Mask mandate muzzled

It is no April Fool’s joke. Wisconsin’s mask mandate is no more. The state Supreme Court ruled that Governor Tony Evers lacked the authority to extend the state’s emergency order to deal with the pandemic. As a result, the statewide mask mandate has been cancelled. The court ruled only the Legislature has the authority to extend a state emergency beyond 60 days, and lawmakers could impose their own mask mandate. But they won’t. Despite telling us this was about the Governor’s abuse of power and not masks, Republican lawmakers have no plans to institute their own statewide emergency. Instead, they are doing cartwheels over the decision. The Assembly Speaker said people don’t need state government telling them how to live their lives. Of course, they do so every day, instituting speed limits and thousands of other laws to govern our behavior. This decision and lack of action by the Legislature comes with a price. Wisconsin stands to lose $50 million in federal food stamp money per month without an emergency order in place to deal with the pandemic. Local governments like La Crosse County are free to issue their own mandates, and individual businesses can require their customers to wear a mask. Let’s hope they do. We have come too far in this fight to lose ground now that we are finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel.