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Responsibilities of the Office of Lieutenant
Governor
A lieutenant governor may be derive
responsibilities one of four ways:
from the Constitution, from statute (the
Legislature), from the governor (thru
gubernatorial appointment or executive order),
thru personal initiative in office, and/or
a combination of these.
The principal and shared constitutional responsibility
of every NLGA member is to be the first
official in the line of succession to the
governor’s office.
Lieutenant governors are the
only officials with specific duties and
powers in two branches of state government:
the executive and legislative branches.
More than half of the NLGA members preside
over their state senate. Most pursue legislative
initiatives; many testify locally and/or in
Washington D.C. in various capacities; some
serve on the governors’ cabinets; and others
maintain varied portfolios of duties.
The office of lieutenant governor is
possibly the most diverse office across
state governments. Each state and
individual officeholder has the opportunity
to utilize the office to most effectively
meet the states' needs.
In many states, the duties of lieutenant
governor have been increased by legislation
to include the lieutenant governor on state
boards, commissions and task forces. A
lieutenant governor may lead a division,
commission, or department of government
through gubernatorial or legislative action.
In those states where the official next in
line of succession to the governor is a
secretary of state or senate president, the
responsibilities are those traditionally
assigned to the respective offices along
with the succession and acting governor
provisions. The writings, research,
and articles found at
About Lt. Governors provide much more
information on this topic.
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