UPDATE: And right on cue, this afternoon the Governor renewed the Emergency Order with EO-20-45. Another 60 days under this nonsense. It has to stop.
This timeline is something I’ve had in the works for a bit and got it done yesterday. These are major events beginning at the first Executive Order, when the rules and order should have expired, and when action began to happen against them. There’s a fast summary on the top right that summarizes the primary violations these rules have committed in Arkansas Law. Probably most important, the bottom right is where we go from here.
Conduit News noted that the Emergency Act of 1973 has in it that the Legislature can close a State of Emergency at any time via Concurrent Resolution. However, Arkansas Constitution, Article 6, Section 16, states that a Concurrent Resolution must still go through the Governor. Theoretically, the Legislature could reconvene to vote it through the Veto, but the logistics of assembling enough of the State Legislature not just once, but twice, and having the votes to do it both times are pretty difficult. Not impossible, but it makes this an unlikely course of action. It’s still one you should urge your Legislators to vote against this State of Emergency on, should it arise.
That said, legal action to force the issue is our most likely option for success. The downside is legal action is expensive, but there’s already been an outpouring of support for this through a fund set up at northeastarkansasteaparty.com where you can join this effort if you would like to.
The third option is not an option to end this issue, but to prevent it in the future, and my previous post looks at that bill, provides links to the text and the video where it was discussed. It’s our best option going forward, but not the answer to today. We have to get a special session called first.
JD Haigler
Things are spinning up quickly as we try to begin legal action against the Arkansas Department of Health and we’re very close. I’m sure a lot of you have noticed a second fundraiser through GoFundMe. It’s started by the folks in Reopen Arkansas, and goes to the same cause.
A couple of quick answers to questions I’ve seen and answered.
Are we suing the Governor? A. No. We’re attempting to sue the Arkansas Department of Health.
What for? A. For violating rules requirements through the Administrative Procedures Act.
Can we recall the Governor? A. No. There’s no provision within Arkansas law to do so.
Is what the Governor doing unconstitutional? A. It’s well outside of the spirit of the law but not currently unconstitutional and thus why we’re focusing efforts on the ADH.
Why can he do this? A. It’s through power granted to him through the Emergency Act of 1973, which largely takes any involvement from the Legislature.
In that act, it says a State of Emergency can be ended by a concurrent resolution. Why hasn’t this happened? A. Arkansas Constitution, Article 6, Section 16, still requires a concurrent resolution to be signed by the Governor, defeating the purpose. Furthermore, the logistics of getting the legislature together not once but twice and having the votes to pass it once, then again after a veto, is extremely difficult even just logistically.
Can the legislature pass a law or amend the Emergency Act of 1973? A. Only when in session. The next scheduled session isn’t till January, which is why we’d like one called now and why the Governor most likely won’t unless he’s forced to.
How do we force him to call a session? A. The APA we referenced earlier requires Legislative involvement to continue their rules past 120 days. That was July 3rd, and is thus one of the main aspects of the legal action. If said legal is successful, the courts could potentially force the Governor’s hand.
What do we need to do? A.
Share posts and information. This website has a wealth of infographics on the issue, plus a few videos including one that dropped Monday evening with Senator Elect Dan Sullivan covering the issue. There’s also a lot of info at the Northeast Arkansas Tea Party website. People need to know this isn’t about the mask mandate, it’s about the Governor ruling through a crisis without the involvement of the Legislature. II. Contribute to the legal fund if you can. That’s where the rubber meets the road. III. Talk to your local legislators. Either they need to understand that you’re not ok with this or you need to find out if they’re already ready to vote on limiting executive power when they have the chance. When it does come time to vote on this, they need to know where their constituents are at.
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