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Governor Gretchen Whitmer has asked the Michigan Supreme Court to clarify the order that eliminated her authority to extend the COVID-19 state of emergency in Michigan.
Whitmer wants justices to explain exactly when the authority ends. She has maintained that there is a grace period during which she has the right to ask for a rehearing on the case, and that the order should not take effect until after that happens. State Republican leaders say the order should have immediate effect, thereby negating all executive orders that have governed life since the pandemic began.
Whitmer has called for the court to respond immediately.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has suspended enforcement of the executive orders, until the high court clarifies the timeline.
If the effect is immediate, it will end enhanced unemployment benefits for as many as 830,000 residents, along with other individual protections included under Whitmer’s orders, unless the legislature passes bills that would continue them.
Yesterday afternoon, Republican House Speaker Lee Chatfield said he would call the House back into session, to open negotiations with the governor and the State Senate on a pathway forward.
On Saturday, however, Republican Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey told Crain’s Detroit Business that he does not believe there is a current health crisis in Michigan, and sees no need for the legislature to move quickly.
Meanwhile, other governmental units are stepping in to fill the vacuum.
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Director Robert Gordon yesterday used his agency’s authority to restrict gathering sizes, require face coverings in public spaces and place limitations on bars and other venues. Specifics include:
• Masks must be worn at all gatherings, indoor and outdoor, when members of two or more households are present. Businesses and governmental offices are required to enforce the rule. The rule also applies to all children in school in areas of Michigan in Phase Four, including the Upper Peninsula.
• Limitations on the size of public gatherings mirror those that were in place under Whitmer’s executive order.
• Bars may operate, but must close indoor common areas where people can congregate, dance or otherwise mingle. Indoor gatherings are prohibited anywhere alcoholic beverages are sold except for table services where parties are separated from one another by at least six feet.
Read the full order here.
Gordon says MDHHS’ authority is well-established, longstanding, and was affirmed more than a century ago during the 1918 influenza pandemic. It is not affected by the recent Michigan Supreme Court decision.
Violations of the MDHHS order are considered misdemeanors, and are punishable by fines of up to $200, up to six months’ imprisonment, or both. Civil fines of up to $1,000 can also be assessed.
In addition, some county health departments have begun issuing their own orders. Mandatory mask requirements are now in place in Washtenaw, Oakland and Ingham Counties, effective almost anytime one leaves one’s residence. Local health departments are empowered to issue restrictions under a 1978 law.
The Western Upper Peninsula Health Department has not issued any such orders – for now. In a release yesterday, officials said that, “at this time, the WUPHD stresses the importance of consistency and keeping core COVID-19 mitigation strategies in place while guidance that is more specific is developed. At a minimum, these strategies include proper mask use, social distancing, frequent handwashing, and staying home if you are sick.”
