Honorable Andrew Beshear, in His Official Capacity as Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, et al. v. Honorable Glenn E. Acree, Judge, Kentucky Court of Appeals, et al.

Summary

The Supreme Court of Kentucky, in a per curiam opinion by Justice Hughes, reviewed challenges to Governor Andy Beshear's COVID-19 emergency orders and regulations. The Court held that the Governor properly declared the emergency, that KRS Chapter 39A was not an unconstitutional delegation of legislative authority, and that KRS Chapter 13A did not control the emergency actions. The Court reversed the Boone Circuit Court's injunctive relief, while concluding that one expired subpart of an order violated Section 2 of the Kentucky Constitution.

Holdings

1. The Governor properly declared a state of emergency under KRS 39A.100 because the COVID-19 pandemic constituted the occurrence of biological and etiological hazards identified in KRS 39A.010. The Governor was not required to obtain a determination from local emergency agencies before declaring a statewide emergency.
2. KRS Chapter 39A does not violate the separation-of-powers provisions of the Kentucky Constitution. The Governor's emergency actions are primarily executive, and to the extent the chapter delegates legislative authority, the delegation is valid because the statute supplies intelligible standards and procedural safeguards.
3. The Governor was not required to address the COVID-19 emergency solely through the ordinary administrative-regulation procedures of KRS Chapter 13A. KRS Chapter 39A specifically authorizes executive orders and emergency regulations, and controls over inconsistent provisions of KRS Chapter 13A during a declared emergency.
4. The challenged orders and regulations were not shown to be arbitrary or unconstitutional under Sections 1 and 2 of the Kentucky Constitution, except for a former social-distancing provision that failed to make an exception for household members and was no longer in effect. Economic and business restrictions were subject to rational-basis review, and the measures generally had a rational relationship to protecting public health and safety.
5. The Boone Circuit Court improperly granted injunctive relief against enforcement of the Governor's COVID-19 orders and regulations because the plaintiffs failed to establish a substantial possibility of prevailing on their principal legal claims, and the law and equities favored continued enforcement of the emergency measures.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Governor properly declared a statewide emergency and invoked the emergency powers granted by KRS Chapter 39A in response to COVID-19.
2. Whether KRS Chapter 39A constitutes an unconstitutional delegation of legislative authority in violation of Sections 27 and 28 of the Kentucky Constitution.
3. Whether the Governor was required to proceed solely through the administrative-regulation procedures of KRS Chapter 13A.
4. Whether the challenged executive orders and emergency regulations were arbitrary or otherwise violated Sections 1 and 2 of the Kentucky Constitution.
5. Whether the Boone Circuit Court properly granted injunctive relief against enforcement of the Governor's COVID-19 orders and regulations.

Disposition

reversed