On behalf of the King George County Board of Supervisors, I would like to register our opposition to establishing the DOLI emergency standards in response to COVID-19 as permanent policy for local governments and small businesses.
The Board's attempt to establish these emergency orders as permanent policy undermines the Commonwealth’s legislative process and illegally affords a regulatory agency the ability to step outside of their authority (or lack thereof) to craft statutory policy. This is a dangerous precedence that degrades transparency and erases the elected representation of our citizens who will be affected by said policies.
In addition, the DOLI standards create an awesome burden on local business. We understand that we must sometimes compromise convenience for the sake of public health. However, this new initiative is an attempt by DOLI to burden us all well beyond the eventual dissolution of the current state of emergency.
We ask that you reconsider this egregious approach to managing policy. Rather, we ask that you pursue an appropriate approach to the DOLI standards by affording the General Assembly, the Senate, and subsequently the general public, the opportunity to have a voice in the guidelines that will affect us all.
Respectfully,
NEIMAN C. YOUNG, PhD
County Administrator
King George County
10459 Courthouse Drive, Suite 200
King George, VA 22485
540.775.9181