executive orders issued by the president of the United States," the Daily Wire reported Monday.
The proposal stipulated executive orders first would be reviewed by South Dakota's Executive Council of the Legislative Research Board, which then would refer the order to the state attorney general and the governor, according to KELO-TV.
"Once the referral has been made, the attorney general may examine the order to determine whether the state can seek an exemption or declare it unconstitutional," the TV report said.
The proposed bill would allow the attorney general to block implementation of any order deemed unconstitutional if the order pertains to:
- A pandemic or other public health emergency.
- The regulation of natural resources.
- The regulation of the agricultural industry.
- The regulation of land use.
- The regulation of the financial sector through the imposition of environmental, social, or governance standards.
- The regulation of the constitutional right to keep and bear arms.
"This isn't just a President [Joe] Biden issue but rather an overall executive overreach issue that we've been experiencing for a long time," Aylward said.
"The U.S. Congress has abdicated their duty for a long time in different areas. This bill is simply setting up a process to nullify acts that would be unconstitutional. When looking at the U.S. Constitution, the President only has the powers that are laid out in Article II."
Aylward added the bill "would give South Dakota much of its power back."
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