Republican-led committee votes to block UW campuses from enacting COVID-19 mitigation mandates

[TexasTowelie]

The University of Wisconsin System must receive approval from the Republican-led Legislature to enact any COVID-19 regulations such as vaccine, testing or mask mandates, following a committee vote on Tuesday.

Under the measure passed on party lines by the Joint Committee for Review of Administrative Rules, the UW System has up to 30 days to issue an emergency rule in order to implement any virus-related regulations for students and campus visitors. That rule would then be subject to the GOP-controlled committee, which could suspend parts or all of it.

"Government-issued COVID-19 mandates and lockdowns have failed miserably in dealing with this virus," said committee co-chair Sen. Steve Nass, R-Whitewater. "The path forward in addressing COVID-19 is not through excessive government mandates, but in the restoration of Americans being able to make voluntary, informed decisions based on their individual health circumstances."

No UW campuses have issued vaccine mandates for students, but some will require unvaccinated students to receive weekly testing for the virus. Several private schools — not subject to the same legislative oversight — are requiring students to be vaccinated, including Marquette University, Lawrence University and Beloit College.

Read more: https://madison.com/ct/news/local/govt-and-politics/election-matters/republican-led-committee-votes-to-block-uw-campuses-from-enacting-covid-19-mitigation-mandates/article_4cb716c0-a151-5626-9fd4-057d7f4a1fc3.html