The Georgia governor is suing the mayor and Atlanta city council to prevent the city from enforcing its mandate to wear a mask in public and other rules related to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Gov. Brian Kemp and Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, in a lawsuit filed in state court Thursday night in Atlanta, argue that Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has overstepped her authority and must obey executive orders. Kemp’s under state law.
“Governor Kemp, as the executive director of this state, should be allowed to manage the public health emergency without Mayor Bottoms issuing null and void orders that only serve to confuse the public,” the lawsuit states.
The move followed an executive order from Kemp on Wednesday that resulted in an ambiguous situation, with Kemp denying that local governments could order masks, but local governments argued that it was within their power.
Bottoms said Thursday during a video news conference that the city order is still in effect.
“As of today, 3,104 Georgians have died and I and my family are among the 106,000 who tested positive for Covid-19,” Bottoms said in a statement after the lawsuit was filed. “A better use of taxpayer money would be to expand testing and contact tracking. If being sued by the state is what it takes to save lives in Atlanta, then we’ll see you in court. ”
Officials in at least 15 Georgia cities and counties had ordered masks during the coronavirus pandemic, and many were angry at Kemp for crushing his efforts.
“How can we meet our local needs when our state ties our hands behind our backs and then says ‘Ignore the advice of the experts’?” Savannah Mayor Van Johnson asked at a press conference.
Last week Bottoms made statements that people had to return to shelter at home and force restaurants to again offer takeout and delivery. Kemp quickly crushed those claims and Bottoms on Thursday described them as guidelines. But Kemp’s lawsuit says the court should also clarify those statements to Bottoms and prohibit him from making further claims of his power to journalists.
Kemp says he strongly supports the use of masks to combat the spread of Covid-19 infections. He toured the state this month to encourage people to cover their faces. But he has argued for weeks that cities and counties cannot require masks in public places, saying that local actions cannot be more or less restrictive than his state orders.
He also said that local governments were unable to order masks on their own property, which would include the massive Atlanta airport.
Although national health officials have asked people to wear masks, the Donald Trump administration has not issued any guidelines at the national level. Twenty-six states and the District of Columbia now require masks.
Thursday’s figures showed more than 2,800 people hospitalized statewide with Covid-19 respiratory disease, the highest on record. The state reported that 84% of critical hospital beds were full.
Georgia overall had more than 131,000 confirmed infections and more than 3,100 deaths overall as of Thursday.
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