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SEXTON NOW WITH WHAT BOTH SIDES HAVE TO SAY. >> THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE IS HERE AND THE FISCAL COMMITTEE MEETS OVER HERE. AND RIGHT NOW, THERE IS AN EMERGING DISPUTE BETWEEN THE TWO CONCORD POWER CENTERS ABOUT WHO HAS AUTHORITY OVER $1.25 BILLION IN RELIEF FUNDS COMING FROM WASHINGTON TO FIGHT COVID-19. GOVERNOR CHRIS SUNUNU PLANS TO USE HIS EMERGENCY POWERS TO OVERSEE THE RAPID DISTRIBUTION OF FEDERAL CORONAVIRUS RELIEF FUNDS, BYPASSING THE FISCAL COMMITTEE, THE LEGISLATIVE BODY THAT WOULD NORMALLY HANDLE THAT MONEY. >> IT'S NOT THAT THE FISCAL COMMITTEE CAN'T DO A GOOD JOB, THEY HAVE A VERY IMPORTANT ROLE, BUT NOT NECESSARILY IN THE REALM OF GETTING-- DRAWING DOWN FUNDS AND BEING ABLE TO RELEASE THEM IMMEDIATELY. >> WE'RE PREPARED TO DO THAT, WE'RE PREPARED TO DO THAT SEVEN DAYS A WEEK. >> LAWMAKERS, INCLUDING SENATE PRESIDENT SOUCY SAYS THE FISCAL COMMITTEE SHALL PROVIDE AND ADVISE EVEN DURING AN EMERGENCY. >> THE PEOPLE VOTED FOR GOVERNOR SUNUNU, BUT ALSO VOTED FOR 424 MEMBERS OF THE LEGISLATURE. WE'RE CONSTRAINED IN OUR ABILITY TO MEET IN SESSION. BUT A 10 MEMBER OF JOINT HOUSE AND SENATE MEMBERS CAN MEET ELECTRONICALLY. >> THE GOVERNOR ADVISED A BIPARTISAN LEGISLATIVE ADVISORY BOARD TO PROVIDE A LEVEL OF OVERSIGHT AND TRANSPARENCY AND SENG SOME RELIEF SPENDING ITEMS TO THE FISCAL COMMITTEE. SUNUNU AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS CRASHED WITH DEMOCRATS REJECTING FOR CHARTER SCHOOLS. THE GOVERNOR SAYS EVEN THE POTENTIAL FOR THAT KIND OF GRIDLOCK IS A RISK HE DOESN'T WANT TO TAKE IN A PANDEMIC. >> THE SECOND THAT THAT GETS KIND OF JAMMED UP AND THAT LOG JAM HAPPENS AND WE GET SLOWED DOWN WE THEN HAVE TO ANSWER TO THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE WHY THESE FUNDS ARE AVAILABLE AND NOT BEING RELEASED. >> THIS IS A CONSEQUENTIAL DISPUTE EVEN IF IT PALES IN COMPARISON TO THE OTHER PROBLEM FACING THE SENATE. THE SENATE PRESIDENT SOUCY SAYS SHE'S NOT INTERESTED IN BRINGING THIS TO COURT. BUT OTHER DEMOCRATS ARE FAR MORE DRAMATIC CALLING THE GOVERNOR, A POWER GRAB SAYING NO ONE IS ABOVE THE

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There is an emerging dispute between Gov. Chris Sununu and lawmakers on the Joint Legislative Fiscal Committee about who has the authority to dispense $1.25 billion in COVID-19 relief funds from the federal government. Sununu plans to use his emergency powers to oversee the rapid distribution of federal money, bypassing the Fiscal Committee, which is the legislative body that would normally handle that money. “It's not that the Fiscal Committee can't do a good job. They have a very important role, but not necessarily in the realm of drawing down funds and being able to release them immediately,” Sununu said.Lawmakers, including state Senate President Donna Soucy, point to another state law that says the Fiscal Committee shall provide "advice and consent" on expenditures even in an emergency. "The people of the state of New Hampshire did vote for Governor Sununu, but they also voted for 424 members of the Legislature. Yes, we are constrained in our ability to meet in full session, but we've always had this vehicle — the Fiscal Committee, which is a 10-member joint committee of both House and Senate members — that can meet electronically,” Soucy said.The governor has proposed a bipartisan legislative advisory board to provide a level oversight and transparency and he is sending some relief spending items to the Fiscal Committee. Sununu and committee members clashed late last year over federal education funding, with Democrats rejecting $46 million for charter schools. The governor says the potential for that kind of gridlock is a risk he doesn't want to take in a pandemic.“The second that gets kind of jammed up and that logjam gets slowed down, we have to answer to the people of the state as to why these funds are available and not being released,” he said.Soucy said she's not interested in bringing this to the courts, but other Senate Democrats have been much more dramatic, calling the governor's decision a "power grab" and saying "no one is above the law."