Ann Arbor Times

A state senator said Gov. Gretchen Whitmer should rethink the extension of her “Stay Home, Stay Safe” order.

Sen. Lana Theis (R-Brighton) said in a press release on MiSenateGOP that she supported the governor’s decision to extend the state’s emergency declaration “because it is necessary for our state to continue to receive support from the federal government” and felt a stay-at-home order is needed to slow the spread of COVID-19, but both “are preventing people from working who could safely be doing their jobs.”

“This includes workers who, in the course of doing their business, do not come into contact with others in a way that would violate CDC guidelines,” the senator said on MiSenateGOP. “As is the case in neighboring states, there should be exemptions in Michigan for workers in construction, landscaping and other lines of work where there is little interpersonal contact.”

She asserted that thousands of Michiganders are filing for unemployment “when they would like nothing better than to get back to work.”

“We need to strike a better balance of protecting public health and getting Michigan back to work safely,” Theis said in the press release. “I am hopeful that the governor will rethink this order and make commonsense revisions as a first step to getting our state back in business.”

Theis is not alone in her criticism of Whitmer’s expansion and extension of the statewide stay-at-home order, as her fellow Republicans and many businesses believe it is tougher than most other states.

Bridge Michigan reported that most of Michigan’s COVID-19 cases are in the southeast part of the state. Alpena landscaper Brandon Hawley is one of those who think the order is too extreme.

“We should be able to go out and work,” Hawley, who owns Dependable Lawn Care and Property Services, told Bridge Michigan. “We’re not sucking on people’s door knobs when we’re done with the job.”