Under Local State Of Emergency: What That Means In Massachusetts

WORCESTER, MA — Following Gov. Charlie Baker's state of emergency declaration March 10 over the new coronavirus outbreak, many Massachusetts towns and cities have followed up by making local emergency declarations — but what exactly does that mean where you live?

Much like Baker's declaration, cities and towns in Massachusetts have the power to declare a local emergency to ensure public safety, according to interpretations of the 1950 Civil Defense Act.

Baker already used some of these powers when, for example, he ordered schools closed, limited gatherings to 25 people and extended expired driver's licenses and permits for 60 days.

Cities and towns such as Worcester, Marlborough, Somerville, Medford, Brookline, Weymouth and Walpole all declared local states of emergency — and more may be forthcoming. These declarations complement Baker's statewide emergency order.

Outside the state Civil Defense Act, no law explicitly gives cities and towns authority to declare local states of emergency. That's according to a memo written by Worcester City Attorney Michael Traynor. But Traynor does say cities have "inherent and explicit" powers during an emergency.

"As the chief conservator of the peace, the city manager inherently has the authority to exercise extraordinary powers to conserve the public peace, while tailoring such actions to the exigency of the circumstances and the necessity to protect the public," Traynor wrote in a memo Saturday to City Manager Edward Augustus.

Augustus' state of emergency declaration says he has broad power to "issue recommendations, directives and orders" as needed to maintain order in the city, but doesn't specify what he might do as the COVID-19 crisis continues.

Related: Gov. Baker Declared A State Of Emergency. What Does That Mean?

Other towns and cities have been more specific, expanding on some of Baker's emergency orders.

For example, Walpole's declaration talks about freeing up money to respond to the emergency. Brookline used its declaration to limit lines to 10 people (except at grocery stores and pharmacies) — a detail missing from Baker's directives. In Somerville, Mayor Joseph Curtatone ordered all gyms, health clubs, theaters, entertainment venues, social clubs and houses of worship to close until at least April 6.

Differing slightly, Boston declared a "public health emergency" on Sunday. That order will allow the Boston Public Health Commission "to increase the availability of staff and resources that will allow for enhanced reporting, information and resources shared among Boston's health and medical community."

In 2013, some Massachusetts residents got a taste of a near-total lockdown. In February, then-Gov. Deval Patrick declared a state of emergency over Winter Storm Nemo and shut down some roads. Two months later, Patrick asked Boston-area residents to shelter in place during the hunt for Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. A key difference was that Patrick did not declare a state of emergency during the Tsarnaev manhunt.

According to some interpretations, there's room under state law for towns and cities to put deeper restrictions in place to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

The municipal law firm KP Law published a memo last week that says local governments can do things such as ask for help from the National Guard, enact curfews and even suspend alcohol sales. Some items mentioned in the KP Law memo have already happened, such as relaxing the strictures of the Open Meeting Law

"Local governmental officials must critically evaluate any crisis to consider the nature of their response," the memo says. "In a true emergency, the statutes ... can provide useful and powerful tools for protecting the public health and safety."

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