Letter to Gov. Lamont Raising Concerns About Recent Executive Orders

Today Senate Republican Leader Len Fasano (R-North Haven) wrote to Governor Ned Lamont regarding his recent executive orders. Text of the letter is below:

April 10, 2020

Governor Ned Lamont
Office of the Governor
210 Capitol Avenue
Hartford, CT 06106

Dear Governor Lamont:

I am writing to bring to your attention my significant concerns about your recent executive orders.

When you first declared a public health emergency on March 10, 2020 and requested broad authority, you made affirmative representations to the legislature that you would take a stringent, narrow and collaborative approach to implementing the most necessary policies to protect public health.

Over time, your authority has become more broad and your strategy less collaborative. Your latest executive order does not reflect any collaboration with legislative leaders. This shift in the process cannot go unaddressed.

In addition to your shift away from collaboration with legislative leaders, I am also concerned that some of your recent executive orders exceed your emergency powers contemplated by state statute. Our statutes on civil preparedness or public health emergencies state: “the Governor may modify or suspend in whole or in part, by order as hereinafter provided, any statute, regulation or requirement or part thereof whenever the Governor finds such statute, regulation or requirement, or part thereof, is in conflict with the efficient and expeditious execution of civil preparedness functions or the protection of the public health.”

Therefore, you are limited to only act on matters directly related to the protection of public health. In recent days, elements of your executive orders have moved away from that core function and I believe could be interpreted as exceeding your authority. It seems that your emergency orders have now taken a tone of public policy initiatives that exceed your authority and reach beyond the powers of the executive branch and into the legislative branch. I understand that you have many different groups coming to you requesting that you implement various policies; which is why collaborating with the legislature on these matters is so important.

I know you are working hard to do everything you think is best for our state and its residents at this difficult time. But collaboration now more than ever is vital to ensure all perspectives, all ideas and all voices are heard.

I write to you today with the hope that we can refocus and return to the collaborative approach that has guided our state through the early days of this crisis.

Thank you.

Sincerely,
Len Fasano
Senate Republican Leader