Legislative staff is developing a plan for how lawmakers can meet as COVID-19 cases take a deeper hold on a state that’s now grappling with how to bring the virus under control.
Tom Day, director of Legislative Administrative Services, told leading lawmakers Thursday that he’s trying to line up a consultant to form a plan for health protocols when lawmakers convene in January.
Day said a number of issues will be examined, whether it’s mask wearing in the Capitol, closing off the galleries to the public so lawmakers can be socially distanced or limiting general public and lobbyist access to the building.
Staffers are also looking at whether the state constitution requires lawmakers to cast their votes at the state Capitol and whether hours for some legislative services, such as the document room, can be changed to reduce the risk of exposure.
A top Republican warned that some elements of any plan legislative leaders adopt might not be welcomed by everyone.
Day said it’s his goal to have a proposed plan for legislative leaders to consider before the upcoming session, which is set to start Jan. 11.
“We have a lot of moving parts right now,” Day said.
Day said he already has a couple proposals from private firms to run COVID-19 tests for lawmakers and staffers, whether it’s one time before the session starts or continuously throughout the session.
One company, he said, has proposed bringing a mobile van to the Capitol to test 90 lawmakers and staffers each day. The results could be turned around in 24 hours.
He said the company also could run tests on individuals who come to the Capitol on a regular basis.
Any decision about testing would be up to the legislative leadership, although Day warned that it could be costly.
He said testing could cost anywhere from $200,000 to $300,000 over the course of a legislative session.
House Speaker Ron Ryckman Jr. said leading legislators wanted to get the planning process started immediately so it could be shared with the incoming House and Senate leadership teams that will be elected next month.
House Majority Leader Dan Hawkins said lawmakers want to be protected even if they might not agree with certain protocols.
“Our members want to have assurance that when they come in we’re operating in as safe a manner as possible,” Hawkins said.
However, Hawkins acknowledged that lawmakers might bristle at some health proposals that could be implemented for the upcoming session.
“All of these things we’re going to have to look at, some of them are probably going to be rather touchy,” he said.
“Some people won’t like it, some people will,” he said.
“But, I think, we as leaders it’s our duty, it’s our responsibility to make sure that our operation allows them to be as safe as possible.”
Some lawmakers have expressed concern that not every legislator takes mask wearing seriously, worrying that could create a climate for spreading the virus at the Capitol where hundreds of people work in close spaces.
Democratic state Rep. Kathy Wolfe Moore recently questioned the value of screening body temperatures, deep-cleaning committee rooms and maintaining social distancing if some lawmakers don’t wear masks.
“If we do all that, and we come in, and we don’t wear our mask and we’re coughing, and sneezing or talking loudly, it appears to me, from what science has shown us, that’s a lot of expense and a lot of work just to expose everyone to the virus.”
