Governor's office seeks biennial funding for Fargo field representative, interns, AI licenses and children's cabinet support

Ros Layton, chief of staff for the governor, asked the Education and Environment Appropriations subcommittee to approve the governor's office budget request, saying it would maintain current compensation levels and add targeted resources to expand the office's reach and capabilities.

The budget request would: (1) place the governor's salary and associated fringe benefits on a single line with other salaries and wages; (2) add $20,000 in temporary salaries (bringing temporary salaries to $50,000 total) to support an internship program and use the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) matching program; (3) fund a regional field representative based in the eastern metro with a $272,000 compensation package (about $192,000 salary and $80,000 in fringe benefits) for the biennium and $30,000 in rent estimated for office space; (4) increase travel funding by $35,000…