Article V, Sections 9 to 13 of the Oregon State Constitution

We will look at Article V, Section 9 to 13 of the Oregon State Constitution.  Article V is entitled the Executive Branch and mostly defines what the role and responsibility of the Governor is.

Section 9

This section defines that the Governor is commander in chief of the state's military.  These should be commanded in case of insurrection or invasion.  Do you think the military should be called out regarding the invasion of Californians?

Section 10

This section is mostly motherhood and apple pie.  Here is states that the governor must ensure that the laws passed by the legislature, even if they are unpopular, must be enforced and/or implemented.  An example here would be Executive Order 16-12 which mentions that law enforcement is not keeping records as required by statute.  The point here is that when you have a disagreement between the Governor and the Legislature, the Governor can't just not enforce a law that she does not agree with.

Section 11

This section provides for the Executive Branch to write reports and suggest bills to be presented to the Legislature.

Section 12

This section allows the Governor to, in case of emergency, convene both houses of the legislature to consider a specific piece of business.  A quick search didn't come up with any emergency sessions recently, at least in Oregon.

Section 13

This section directs the Governor to transact any required State business.  Further, if there is a need for information from the Administrative (Article VI) or Military departments (Article X), a written request for this information must be acted on by the responsible officers in those departments.