Saying the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic will affect local communities for “many, many months to come,” Dane County Executive Joe Parisi has announced that Dane County will remain under a state of emergency declaration until at least July 15.
The current order was scheduled to expire on May 15. “For however long COVID-19 threatens the well-being and safety of our citizens, science will guide our decision making in Dane County,” Parisi states. “Right now, that science says we need to prepare for potential waves of illness and remain vigilant and ready in our preparedness and response.”
The new emergency order will go into effect when the current one expires, and it makes Dane County eligible for federal and state assistance.
The Dane County Board is expected to vote Thursday on whether to ratify the extension.
In a statement announcing the extension, the county indicated that this might not be the only extension of Dane County’s state-of-emergency declaration. It will be revisited this summer and could be extended depending on the status of COVID-19.
As of May 5 at 9:30 a.m., 444 people have tested positive for COVID-19 in Dane County.
The Dane County extension comes on the day the Wisconsin Supreme Court is considering a lawsuit to block an extension of Gov. Tony Evers’ statewide safer-at-home order. That order was extended to May 26, but the Republican-controlled Legislature is challenging the Evers administration’s authority to extend it beyond 60 days without legislative approval.
