Colorado’s Democratic governor is at odds with the state’s Republican attorney general over her actions opposing several federal laws and it’ll fall to the state Supreme Court to resolve the conflict.

Attorney General Cynthia Coffman announced on Friday that she would join more than two dozen other states in challenging the legality of the Environmental Protection Agency’s new Clean Power Plan.

Jacki Cooper Melmed, chief legal counsel for Gov. John Hickenlooper, said under state law the attorney general cannot take such action without the express approval of the governor. Melmed said the office will file a petition this week asking the court to decide whether Coffman can enter the state into litigation.

“We have a disagreement with the Attorney General about the separation of power and there is only one entity that can resolve it and that is the state Supreme Court,” Melmed said. “Our hope is that once clear we won’t have these problems anymore.”

Coffman said she is an independently elected state officer and there is legal precedent for her office to enter into legal action.

“Our state has chosen to separate the executive powers among other offices and the attorney general is the one who chooses to file a lawsuit on behalf of the people of Colorado,” she said.

Melmed pointed to the portion of state statute that enumerates powers to the attorney general.

The statute reads in several parts that the attorney general is to “prosecute and defend all actions and proceedings, civil and criminal, in which the state is a party or is interested when required to do so by the governor.”

Coffman said she disagrees with the governor’s legal interpretation.

“For us the law is clear in terms of my ability as a separately, independently elected attorney for the state to file a lawsuit or join a lawsuit on behalf of the people of the state,” she said.

She pointed to Colorado’s participation in the constitutional challenge to the Affordable Care Act when Republican John Suthers was the Attorney General and Democrat Bill Ritter was the governor.

“I was here when John Suthers made the decision to sign onto the Affordable Care Act challenge, I can tell you that was not popular with Gov. Ritter and they had discussions about this lawyer to lawyer,” she said.

Melmed said she didn’t know what the conversation was when Suthers joined that lawsuit.

Gov. John Hickenlooper supports the EPA’s plan and has said the state will begin implementing the new federal requirements for power plant emissions. Republicans have opposed the plan and Coffman said it’s an illegal attempt to extend federal power over the states.

Coffman has also legally challenged the Bureau of Land Management’s rules for hydraulic fracturing and the EPA’s clean water act.

Melmed said they will seek a decision on those actions as well. She said the attorney general must commit substantial state resources to these actions, something she cannot do without prior approval.

“I am cautiously optimistic that we can all do our jobs and continue to work together and get this issue resolved and put behind us,” Coffman said. “I think it’s unfortunate that we’re spending the resources and the time of the people of Colorado to have this discussion.”

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Contact Megan Schrader

Twitter: @CapitolSchrader

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Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman. (Denver Post file photo)

Jon Austria