Late yesterday, the Wisconsin State Supreme Court issued its ruling on a lawsuit brought by Legislative Republicans challenging the extension of the Safer At Home order. In a 4-3 decision, the Court ruled that the extension was invalid and struck it down. This update will provide information regarding the case and possible next steps on state action regarding COVID-19.
Please visit my Facebookpage andTwitter feed for more frequent updates. As always, do not hesitate to reach out if you have any questions or concerns. Thank you!
In service,
Evan Goyke State Representative 18th Assembly District
Local Orders Remain in Place
The City of Milwaukee Commissioner of Health imposed a city-wide"Stay-At-Home" ruleto prevent the spread of COVID-19 in our community. Suburban municipalities havefollowed suitso that Stay-At-Home orders remain in effect throughout Milwaukee County.
Life in Milwaukee is not much different after the Court’s ruling. Please stay updated on changes that may be made to the City’s order. The City has maintained anupdated websiteregarding its COVID-19 response.
Wisconsin Legislature v. Andrea Palm
Thelawsuitwas brought by “The Legislature” (The lawsuit was filed without any vote or debate, and gave no notice to the legislative Democrats). Andrea Palm is the Secretary-Designee of the Department of Health Services, the agency that issued the extension of the Safer At Home order. This is important because this was not a challenge directly to the Governor, rather to the Department of Health Services.
The Republicans argued that the extension of Safer At Home was a “rule” that should have gone through a process under chapter 227 of the State statutes. That chapter gives the majority party the ability to vote down rules it does not agree with. The Republicans argued this gave them “a seat at the table” in crafting the State’s response to COVID-19.
Secretary Palm argued that the extension of Safer At Home was within her authority under a different statute, chapter 252. Chapter 252 is entitled “Communicable Diseases” and includes the power to “implement all emergency measures necessary to control communicable diseases.” Further, she argued that emergencies need quick and certain responses and that the rulemaking process under chapter 227 is too slow and uncertain to respond to the crisis.
Four Justices (Roggensack, Ziegler, R. Bradley, and Kelly) joined together to form the majority opinion. They concluded that because the extension of the Safer At Home order applied to everyone in Wisconsin, it was a “rule” and further that because the Department of Health Services did not follow the rulemaking procedures, the order is invalid and unenforceable. The ruling took effect immediately yesterday afternoon. Although the order has been struck down, the Justices upheld the provision that states schools will stay closed for the remainder of the current school year.
Three Justices (A.W. Bradley, Dallet, and Hagedorn) dissented. In their opinions, they reached the conclusion that the order should be left in place, though for different reasons. Justices Dallet and A.W. Bradley wrote that the order was not a “rule” and the Department of Health Services was within their power under the “Contagious Diseases” statute to do so. Justice Hagedorn wrote that the Legislature lacked standing to file the lawsuit due to the body having the ability to make the change by passing legislation.
Next Steps
The Court’s decision leaves a great deal of uncertainty for much of the State. As mentioned above, the City of Milwaukee and the suburban municipalities have issued Safer at Home orders that mirror much of the State’s previous order. It’s unclear whether these orders will also be challenged in court (no lawsuit has been filed challenging these local orders yet).
In an interview with Wispolitics.com, Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald signaled that the legislative republicans would not be acting to put their own plan in place, but rather would again wait to see what Governor Evers does. From the story: “While Evers has pushed GOP lawmakers to come up with a proposal of their own, Fitzgerald said he was waiting to hear from the administration. He added the administration could've been working with GOP lawmakers on a rules package while the case was going on, but chose not to.”
While they requested a “seat at the table,” it doesn’t appear that the republicans have brought anything to offer. I will continue to keep you updated if the Legislature decides to act and how those actions will impact our community.
Stay Home and Stay Safe
My office continues to be open and available to support Wisconsinites throughout this public health emergency. Please do not hesitate to reach out if there is anything we can help you with.