Waukesha County Will Not Issue A Local Mask Order

WAUKESHA COUNTY, WI—Waukesha County Executive Paul Farrow announced Wednesday that the county will not issue a local mask order after the Wisconsin Supreme Court overturned the statewide mask mandate.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 4-3 Wednesday that Gov. Tony Evers did not act lawfully in issuing multiple public health emergencies during the pandemic, ending the statewide mask mandate put in place to limit the spread of the coronavirus and the latest executive order declaring a public health emergency.

At issue was whether Evers had exceeded his authority in proclaiming states of emergency related to the pandemic after previous orders had been in place for 60 days and had not been extended by the legislature.

The court said that an emergency can only last 60 days. For an emergency to go past 60 days, it must be extended by joint resolution of the legislature, the court said.

Waukesha County officials said more and more people are getting vaccinated.

“Our residents and businesses continue to make tremendous progress in overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic,” Farrow said in a statement. “More than a third of our population has now had at least one dose of vaccine, hospitalizations remain low, and our cases have dropped dramatically since the beginning of the year. With these improvements in mind, residents should be able to continue to make informed choices to protect themselves and their families from the virus without a government mandate.”

According to the county, everyone who is eligible should get vaccinated as soon as possible to help bring the pandemic to an end. They should choose to follow all CDC guidelines, when necessary, to mitigate the spread of the virus. This includes mask wearing when social distancing is not possible.

Residents should remember that local municipalities and individual businesses can put their own mask mandates in place. The county says these orders should be respected.

More information about vaccination and other resources related to the COVID-19 pandemic is available at www.waukeshacounty.gov/covid19.