How Governments Are Responding to the COVID-19 Crisis
By Benjamin Briggs and Elliot Haney
As the needs of communities shift and change rapidly, governments are continuously implementing new laws and regulations to respond to the outbreak of COVID-19. Many states have declared “State(s) of Emergency,” which typically provides state and local authorities more power and resources to pass legislation quickly in times of disaster. Many states including Iowa, Missouri, Oregon and California have laws regarding paid sick leave differing from those of the federal government, which give employees required to stay home as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak access to paid sick leave or additional unemployment benefits for the time they are absent from the workplace.