Many locals want emergency to end

Most locals who participated in an informal poll told the Coeur d’Alene Press they support the heart of a bill working its way through the Idaho Legislature to end the emergency declared 10 months ago in response to COVID-19.

“We’ve been doing this for so long,” said Rachael Pellon of Coeur d’Alene. “And I don’t know what good it’s doing anymore. I really don’t.”

The emergency declaration signed by Gov. Brad Little March 13 triggered federal and state emergency dollars. But the declaration was also a pre-cursor and part of the rationale behind Little’s March 25 stay-home order and subsequent Idaho Rebounds plan, which gradually opened Idaho businesses, churches and facilities.

The state has not yet fully re-opened, as surges in the pandemic climbed throughout the summer, keeping Idaho in varying degrees of restriction. Due to a holiday surge that sent Idaho’s COVID-19 numbers into record highs in December, Little sent the state into a modified Stage 2 on Dec. 30.

While almost all Idaho businesses remain open with relatively few restrictions, health protocols are still in place, typical nightclub activity such as dancing are forbidden, and gatherings of 10 or more — either public or private — remain prohibited.

Graham Teague, who lives just north of Post Falls, said he agrees with the premise of the restrictions, but Little’s declaration and rebound plan have lost their practical teeth.

“Nobody’s following [the protocols],” he said. “People are just doing what they want at this point.”

Senate Concurrent Resolution 101, co-sponsored by Dalton Gardens Sen. Steve Vick, aims to end Little’s emergency declaration. He told The Press Tuesday night the purpose of the legislation falls in line with the thinking of most of his constituents.

“My intent with the bill is to eliminate restrictions on Idahoans, when it comes to gatherings and businesses, but keep the emergency order in place, so we can still get the services and emergency funding,” Vick said.

Little’s March 13 order empowered the state to take advantage of not only Federal Emergency Management Administration funds but also state emergency resources. Those funds, estimated at around $20 million, are partly tied up in personal protective equipment and assistance to Veterans Affairs to help veterans being treated for COVID-19, according to Brad Richy, director of Idaho’s Department of Emergency Management Operations.

SCR 101 has three key provisions in its language: The first ends the declaration, the second reads as a self-check within the legislation that provides to keep emergency funding in place, and the third limits Little and future governors from implementing any future actions in response to COVID-19 that would impose restrictions on Idahoans.

A concurrent resolution requires only passage in the Idaho House and Senate and does not require Little’s signature. The House passed its version of the resolution Monday.

Of the 21 locals interviewed for this story, 19 gave answers supporting the end of the emergency — either the declaration, the protocols or both.

“We have all endured a very trying year,” said Devon Tarpley of Coeur d’Alene, “and it’s time to put some hope back into the community. I know so many people here in the Northwest, as well as across the states, that have poured their blood, sweat and tears into a successful life for themselves, and to have it all taken away in a matter of months is just soul-crushing.”

Even the two answers opposed to ending the emergency declaration and subsequent restrictions qualified their answers, with one calling the declaration an important placeholder, but nothing more.

“I don’t think it makes sense to end the declaration,” Carla Davies of Coeur d’Alene said. “If we’re getting emergency money for it, we should keep that as long as we need it. But everything else? I know those [protocols] are important, but I’m ready for it to end.”

Vick said people are informed enough to make up their own minds about how to navigate COVID-19 without government intervention.

“People know enough about COVID now that they’re going to make decisions about their own health,” he said. “If you’re not comfortable in large groups, you’re not going to go. If you have co-morbidity issues, you’re going to take extra precautions.”

SCR 101 is one of many bills to come through the Idaho House and Senate in the first weeks of the legislative session aimed at unwinding Little’s actions. Those companion pieces include current iterations in the House to end limitations on gathering sizes, as well as legislation that limits a governor’s ability to suspend Idaho code.

Little came out swinging last week in defending his declaration and protocols after several bills — SCR 101 included — maneuvered through legislative committees.

“Undeniably, COVID-19 is an emergency,” Little said Friday. “Hundreds of Idahoans have died and many more have been horribly sick. Many Idahoans still face that same terrible risk.”