(WAND) - Republican lawmakers voiced their concerns Thursday after Gov. JB Pritzker announced Region 3 in central Illinois would start to see COVID-19 mitigations.
Region 3 includes Sangamon, Logan, Christian, Montgomery, Macoupin, Jersey, Greene, Calhoun, Pike, Adams, Hancock, Schuyler, Cass, Morgan, Scott, Brown, Mason and Menard counties. After three consecutive days of showing a rolling seven-day COVID-19 positive rate at or above 8 percent, which passes state thresholds, bars and restaurants will see mitigations starting Sunday at 12:01 a.m. Click here to see what those changes will include.
Region 6, which includes the eastern half of central Illinois, could soon follow suit after two consecutive days of an 8 percent or higher positivity rate.
Four Illinois lawmakers took part in the press conference, which was held over Zoom. They included State Reps. Avery Bourne (IL-95), Tim Butler (IL-87), Mike Murphy (IL-99) and C.D. Davidsmeyer (IL-100).
Bourne began her comments by saying while she and others are following guidelines by wearing masks and following social distancing rules, she is concerned about Gov. JB Pritzker going beyond his constitutional authority. She feels more should be done to include others in the government in decisions about restrictions to bars and restaurants.
"I think if he would consult the legislature formally, consult those who are impacted by these mitigations (and) consult those who have a stake in the game, that would help us better approach this pandemic in a way that keeps people safe and also keeps our economy rolling and open and keeps us all on the same path," Bourne said.
She was followed by Butler, who said he was diagnosed with COVID-19 earlier in October. Butler said Pritzker has not listened to the general assembly or public and said there has been months of no collaboration.
Murphy, who has experience as a restauranteur, said he's talked with colleagues from the restaurant industry who are worried. Davidsmeyer came after and said there is no information showing outbreaks are coming out of bars and restaurants. He added cases are coming from family gatherings and some small colleges when kids get together.
"Once again, we believe that you should be wearing your mask, washing your hands and socially distancing. We are not against science," Davidsmeyer said. "We believe COVID-19 exists. It is an issue (and) I had a friend pass away, so it is a thing. But we need to make sure we are going after the right sources."
He said restaurants and bars are following the rules and have been an "easy target" for mitigations.
Pritzker said Thursday he has used data from his team every day he has a news conference. He said while officials can't be completely sure of where a person contracted COVID-19, they found bars and restaurants have consistently been a previous location.
The governor said at the start of his press conference that "we have a real problem on our hands" with positivity rates rising across the state. He added that "people's lives hang in the balance."
