LANSING, Mich. _ A Court of Claims judge ruled Thursday that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer had the legal authority to extend Michigan's state of emergency under the Emergency Powers of the Governor Act.
But Judge Cynthia Stephens noted the governor exceeded her authority by trying to extend the emergency under the Emergency Management Act of 1976, which requires legislative authority.
But Stephens upheld the constitutionality of the Emergency Powers of the Governor Act of 1945.
The ruling overrides the argument from the Republican-led House and Senate that Whitmer had no authority to extend the coronavirus state of emergency past April without legislative approval.
It is expected that the Legislature will appeal.
The extension under the Emergency Management Act provided liability protections for health care workers during the pandemic, and it's not clear whether those protections stand after the judge ruled Whitmer exceeded her authority.
Whitmer's extension on April 30 came after Republicans in the House and Senate said they would not extend her declared state of emergency, which they believe expired at the end of April.
The governor has reiterated that the Legislature does not have the ability to end the governor's emergency declaration and stop her from taking action to combat the spreading coronavirus, which has sickened more than 53,500 and killed 5,129 people in Michigan.
House Speaker Lee Chatfield, R-Levering, and Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey, R-Clarklake, announced the lawsuit on May 6 after Whitmer issued orders extending the state of emergency in Michigan through May 28.
The Legislature, which wants the economy here to reopen more quickly, refused to extend the emergency, letting it expire in GOP lawmakers' eyes, on April 30.
Earlier this month, Stephens heard oral arguments in the case for about 80 minutes over the video-conferencing application Zoom. At one point, more than 7,000 people were watching the arguments over the internet as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to restrict public gatherings.
Stephens, who was appointed to the Court of Appeals by former Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm, asked skeptical questions of both sides during the hearing. Four Court of Appeals judges randomly split up Court of Claims cases.
Stephens' questions focused on the 1976 Emergency Management Act, which allows the Legislature to weigh in after 28 days.
However, legal experts contended Whitmer's best arguments for maintaining emergency powers lied in the 1945 Emergency Powers of the Governor Act. That law doesn't include a timeline for the Legislature to weigh in and allows the governor to decide when to rescind an emergency declaration.
Lawyers for the Michigan House and Senate have argued the 1945 law is meant to be used to combat local emergencies or uprisings, not a statewide pandemic. The law says a governor may "designate the area involved" in the emergency.
Stephens has predicted the case would eventually end up at the Michigan Supreme Court.
