Evers administration hangs up attempts to write emergency rule after Republican backlash

“It just doesn’t make any sense to spend a lot of time doing something we know isn’t going to be successful,” the governor said.

MADISON, Wis. — Gov. Tony Evers’ administration isn’t trying for a new emergency rule to replace the defunct “Safer at Home” order, the governor said Monday.

“It just doesn’t make any sense to spend a lot of time doing something we know isn’t going to be successful,” Evers told reporters.

The administration pulled its scope statement – the outline for the emergency rule mandated by state law – after criticism from a Republican lawmaker who has the power to throw out the rule.

The administration put out its statement of scope last week, showing its intent to draft a rule similar to #SaferatHome. It was going to be published today. Now it’s back to square one. Until the new rule is in place, there is no statewide response to the coronavirus https://t.co/eAhrOImeqt

— Amy Reid (@amyreidreports) May 18, 2020

After Evers approved the statement from DHS last week, Sen. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater, the co-chair of the legislative Joint Committee on the Review of Administrative Rules, told him to withdraw it.

“DHS is needlessly creating a political fight that does nothing to move the state forward on the legal and proper path of fighting COVID-19,” Nass wrote in a statement.

Republicans have yet to produce a plan for how the state should move forward, but Assembly Democrats last week proposed ideas for healthcare, the economy and voting. Their proposal includes Medicaid expansion, hazard pay for healthcare workers, tax cuts for essential workers, grants for small businesses and vote-by-mail legislation.

Rep. Melissa Sargent, D-Madison, said these ideas aim to be a starting point for future discussions.

“We absolutely need to be having real, pragmatic conversations so that we can keep our communities safe,” she said. “At the same time, we can provide a path forward for our businesses.”

Previously the speaker of the Assembly, Rep. Robin Vos, R-Rochester, called for a bipartisan reopening plan, but he said he preferred a regional approach. His office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.

Without a statewide rule, that regional approach will likely inadvertently be the way Wisconsin handles the virus going forward.

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