MADISON, Wis. — Multiple Republican lawmakers have come out in support of challenging a new statewide emergency order in the Legislature’s Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules, saying the emergency order is unenforceable.
The lawmakers said the emergency order can’t be enforced until it is approved in the legislature.
Sen. Steve Nass, co-chairman of the JCRAR, said Wednesday that he will be requesting an executive session of the joint committee to consider a motion requiring the Department of Health Services to declare an emergency administrative rule relating to the limits on public gatherings.
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald penned a joint letter to Department of Health Services Secretary-designee Andrea Palm saying that if DHS wants the emergency order to be enforceable, officials must follow the rulemaking process outlined in the Administrative Procedure Act.
“With cases once again rising, it’s clear the governor’s go-it-alone, grab bag approach to responding to the coronavirus has been a failure. We must work together in order to keep our businesses open and our citizens safe,” Vos said in a separate statement. “We would like to request a meeting with the governor as soon as possible to discuss answers to deal with the virus, especially solutions that don’t result in families going bankrupt and thousands being added to the unemployment lines.”
The Republican lawmakers said the emergency order is invalid because of a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling from earlier this year that ruled Palm exceeded her authority when she issued the stay-at-home order near the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
The call from lawmakers comes after a Democratic senator called for Fitzgerald to resign, citing the Legislature’s failure to pass any COVID-19 support bills.
The Republican-controlled Legislature has not passed any legislation since April.
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