Since the start of the fall semester at Tech, one concern that loomed in the minds of many is now coming to a head: COVID-19 case numbers, especially in the UP, are up as high as the early heights of the pandemic. As the powers that be look on, it’s no wonder that action was on the way.

Monday morning, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) released a three-week order in response to what they call the “fall surge.” Notably, this order comes from the office of the MDHHS, not the office of the Governor, the previous source of such policy.

The order imposes a two-household limit on indoor gatherings, further encouraging families to interact with only a “single other household over the next three weeks.” Unlike the executive orders that we saw earlier in the year, this order “is not a blanket stay-at-home action” according to an MDHHS press release. Instead, this order specifically allows for work that can’t be completed remotely, “including for manufacturing, construction and health occupations”. Critically, there is no mention of  “essential” work in this order, unlike those of previous months. Instead, this order is taking an approach that leaves this interpretation up to employers. In addition, outdoor gatherings remain permissible and personal services such as haircuts are available. Gyms, too, can open, but must abide distancing and cleanliness procedure.

As it applies to education, the order leaves kindergarten through eighth grade education definitively in the “Open” section of the “Pause To Save Lives” infographic. High schools and colleges, on the other hand, must now conduct online learning only. At Tech, this presents as the enactment of Safety Level 5, the strictest state of on-campus COVID response. All in-person classes will transition online, and, much like last year’s spring semester, students are being offered $1100 in account credit for departing campus early this semester. This year, resident students can stay home after leaving for Thanksgiving by completing a departure form.

In the MDHHS press release, much emphasis is placed on concern for hospital capacity as one key aspect necessitating the action. According to the CEO of Ford Health System, a Detroit-area healthcare company, “the dramatic rise in admissions in hospitals across Michigan is not sustainable.” Similarly, according to Dr. Joneigh Khaldun, chief medical executive and chief deputy for health at MDHHS, “The data we are seeing is alarming. COVID-19 is impacting every area of our state. Our healthcare systems are becoming overwhelmed, and our contact tracers cannot keep up.”

In the light of our current pandemic situation, many events central to Tech culture have taken a back seat. For many, the risk of COVID-19 and prevalence of a campus for facilitating virus spread overtakes what those events offer to Tech. While some campus events are seeing cancellation, one of the most infamous is slated to run. This year, broomball will feature a different set of rules in order to address COVID-19 concerns, but it will indeed take place.

According to an “info session” hosted by IRHC Broomball last week, a few key aspects of the season will change this year. In attendance at this meeting were broomball team representatives who were invited in order to disseminate these changes. For one, games won’t begin until two weeks after the spring semester begins, a change made in the case that virus numbers see a spike. Other changes of note include:

• Two rinks, 68 feet in length. Last year hosted three rinks, and, according to the 2019-2020 rulebook, rinks were 75.3 feet in length.
• No spectators.
• Teams are seven players in size at maximum, four at minimum. Four players are to be on the ice at once as opposed to the usual six.
• Players must join only one team, and teams must comprise five players of the same residency, except in the case of a four-player team, where all players must be coresidents.
• Players must wear masks while playing.
• The game’s two 15-minute periods are being shortened to 10 minutes each.
• The Helmet Hut will be available, with the helmets set to be cleaned after each use.
• The cocoa shack will not be dispensing any of their widely regarded beverage.
• Teams won’t be allowed to arrive more than 10 minutes early to games.

The meeting also included additional information on broomball as it relates to COVID-19, noting that players who share the ice will be considered to have had close contact and will be required to quarantine in the event of infection. Additionally, entry and exit routes have been designated in one rink layout schematic.

The rules outlined in this meeting have not yet been synthesized into an official rulebook, and, at the time of writing, the IRHC Broomball website currently notes that 2020 rules are in the works. The above cited meeting, however, was intended to factually communicate the major pandemic-related changes to team representatives.

Perhaps one of Michigan’s most famous laws, the Beverage Container Deposit Law in its superlative 10¢ return, was suspended earlier this year among myriad other COVID-19 restrictions. But, Thursday, the Michigan Department of Treasury officially reestablished the law in its entirety.

Since June, bottle return locations have been reintroduced in two distinct phases. The first phase required stores with return facilities either near the front or separate from the store to take container returns. Next, just earlier this month, the second phase required access to the “reverse vending machines” in supermarkets, grocery stores and gas stations.

Before, grocery stores were allowed to divert employees away from maintaining bottle return machines toward sanitation requirements or to account for short-staffed conditions. So, for a time, it wasn’t possible to return cans or bottles as it is usually.

Now, not only have bottle return facilities been restored completely, but the Treasury notice also makes clear that bottle return hosts are responsible for COVID-19 measures in order to protect “both workers and the public.”  They go on to remind the public of some specifics of the underlying container deposit law, including the right of return facilities to limit individuals at $25 per day of container returns.

