§ 7. Officers and employees of the assembly. The assembly may choose a
clerk, a sergeant-at-arms and a stenographer. When an appropriation has
been made for the services, temporary or otherwise, of officers and
employees of the assembly and their appointment is not otherwise
authorized by law, the speaker of the assembly may appoint such officers
and employees and fix their compensation, respectively, within the
amount provided by appropriation. The majority leader of the assembly
may appoint a counsel to majority leader, an assistant counsel to
majority leader, a secretary to majority leader, and a clerk to majority
leader. The minority leader of the assembly may appoint a counsel to
minority leader, a clerk to minority, an assistant clerk to minority, a
secretary to minority leader, a clerk to minority leader, an assistant
clerk to minority leader, a ways and means minority clerk, two
stenographers, a clerk-chauffeur and a messenger to minority. In case of
the death or resignation of the clerk of the assembly, or his inability
to exercise the powers and/or discharge the duties of said office,
notwithstanding any other provisions of law the speaker of the assembly
shall appoint an acting clerk or designate the assistant clerk as acting
clerk to serve until a clerk is chosen by the assembly to fill the
vacancy or until the disability shall cease. The acting clerk so
appointed or designated as such shall have and exercise all of the
powers of the clerk of the assembly until a clerk has been chosen and
has qualified or until the disability shall cease.

Whenever the speaker of the assembly is authorized or required, singly
or jointly, to certify or approve warrants or vouchers for the
compensation of any person, it shall be sufficient if he execute the
first such warrant or voucher, and thereafter the same may be certified
or approved by his designee or designees, so long as the rate of such
compensation is not increased, and upon proof by affidavit or otherwise
that the same is due. Such designation shall be in writing and filed in
the office of the speaker and in the office of the comptroller, and
shall remain in effect during the term of office of the speaker unless
sooner revoked by him.

Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the speaker of the assembly
or his or her designee may authorize expenditures to be made from
appropriations or reappropriations made to the assembly ways and means
committee, or the allocable portion of an appropriation or
reappropriation so made to a legislative council, commission or task
force the expenditures from which are for assembly purposes in whole or
in allocable part. The speaker of the assembly may effect such
authorization by filing his or her approval of such authorization with
the state comptroller.