Tucson Mayor Regina Romero, in turn, called the governor’s order “legally meaningless.”/Flickr
By Mary Jo Pitzl | Arizona Republic
Governor Doug Ducey Monday issued an executive order warning city and county governments they cannot require their employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine, a not-so-veiled response to a new Tucson ordinance.
Tucson Mayor Regina Romero, in turn, called the governor’s order “legally meaningless.”
It’s yet another standoff in the state’s raging debates over policies to curb the spread of COVID-19.
The Tucson City Council last week voted 6-1 to require that city employees must show proof of at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine by Aug. 24, or face a five-day suspension without pay and possibly higher health-insurance premiums.
In his order, Ducey noted one of the budget-related bills that passed in June bars cities, towns and counties from requiring COVID-19 vaccines. However, that measure, Senate Bill 1824, does not become law until Sept. 29. Executive orders take immediate effect.
The legislation echoes provisions of an executive order that Ducey, a Republican, issued earlier this year prohibiting vaccine passports and blocking any local government actions that would require a COVID-19 vaccine. However, Ducey rescinded that order in early July after he signed the Senate bill.
Still, the governor asserts in Monday’s executive order that he has the authority to block Tucson, given the powers the state has under law during an ongoing public health emergency.
Romero, a Democrat, chided Ducey for what she called “a deadly game of one-upmanship” that will lead to more hospitalizations and deaths as the virus continues a surge statewide.
“Gov. Ducey is paving the way for COVID-19 to spread uncontrollably throughout our state, and attempting to impede those of us who believe in science-based solutions at the local level,” she said in a city-issued statement.
