Nine Maine businesses sue Gov. Janet Mills over shutdowns
A group of nine Maine businesses filed suit Friday against Gov. Janet Mills in a bid to force the state to loosen economic restrictions that have forced them to shut down as part of an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19.
The lawsuit asks a U.S. District Court to rule that Mills’ executive orders restricting business activity are unconstitutional and to bar her from issuing similar ones in the future.
The attorney for the businesses, Steve Smith of Bangor, said in a prepared statement that Mills’ regulations, which were revised Friday, “are arbitrary and capricious” and “favor big businesses over Maine’s lifeblood: its small businesses.”
Attorney General Aaron Frey said in response to the suit Friday that “the executive orders and the restarting plan at issue in this lawsuit were carefully crafted and have been reviewed and updated in order to protect Mainers’ health during the COVID-19 pandemic. We will represent the governor and will vigorously defend the constitutionality” of Mills’ actions and her authority to protect public health.
Read more: https://www.sunjournal.com/2020/05/08/nine-maine-businesses-sue-gov-janet-mills-over-shutdowns/#
(Lewiston Sun Journal)
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