Leaders of Minnesota’s business community generally have good things to say about the stay-at-home order issued by Governor Tim Walz. Minnesota Chamber of Commerce President Doug Loon says he appreciates that it’s of short duration with “a robust list of exceptions.” Loon says, “It creates a balance, and… we want to emphasize that we need a balance between protecting public health and safeguarding our state’s economy for the long term, and we believe we can do both.” Loon says one unique feature of the governor’s order is “a process by which individual businesses can petition to see if they’re covered under the exceptions. And again, it’s flexible going forward so that there can be new interpretations of it, so that we can keep critical pieces of our economy going.”
Charlie Weaver with the Minnesota Business Partnership says the governor’s stay-at-home order “allows our state to effectively confront this public health threat while ensuring key sectors of our economy continue to function.”
But Senate Republican Majority Leader Paul Gazelka says while he shares the governor’s concerns about the safety of Minnesotans, he has grave concerns about a statewide stay-at-home order “and the consequences for the families of Minnesota when their jobs and businesses that provide their livelihood are lost.”