Texas is one of the few states with a pandemic-related disaster declaration still in place | Houston Public Media

Because the COVID-19 pandemic developed, governors throughout the nation declared disasters of their respective states.

These sorts of declarations can open up funding alternatives from the federal authorities, in addition to empower govt branches to make a spending and public well being selections quicker. Decisions that may in any other case take months to approve – or that fell to metropolis or county governments – can as a substitute be executed briefly order by the governor’s workplace.

Most states have ended their catastrophe declarations associated to the pandemic. However Texas is an exception. Final week, Gov. Greg Abbott prolonged the declaration for an additional month.

Cayla Harris, Texas politics reporter for Hearst, spoke to the Texas Commonplace concerning the ripple results of the extension.

This transcript has been edited calmly for readability:

Texas Commonplace: There are 11 different states apart from Texas that also have some type of catastrophe declaration in place due to the pandemic. Have you learnt which of them?

Cayla Harris: Yeah. So the Nationwide Academy for State Well being Coverage has an enormous tracker that goes via all of the states and sees which of them nonetheless have emergency orders in impact. So different states like Georgia, Connecticut, Illinois, California – which we heard goes to finish their emergency order on Feb. 28 – Washington, states like that.

And why precisely are these declaration orders being issued or stored in place?

So in Texas, the emergency order offers Abbott tremendous, tremendous broad authority to reply to the pandemic. So this implies issues like bypassing regular bidding processes for procuring gear or one thing like that – in the course of the peak of the pandemic, keep in mind after we wanted a bunch of ventilators and masks and different private protecting gear? However now, since we’re up to now out from the pandemic begin, the reason being usually because Governor Abbott desires to maintain in place some govt orders that he issued final yr, stopping native governments from instituting masks mandates, occupancy limits and vaccine mandates in like Austin and Houston and all the large cities that have been keen on doing that.

Are we speaking about energy right here? Does this come all the way down to the authority of the governor?

Just about. I imply, Abbott and different Republicans – as you are most likely effectively conscious; a lot of listeners are effectively conscious – have lengthy feuded with native governments about who can institute roles when and the place and what they’re. Usually instances, Abbott has taken steps to extend his personal energy and take it away from native governments, particularly Democrat-controlled governments.

How will this have an effect on the coverage choices of metropolis and county governments?

It does not change a lot, actually, as a result of we have been below this catastrophe declaration since 2020. The ban on masks mandates and vaccine mandates was instituted final yr. The Legislature additionally codified the ban on vaccine mandates. So that is extra to do with the masks mandates and the occupancy restrictions. So it is just about simply the established order that we have been residing below for a yr, I suppose, two years at this level.

What’s the catastrophe declaration’s relationship to the pandemic in the best way that we’re experiencing in actual life? How do you the way do you sq. the order with what Texans are experiencing in the true world?

So such as you talked about, I imply, folks aren’t interested by COVID as a lot. I keep in mind in the course of the 2020 elections, we heard about it rather a lot on the marketing campaign path. We’re simply not listening to that as a lot anymore. That does not imply that COVID is over, although. Folks ought to nonetheless be defending themselves. Clearly, well being consultants advocate sporting masks and distancing your self from different folks – all of the issues we discovered in 2020. And with all of those new variants that we do not know a ton about, they’re saying, you understand, get vaccinated and be ready, as a result of in the course of the winter months we’re gathering inside extra. We’re in nearer contact with folks, particularly older folks, who is perhaps weak.

So in these conditions after we would possibly see a spike in COVID circumstances this winter, then in idea, Governor Abbott may use this catastrophe declaration to hurry up sources to counties that want it, make beds out there in hospitals, or, you understand, ship gear to them, get extra gear, purchase extra gear, that kind of factor.

I discover that the Hearst papers have picked up on the governor’s renewal of COVID order. Not lots of different media shops have. I ponder what affect, if any, this might need on the general public’s notion of the place we’re with the pandemic. Does this reinforce the underlying message from well being consultants, or does it shake issues up in any significant method?

Truthfully, no. I feel, like I stated earlier than, that is simply type of the established order at this level. Abbott does not have any plans to finish the order. You are seeing some whispers in different states that they’re. And so I extremely doubt we’ll see any motion on this from anybody. This would possibly come up within the legislative session subsequent yr; we’re again in January. However on a broad scale, I actually do not assume there’s going to be a lot of an affect.

Why would the Legislature take this up, and in what respect?

I can not predict what the Legislature goes to do, clearly. However within the final legislative session, you will keep in mind some lawmakers have been speaking about codifying these bans on masks mandates or taking some energy away from the governor’s workplace. Some conservative lawmakers and even Democratic lawmakers have been involved concerning the stage of energy that Governor Abbott had in the course of the pandemic. However final legislative session, they declined to realign these powers. And so there is perhaps one other dialogue about that this time round. Whether or not it is going to go anyplace is a query mark.