Line-item veto

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In government, the line-item veto is the power of an executive to nullify or "cancel" specific provisions of a bill, usually budget appropriations, without vetoing the entire legislative package. The line-item vetoes are usually subject to the possibility of legislative override as are traditional vetoes.

This power is held by many state governors in the United States of America. As of 2005, all but seven states allow the line-item veto, namely Indiana, Maryland, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Vermont.Template:Fact

The Confederate States Constitution of 1861 allowed the Confederate president the power of a line-item veto.Template:Fact

The President of the United States was briefly granted this power by the Line Item Veto Act of 1996, passed by Congress in order to control "pork barrel spending" that favors a particular region rather than the nation as a whole. The line-item veto was used 82 times Template:Ref Template:Ref by President Bill Clinton.

However, U.S. District Court Judge Thomas F. Hogan decided on February 12, 1998 that unilateral amendment or repeal of only parts of statutes violated the U.S. Constitution. This ruling was subsequently affirmed on June 25, 1998 by a 6-3 decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in the case Clinton v. City of New York.

In his 2006 State of the Union address, President George W. Bush requested that Congress give him the line item veto authority. The proposal has been modified to avoid the constitutional problems of Clinton's line-item veto.Template:Fact

A constitutional amendment to give the President line item veto power has been considered periodically since the Court ruled the 1996 Act unconstitutional.

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