Despite COVID, Thousands Of Lawmakers Plan To Gather In State Capitols Next Month



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Colorado state Rep. Julie McCluskie, a Democrat, is surrounded by protective plastic barriers in the House chambers at the Colorado State Capitol during an emergency legislative session on November 30. Lawmakers there are planning to move their 2021 session back by at least a month.

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New Hampshire Republican House Speaker Dick Hinch speaks during an outdoor legislative session at the University of New Hampshire in Durham, N.H. Hinch died Dec. 9, 2020, just a week after he was sworn in as leader of the state’s newly Republican-led Legislature. He was 71.

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Montana Capitol building in the snow.

Shayee Ragar/UM Legislative News Service


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A protester holds a sign in front of the Utah State Capitol building during a protest in Salt Lake City on June 5.

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Protesters attend a «Count On Us» rally at the Michigan State Capitol building on November 04 in Lansing, Mich.

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Protesters attend a «Count On Us» rally at the Michigan State Capitol building on November 04 in Lansing, Mich.

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The Michigan House became the subject of national scrutiny after holding an hourslong hearing with Rudy Giuliani, President Trump’s personal lawyer, who may have been infected with the virus at the time. Remote testimony was not allowed for the gathering.

State Senator Mallory McMorrow, a Democrat, introduced a resolution in the state Senate back in April that would’ve allowed for remote meetings but Republicans, who control both chambers, have insisted on continuing to meet in person. Temperature checks and health screenings have not prevented coronavirus spread in the legislature, where some lawmakers still don’t wear masks.

«There are just so many people who are hanging on by a thread,» says state Sen. McMorrow of the Michiganders who she and her colleagues serve, «But there just does not seem to be any interest in modifying the rules to allow for virtual meeting.»

Colorado

In Colorado, it looks as though Democratic leaders have decided to delay the annual legislative session due to the pandemic and the perils of trying to conduct business in a crowded state capitol building.

The Democratically-controlled legislature is legally required to begin on January 13 each year and run for no more than 120 days. But Colorado’s declared state of emergency allows more flexibility within that timeline, though leaders of both parties are still working out the details.

The state supreme court ruled in the spring that lawmakers can temporarily pause their work and return later in the year. Incoming Speaker of the House, Alec Garnett, says he and others think that’s the safest option.

According to leadership, lawmakers will stay in session next month only as long as it takes to get the most urgent and necessary work done, such as swearing in their new members, then they’ll adjourn until at least mid-February.

Garnett says the goal for the break is to get to a point «that’s removed from the potential spike from Christmas and New Year’s and gives a little bit more time for the vaccine to circulate.»

The legislature met in person for two and a half days in early December for a special session to pass a COVID-19 relief package. It highlighted deep divides between lawmakers on issues of coronavirus safety, the effectiveness of mask-wearing and rapid testing.

The state requires masks to be worn in most indoor settings, but it’s not enforced for lawmakers inside the Capitol. Some Republican lawmakers declined to wear masks during the session and most did not get a rapid test available to them. About one-third of the legislature decided to participate remotely.

«The biggest thing is — how do we do things in the safest manner possible?» said Democratic Rep. Kyle Mullica, of returning to work at the Capitol. He’s an Emergency Room nurse and was the first state lawmaker to receive the coronavirus vaccine. «That’s our number one priority. We want to make sure people don’t get hurt.»



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