Lamont extends emergency powers to February, over GOP objections

As expected, Gov. Ned Lamont has signed an executive order that extends the state”™s public-health emergency through Feb. 9 ”“ a move that is receiving some pushback from state Republican leaders.

The governor said the extension is meant to retain the numerous restrictions he has signed to address the Covid-19 pandemic. Those restrictions wereset to expire on Sept. 9, six months after he declared the emergency in March. The Feb. 9 deadline comes one month after the General Assembly reconvenes on Jan. 9.

“We”™ve come a long way from where we were when Covid-19 first hit Connecticut back in March, and working with our public health officials, other stakeholders, and residents, we”™ve built an infrastructure that has taken our state to one of the lowest rates of transmission in the country,” Lamont said. “But Connecticut is not out of the woods yet, and the executive orders we”™ve put in place remain critical in our daily fight to contain Covid-19.

“Bringing an abrupt end to this state of emergency at this time would cripple our ability to quickly respond to new challenges and risk the hard work and sacrifices everyone has made to protect our state from this disease,” he continued. “Over the next several months, our administration will continue working with our partners in the legislature, in our municipalities, in our nonprofits, in our long-term care facilities, and in our hospitals to collaboratively combat this virus.”

Lamont said he made the decision after speaking with legislative leaders ”“ conversations that also included the shape of a potential special session in September.

GOP balks

But while Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano (R-North Haven) and House Minority Leader Themis Klarides (R-Derby) said they agreed that some regulations ”“ such as social distancing, wearing face coverings and limiting capacity in restaurants ”“ should remain in place, they questioned Lamont”™s characterization of their discussions.

“It was never decided that any legislative leader would vote in favor of extending the governor’s powers,” Fasano declared. “The governor and lawmakers discussed what would be an appropriate time period for an extension, if one was to be granted. However, no leader acquiesced to vote ”˜yes”™ or ”˜no”™ on any request for an expansion of his powers.”

Fasano said legislative leaders met without the governor to further discuss his proposal.

“Republican legislative leaders made it very clear that we have serious concerns about expanding any emergency powers without also implementing a plan to give the public a voice in the process, which they have been entirely shut out of thus far,” he said. “There is a process for the governor to request an extension of his emergency powers and seek legislative approval. That process has not happened yet.”

Fasano and Klarides sent a letter to the state legislature”™s Democratic leadership further objecting to Lamont”™s move.

“Republican legislative leaders and our respective caucuses have grave concerns over the extension of unilateral power to the executive branch and the full and total exclusion of the legislative arm of the government,” they wrote. “We believe that the power must be given back to the elected representatives who have been elected by the people to act legislatively.

“Whether Gov. Lamont did a good job or not is not what is in question,” they continued. “This is about protecting the operation of equal branches of government in which the people”™s voices are heard through their representatives.

“To achieve that end,” they wrote, “we need to reject the full extension of the governor’s emergency powers without any additional checks and balances. We believe that if the governor is going to extend the public health emergency declaration, we also need to give the power back to the people and create a better process that brings the voices of the public into a process that they have been completely shut out of.”