One sure thing I would have done differently as a member of the House of Representatives is not voting to declared myself a “non-critical employee” and sit on the sidelines during this pandemic. I certainly would not have voted to give emergency powers to Governor Mills without at least establishing a time limit. Within a month, we should have had procedures in place to hold meetings safely. Then we could have considered lifting restrictions on the least affected counties and allowed their communities decide on their own precautionary measures. Having our representatives in Augusta would have been helpful with dealing with unemployment claims and other state government related problems for people. It’s unconscionable that many businesses and other agencies were able to find ways to do their work safely during this pandemic, while so many of our elected officials voted to sit on the sidelines.