Michigan Legislature kills law Gov. Gretchen Whitmer used for COVID-19 rules

DETROIT (AP) - Republican lawmakers have killed a law that underpinned coronavirus restrictions issued by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020, after Michigan's Supreme Court declared the measure unconstitutional.

The Democratic governor is powerless to veto the citizen-initiated bill. A group that organized the ballot drive now is targeting a different law that enabled her administration to keep restrictions intact. The Republican-led House voted 60-48 on Wednesday to repeal the law that gave governors broad emergency powers. 

A separate law remains in place. It lets a governor declare an emergency, but it cannot last for longer than 28 days without legislative approval.