Stemming from a case over access to a knee-replacement surgery, the Michigan Supreme court issued a ruling Friday that is bound to significantly affect how coronavirus restrictions are governed over the coming weeks. The court struck down a critical section of law that greatly affects the governor’s emergency powers.

Jeffery Gulick sought the procedure by the Midwest Institute of Health, a healthcare provider, but was forestalled by coronavirus restrictions within the executive orders at hand.

The court ruled on a law under which Governor Gretchen Whitmer has issued multiple executive orders during the coronavirus pandemic. They reason that because one law assigned powers to the executive branch that are meant for the legislature, and because it did so indefinitely, it is “an unlawful delegation of legislative power to the executive branch in violation of the Michigan Constitution” according to the opinion. In addition, the court unanimously held that all executive orders with regard to COVID-19 that have been made since Apr. 30 are made with ill authority. According to the opinion, “the executive orders issued by the Governor [past Apr. 30] in response to the COVID-19 pandemic now lack any basis under Michigan law.”

As it is with legal cases, however, the defendant has time to respond before anything is set in stone. Here, that time is 21 days. Until then, the governor can ask the court to reconsider or she herself can govern restrictions differently.

The governor has made a statement regarding the ruling, calling it “deeply disappointing.” She laments how “Michigan will become the sole outlier at a time when the Upper Peninsula is experiencing rates of COVID infections not seen in our state since April.”

The knee surgery case in question was first filed in federal court, but the court opted to certify some questions to be decided by the Michigan Supreme Court. This is done to effectively defer to state courts which are preferred in order to allow a state to rule their own constitutionality. This is why we see what was first a federal suit appear in state court.

There are two pieces of legislation that mandate the governor’s emergency powers in Michigan. One law, the EPGA from 1945, and the other, the EMA from 1976. Fully, they are known as the Emergency Powers of the Governor Act and the Emergency Management Act, and they give authority to a Michigan governor to use special powers reserved for specific emergency situations.

On Apr. 1 Governor Whitmer declared a state of emergency and disaster under the 1945 EPGA and the 1976 EMA respectively. These orders arrived among a series of similar others, including a 70-day extension to be approved by the legislature, which succeeded. These and other orders have been issued over the course of the pandemic since March. On Apr. 30, the governor issued an order that ended the state of emergency and followed up by issuing two others, bringing the state of emergency and state of disaster, the EPGA and EMA, into separate orders. Despite this, the court’s opinion still undermines the authority of the orders.

All state laws, of course, are subject to that state’s constitution, and this case proves no exception in the EPGA.

It is possible that the spirit of the governor’s series of orders will live on despite Friday’s rulings. In fact, state agencies such as the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services have mirrored much of the effect of Whitmer’s orders in yet-valid administrative rules. The governor will almost certainly begin to delegate to appropriate government agencies that aren’t at issue in this opinion to institute, or rather maintain, coronavirus restrictions.

United Auto Workers (UAW) ex-president Dennis Williams entered a guilty plea today in a videoconference court for embezzling funds from the union. Court documents reveal that he spent it in part on liquor, golf and cigars. Williams is one of 14 others convicted in connection with embezzling funds from the union, including the UAW president who succeeded Williams.

In a lawsuit that has revealed a sprawling conspiracy of seven or more UAW members, hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent on supposed union expenses. In pursuing the charges of conspiracy to embezzle, it was discovered that leaders of the union had taken bribes from Fiat Chrysler executives, for example.

According to the plea agreement that Williams has taken with federal prosecutors, his sentence won’t exceed 24 months. Before the deal, he was slated to serve as long as five years. An accompanying fine and its cost are yet to be decided in a January hearing.

Along with other labor leaders, Williams had incurred expenses which turned out to have “no good-faith basis,” in Williams’ own words. According to the union, he “put his personal and self-interest above that of our members and this union. These serious charges deserve serious legal consequences.”

Despite this, Williams prescribes some blame to his successor Gary Jones. Jones has admitted to involvement in stealing more than $1 million from the union and has also been charged and convicted of similar wrongdoing.

Williams was the target of the FBI in a series of raids on his California home last year. Agents searched his house after a federal magistrate judge ruled in favor of the government to search for evidence that was expected to be found inside. He was also forced to turn over items that were the product of his lavish spending, such as golf clubs and clothing. At the time, it was worried that some evidence was destroyed because it appeared Williams was expecting the raid. He was confronted outside the house while smoking a cigar, waiting for their arrival.

Williams’ fate is far from decided, however. Before Williams was charged, the UAW paid his legal team more than $300,000. Now, following his conviction, the UAW is seeking all of it back, claiming he “will be required to repay the UAW for all legal fees paid by the union on his behalf” on threat of further legal action.

Williams had served in the UAW for more than 40 years, building on a career that saw him start out as a welder. “That is why it is especially painful and humbling here today” says the retired president, who goes on to account the gravity of the trust he held among union members. “I know that my actions and my failures to act abused that trust and hurt the union that I loved.” In the closing moments of the trial, he expressed his sorrows. “I want to close by apologizing to the court, my family and to each and every hard-working member paying dues.”

