Montana lawmakers have overridden Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte’s veto of a measure to use cannabis tax revenues to fund the Wildlife Habitat Improvement Program and county roads, the Daily Montanan reports. The veto had been challenged in court by the Montana Association of Counties (MACO), Wild Montana, and the Montana Wildlife Federation who alleged that the governor violated the state’s constitution by waiting until after the state Senate session ended before submitting his veto of the legislation.
The veto was approved by 72 lawmakers in the House and 35 in the Senate, meeting the two-thirds requirement in both chambers.
Montana Wildlife Federation executive director Frank Szollosi told the Daily Montanan that the vote “is a resounding testament that it’s time to stop bickering over the allocation of marijuana tax revenue and instead focus on the will of thousands of Montanans who have vocally championed the policy provisions of SB 442.”
MACO Executive Director Eric Bryson called the move “an important step, as the governor stated he vetoed SB 442 in part because there was no appropriation.”
“Then he vetoed the appropriation when he vetoed HB 868,” Bryson said in the interview. “Those were the Governor’s decisions, in contradiction to the will of the Legislature, and we are thankful for the Legislature’s ability to overturn that action.”
The groups who sued over the veto have not yet pulled their case.
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