Op-Ed by Sarah Harbison writing in The Center Square Louisiana

Did Louisiana’s government infringe on the rights of its citizens with its COVID-19 mandates, and if so, what can we do to better protect life and liberty in the future?

Last month, I dove deep into Louisiana’s current law and recent court decisions on emergency powers to get a better understanding of the inner workings of our state’s emergency declarations process. I also wanted to compare our approach to those of other states around the country.

Upon conducting this research and compiling a report on the findings, I discovered Louisiana’s emergency powers lack the important checks and balances that exist throughout all other levels of government. Checks and balances are the bedrock of our American system, and they exist to ensure that no one branch of government wields too much power over its citizens.

In Louisiana, our current law places all the authority in emergency situations with the Office of the Governor. This means the governor, no matter which party is in office, is the lone decider of when and how long our state’s citizens must abide by emergency mandates. Do we really want one person deciding how long we have to keep our businesses closed, our kids out of the classroom, and our worship halls closed?

Even if your answer to this question is yes, this practice goes against a key protector of Louisianans’ rights and liberties – our system of checks and balances. It also runs contrary to what many other states do to ensure their executives’ powers are checked and citizens’ freedoms are safeguarded. States, such as Utah, Kansas, Alaska, Georgia and Connecticut, have established procedures that give lawmakers a say in the extension of emergency declarations.

Existing law only provides legislators with a nuclear option to end the emergency declaration. These proposed changes would bring the legislature to the table to discuss how a disaster declaration can be narrowly tailored. And contrary to popular belief, Louisiana can craft an emergency declaration that protects its most vulnerable citizens without shutting down businesses. Bill Lee, Tennessee’s governor, did just that.

Louisiana should follow these other states’ examples and allow legislative input on extending disaster declarations beyond the initial 30-day mandates. Thankfully, there is legislation on the table this session to do this, and if passed, we can add an important check to the process and avoid the one-size-fits-all approaches that have led us to where we are currently. House Bill 4 by Rep. Mark Wright has passed the full House and Senate Judiciary B Committee, and it is now on its way to the Senate floor.

If we put this practice in place, we can be more responsive to the needs of individual citizens in our local communities. Consider the fact that legislators hear from their constituents every day about the challenges they’re facing. This frequent engagement gives lawmakers a more accurate picture of the current needs on the ground in their districts. Legislators also have more pressure on them to be accountable to local residents. This is precisely why they deserve the right to weigh in on decisions that will directly impact these citizens’ lives, liberties, and livelihoods.

To those crying politics and accusing checks and balances advocates of trying to strip away power from our current governor, it’s important to remember that this is by no means a temporary fix. This is a much-needed, common-sense structural solution that will continue well past Governor Edwards’ time in office.

It’s past time for Louisiana to live up to the values enshrined in our nation’s founding. We must remember that our guaranteed constitutional rights don’t simply disappear when we’re in a crisis, and it’s up to all of us to ensure our freedoms and liberties are upheld. Adding checks and balances to our emergency declarations process is a critical step toward better protecting Louisianans’ rights.

Sarah Harbison is the general counsel of the Pelican Institute for Public Policy in New Orleans, Louisiana’s free-market public policy think tank.