Judge limits Newsom’s executive powers during pandemic

SACRAMENTO >> A judge on Monday preliminarily ordered Gov. Gavin Newsom to stop issuing directives related to the coronavirus that might interfere with state law.

Sutter County Superior Court Judge Sarah Heckman tentatively ruled that one of the dozens of executive orders Newsom has issued overstepped his authority and was “an unconstitutional exercise of legislative power.”

She more broadly barred him “from exercising any power under the California Emergency Services Act which amends, alters, or changes existing statutory law or makes new statutory law or legislative policy.”

It’s the second time a judge in the county has reached the same conclusion, which runs counter to other state and federal court decisions backing the governor’s emergency powers. An appeals court quickly stayed the earlier order in June.

Heckman’s decision will become final in 10 days unless Newsom’s attorneys can raise new challenges.

Newsom’s administration is evaluating its next steps and strongly disagrees with the order’s specific limitations, said spokesman Jesse Melgar.

The judge found the California Emergency Services Act itself to be constitutional, and made it clear that Newsom “has the authority, necessary in emergencies, to suspend statutes and issue orders to protect Californians,” he said in a statement.

The case centers on a single Newsom executive order in June requiring election officials to establish hundreds of locations statewide where voters can cast ballots. Lawmakers subsequently approved the same requirement, and the judge’s decision will have no effect on today’s election.

She acted in a lawsuit brought by Republican Assemblymen James Gallagher and Kevin Kiley, who said Newsom, a Democrat, was single-handedly overriding state laws in the name of keeping Californians safe.