Name: Michigan Supreme Court strikes down Gov. Whitmer's emergency orders, effective immediately
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Michigan Supreme Court strikes down Gov. Whitmer's emergency orders, effective immediately

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Detroit Free Press LANSING –&nbsp;Emergency orders Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has issued under the Emergency Powers of Governor Act are struck down, effective immediately, the Michigan Supreme Court said Monday in a 4-3&nbsp;order that added an exclamation mark to an Oct. 2 ruling.But new emergency orders that the Whitmer administration has issued through the state health department director&nbsp;— which replicate mask requirements, restrictions on gathering sizes and restaurant capacity, among other features&nbsp;— are not affected by the court's ruling.Monday's Supreme Court ruling is in response to a lawsuit brought by the Michigan Legislature. The Oct. 2 ruling, which was a 4-3 decision striking down the Emergency Powers of Governor Act&nbsp;of 1945, was in response to questions sent to the court by a federal judge handling&nbsp;a lawsuit brought by medical service providers in western Michigan.In Monday's ruling, which is another 4-3 ruling along partisan lines, the high court reversed a&nbsp;2-1 decision of the Michigan Court of Appeals that said Whitmer could use the Emergency Powers of Governor Act to address the coronavirus pandemic."Executive orders issued under that act are of no continuing legal effect," the court said. "This order is effective upon entry."More:More:Monday's ruling means hundreds of thousands of Michiganders could lose their unemployment benefits "in a matter of days," Whitmer spokeswoman Tiffany Brown said. Among the orders struck down, and not replaced by a health department order, is one that&nbsp;extended Michigan unemployment benefits to 26 weeks, up from 20.House Speaker Lee Chatfield, R-Levering, hailed the ruling."Another big win at the Supreme Court today!" Chatfield said on Twitter. "The law is the law, and partisan politics can’t change that. The people will finally have their voices heard in this process. The House is in again tomorrow, and I hope the Governor is ready to cooperate. It’s time to work together!"In a 6-1 ruling, the court denied a request from Whitmer to stay the effect of the court's Oct. 2 ruling&nbsp;until Oct. 30. Since that ruling arose from answers the court gave to a federal judge, rather than from a state court lawsuit, there was some legal question about when the ruling should take effect.Only Justice Richard Bernstein would have granted the stay, to give the Whitmer administration more time to prepare contingencies. Still, the justices noted the question of delaying the effect of the Oct. 2 ruling&nbsp;was somewhat made moot by Monday's ruling in the state court case brought by the Legislature, which has immediate effect in any case.The court's decision "leaves open many avenues for our governor and Legislature to work together in a cooperative spirit and constitutional manner to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic," the order said.Chief Justice Bridget McCormack dissented from the ruling, saying she does not believe the Emergency Powers of Governor Act represents an unconstitutional ceding of legislative power to the executive branch, as the majority ruled. Justice Megan Cavanagh joined McCormack in her dissent, and Bernstein wrote a separate dissent.Michigan Supreme Court justices are elected on the nonpartisan portion of the Michigan ballot, but they are nominated at state political party conventions. The four Republican-nominated justices&nbsp;— Stephen Markman, Brian Zahra, David Viviano&nbsp;and Elizabeth Clement&nbsp;— all ruled that the Emergency Powers of Governor Act that the governor relied on in issuing her orders is unconstitutional. The three Democratic-nominated justices&nbsp;— McCormack,&nbsp;Bernstein, and&nbsp;Cavanagh&nbsp;— all said that both the law and Whitmer's orders under the 1945 law should be ruled valid.Robert Gordon, the director of the Department of Health and Human Services,&nbsp;issued a sweeping order Friday that largely mirrors statewide mandates previously levied by Whitmer in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.&nbsp;The newly instituted order requires masks at any public gathering with two or more people — including sporting events and schools — for much of the state and maintains restrictions on the number of people who may enter stores or restaurants. Unlike under Whitmer's orders, bars are now allowed to operate but they may only serve alcohol to people who are sitting down and 6 feet apart.Those orders under the Public Health Code are not affected by the court rulings, though they also could face legal challenge.The Michigan Legislature is considering bills that would deal with coronavirus issues not covered by the public health orders. One would replace the Whitmer emergency order affecting jobless benefits.When the Senate passed the jobless benefits bill last week, it "tie-barred" the legislation to another bill providing extra protection to businesses from lawsuits arising from the coronavirus pandemic.When bills are tie-barred, both must become law in order for either to become law.Whitmer, who wants to sign the jobless bill but has said she believes existing liability protections for Michigan businesses are sufficient, said at a Monday news conference she hopes the state House will remove the tie-bar&nbsp;when it takes up the legislation Tuesday.Those relying on the extended jobless benefits are "men and women who have lost work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic who are struggling to pay their bills and put food on the table for themselves and their families," Brown said."Now, we need the Michigan Legislature to get to work," codifying some of the governor's former orders, she said.Another former Whitmer emergency order that has not been replaced by a health order and would need to be replaced by legislative action is one that allows local government bodies to meet remotely.Soon after the order was released, some local governments began canceling meetings scheduled for Monday night."While this is regrettable, it is done out of an abundance of caution," Lansing City Council President Peter Spadafore said&nbsp;in canceling Monday's city council meeting."We are simply not able to set up a safe environment for in-person public participation before the meetings. Combined with today’s ruling and absent clarity from the Michigan Legislature, it is not clear we could satisfy the requirements of the Michigan Open Meetings Act virtually."Patrick Wright, vice president for legal affairs at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, which was involved in the case brought by medical providers, said he hopes the governor and the Legislature will now work together to address the coronavirus pandemic.Though Monday's ruling "affirmed that the court's decision is now law, the governor is continuing to sidestep the ruling by maintaining unilateral control over pandemic policies via broad and poorly defined powers granted in statute to a state department," Wright said."We are currently looking at the legality of the governor's latest actions."Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660 or pegan@freepress.com.&nbsp;Follow him on Twitter .&nbsp; and sign up for our .&nbsp;.

Detroit Free Press LANSING –&nbsp;Emergency orders Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has issued under the Emergency Powers of Governor Act are struck down, effective immediately, the Michigan Supreme Court said Monday in a 4-3&nbsp;order that added an exclamation mark to an Oct. 2 ruling.But new emergency orders that the Whitmer administration has issued through the state health department director&nbsp;— which replicate mask requirements, restrictions on gathering sizes and restaurant capacity, among other features&nbsp;— are not affected by the court's ruling.Monday's Supreme Court ruling is in...

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Paul Egan

The Detroit Free Press is the largest daily newspaper in Detroit, Michigan, US. The Sunday edition is titled the Sunday Free Press. It is sometimes referred to as the Freep (reflected in the paper's web address, www.freep.com). It primarily serves Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Livingston, Washtenaw, and Monroe counties.  The Free Press is also the largest city newspaper owned by Gannett, which also publishes USA Today. The Free Press has received ten Pulitzer Prizes and four Emmy Awards. Its motto is "On Guard for 189 Years".

Michigan Supreme Court strikes down Gov. Whitmer's emergency orders, effective immediately

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