Governor Evers Extends Statewide Mask Order
On September 22, Governor Evers announced a new Declaration of Public Health Emergency and Emergency Order requiring face coverings as the orders issued in July reach their expiration dates. Our analysis of the previous orders can be found here (along with a comparison to the Dane County mask order). Largely, the orders mirror the orders […]
Businesses Need to Know: COVID Related Requirements
A flurry of federal and local legislation has been passed in the past five or so months pertaining to COVID. And, although we have blogged about most of this information in the past, the following is a brief rundown of what you need to know now, with hyperlinks to previous, more in-depth explanations. For employers […]
President Trump Issues Executive Orders Related to COVID Relief
On August 8, 2020, President Trump issued an executive order and three presidential memoranda to address concerns created by the COVID pandemic. The Executive Order addressed assistance for renters and homeowners while the memoranda addressed student loan relief, deferring the payroll tax, and unemployment benefits. What is the difference between an executive order and a […]
Governor Evers Orders Masks Statewide Beginning at Midnight Tonight
Citing a rise in COVID cases across Wisconsin, Governor Evers issued two new orders on July 30, 2020. First, he issued Executive Order #82, declaring Wisconsin to be in a state of public health emergency for the next 60 days (the maximum period allowed by state law). State law authorizes Govern Evers to issue “such […]
Dane County Requires Face Masks Starting July 13
In response to an increase in COVID cases, Dane County, through Public Health Madison & Dane County, has issued an Emergency Order #8, to take effect beginning at 8:00 a.m. on Monday, July 13 and remain in effect until further notice. The order keeps all restrictions and other primary aspects of the previous order in […]
SCOTUS and LGBTQ: New Employment Protections Nationwide
On June 15, 2020, The Supreme Court of the United States issued its decision in Bostock v. Clayton County. In a 6-3 decision, the Court found that protections in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 extend to homosexual and transgender employees. Employers across the country may no longer discriminate against LGTBQ employees, linking disparate […]
Dane County Order: Employers must post Workplace Requirements
In response to rising COVID case numbers in and around Madison, Dane County has released new, more restrictive rules to enforce social distancing. Dane County is still in Phase 2, but has made the following changes. The new rule, Dane County Emergency Order #7 (“Order #7) goes into effect on July 2, 2020, at 8am. […]
Residential Landlords Beware: Criminal Liability for Security Deposit Retention
In May 2020, the Court of Appeals of Wisconsin released its decision in State v. Troy Lasecki, affirming that a landlord could face a misdemeanor conviction for failing to properly account for a security deposit or failure to return it without good reason. Before looking at what happened in this case, a brief discussion of […]
Dane County is in Phase 2 of Forward Dane
As you may have heard, Dane County has moved to Phase 2 of its Forward Dane Reopening Plan. This is provided in Dane County Emergency Order # 5 (“Phase Two Order”) which looks substantially similar to Emergency Order #4 (“Phase One Order”) which announced Phase One. Parts of the Phase Two Order are pasted below: […]
Dane County Announces Phase One Begins May 26; Businesses Must Have Safety and Sanitation Policies in Place
Are you prepared for Phase One of Forward Dane? This afternoon, Friday, May 22, 2020, Public Health Madison Dane County issued Emergency Order #3 which moves Dane County into Phase One of Forward Dane starting on Tuesday, May 26, 2020 at 8:00 a.m. The text of today’s Order #3 can be found here. On May […]