Colorado House GOP Minority Leader Patrick Neville and conservative activist Michelle Malkin are suing Gov. Jared Polis over the statewide mask order.
Polis has required masks to be worn in public since mid-July, and he has credited the mandate with a slowdown in coronavirus cases. But Neville and some other Republicans have opposed that and similar rules imposed by the governor, calling them unconstitutional.
“Governor Polis’ Executive Orders have been devastating to the people of Colorado,” Neville said in a statement. “People have been ordered to stay at home; their right to travel has been trampled; their right to worship has been taken away; businesses have been shut down; and countless jobs have been lost. The Governor has overstepped his Constitutional powers. We have checks and balances and Governor Polis needs to follow them.”
Polis, who initially resisted calls for a statewide mask order, responded in a statement Tuesday: “We are free to be on the side of a deadly virus that has taken the lives of too many friends, parents, and loved ones, or on the side of Coloradans. I’m on the side of Coloradans.”
The complaint — which is expected to be filed Wednesday or Thursday — challenges the constitutionality of the Colorado Disaster Emergency Act, according to a news release from Neville’s office, saying Polis’ order violates the separation of powers between the legislative and executive branches.
This story has been updated to clarify that the lawsuit has not yet been filed.