In pursuit of climate-related goals in Michigan, Governor Gretchen Whitmer has issued a new executive order Wednesday. The order, known as the “MI Healthy Climate Plan,” promises to make the state fully carbon neutral and to generate jobs within renewable energy sectors, according to an official press release.

In addition, the Governor published a tweet announcing the plan that features a video speech. She calls the plan “one of the boldest in the United States” and goes on to point out that Michigan joins “California, New York, Hawaii and Maine” in committing to 100 percent carbon neutrality.

For Michigan to reach a carbon neutral state, it would mean that net carbon output into the environment would be at or very near zero. This makes the goal reachable not only by the reduction of carbon output, but also by the absorption of carbon by scientific or industrial processes.

The order formalizes a policy of “economic decarbonization,” specifically setting a goal of carbon neutrality in Michigan by 2050. According to the Governor, “The science is clear – climate change is directly impacting our public health, environment, our economy, and our families.” The order specifically cites disproportionately negative effects on “communities of color and low-income Michiganders… which is why I’m taking immediate action to protect our state.”

Prior to this 2050 goal, however, is the goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to levels 28 percent less that of 1990, which has been targeted for 2025. Additionally, Michigan’s Treasury is set to create a “Energy Transition Impact Project” so as to assess financial ramifications of the order, as well as “ensuring high quality employment for workers” during the transition. Support for both carbon neutrality goals and for specialized renewable-energy jobs are common themes in the order.

As for other goals, the order makes mention of government buildings specifically. All new government buildings owned and operated by Michigan must be carbon neutral by 2040, and all existing government buildings must reduce energy use by 40 percent by 2040.

The order creates an advisory council for the purposes of developing and furthering the plan’s goals. The Council on Climate Solutions is to exist under the Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), a preexisting agency that manages Michigan’s air, water, land, and energy resources. According to EGLE director Lisel Clark, “we continue to lead [in environmental protection] with these important steps to safeguard Michiganders and their natural resources.”

To fill The Council on Climate Solutions, the Governor is to appoint individuals from “a range of sectors, experience and expertise.” Those interested can apply here by Nov. 1.

As the novel coronavirus reaches two months in its tenure, the area of effect has steadily grown. Currently, as the disease has spread and cases have been retroactively diagnosed, 79,570 cases have been reported and 2,629 have died as a result. 25,227 have recovered from the disease. The disease is now present in significant numbers in South Korea, Italy, and Japan.

As for the source of the virus, some new information has been discovered since its initial elusion. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), COVID-2019 “is a betacoronavirus,” like other related diseases responsible for recent outbreaks like SARS. “All of these viruses have their origins in bats… sequences from U.S. patients are similar to the one that China initially posted, suggesting a likely single, recent emergence of this virus from an animal reservoir.”

The outbreak in Wuhan, China was connected to the large food market there, known for its sale of exotic live animals and seafoods. Following these initial infections, patients reported never having been exposed to such markets, which, according to the CDC, is “indicating person-to-person spread.” Additionally, consistent person-to-person spread has been confirmed by Chinese officials.

In the U.S., there are currently 53 cases, zero deaths, and five recoveries. Appropriately, the CDC reports that “this virus is NOT currently spreading in the community in the United States.”

Notably, Diamond Princess, a cruise ship moored on the coast of Japan, has been a hotbed of cases at 691. The ship of 3,711 was quarantined by Japanese officials, a measure largely regarded to have failed, with case numbers beginning at 10 on Feb. 4. Passengers are reported to have felt imprisoned and confined, especially in the sample of rooms without balconies and windows. Four people on the ship have died, all of whom were in their 80s. By Feb. 19, the last of the passengers on board disembarked.

For the Americans on board the ship, two flights chartered by the State Department were set to transport them from Japan back home. Contentiously, the flight contained 14 infected Americans isolated in special boxes, separate from the rest of the passengers. These passengers tested positive for the virus after the flight arrangements were made, forcing officials into these measures. They showed no symptoms despite their testing positive.

This sparked debate between the CDC and the State Department, who were stuck between deboarding those infected while the plane was on the tarmac, ready to take off. The State Department, despite the President’s take, pushed the passengers through while the CDC maintained that boarding the healthy with the sick would be a bad idea epidemiologically.

Reported by the Washington Post, a senior U.S. health official explained the dilemma as such: “It was like the worst nightmare… Quite frankly, the alternative could have been pulling grandma out in the pouring rain, and that would have been bad too.”

Following the landing of the planes, 26 other Americans that flew home tested positive for the virus, suggesting the CDC was rightly concerned. These infections mark a significant portion of the American cases.

The two aircraft landed at Travis Airforce Base in California, and the other at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, locations from which those infected were taken to hospitals.

Diamond Princess is  scheduled by Princess Cruises to be back in commission April 29 after it is fully sanitized and dry docked for some time.