The governor and his administration, with the help of the various state boards and the state fire marshal, want us to believe that we are required to follow their “directives” and “guidelines” as if they are law. FACT: THEY ARE NOT LAW!
Despite the fact that no business could have actually & legally been required to close, one look at the website of the State Board of Cosmetology will have any salon owner or barber shop owner believing that they must register on the opensafely.la.gov website in order to re-open their businesses:
“You should register to reopen and download the rules there” is the board's fabulous play on words.
They are not stating that "you should" as in "you must" or "you are required to", but that you should, if you so desire, register there.
Of course, they are hoping that the salon and barber shop owners will think that they are required to register and will just go ahead and do it.
Once you click on the link it takes you to Governor Edwards's opensafely.la.gov website. The site that previously had a place where you could “help” businesses by reporting them to the government for not following the "rules." That feature has since been removed. Be forewarned because, if you do register, you must agree to the fine print:
“This website contains government information which Is restricted To authorized users only And For the intended purpose. The Louisiana Department Of Public Safety (LADPS) Is providing this website As a service To the Public. This website Is subject To monitoring To ensure proper performance Of security features Or procedures. Such monitoring may result In the acquisition, recording And analysis Of all data being communicated, transmitted, processed Or stored by this system. The data collected are limited To information (name, telephone number, mailing address, physical location, And email address) regarding your business. Unauthorized access, use, misuse Or modification Of this website Or data constitutes a violation Of law And will subject the individual To criminal And/Or civil penalties. The usage Of the content, images And logos On the LADPS site by any other website Is strictly prohibited. The misuse Of data without the express written consent Of LADPS Is a violation Of copyright laws And other proprietary rights. (Apparently, your data is now the property of LADPS!)The misrepresentation via modification Of information from this website In any presentation will be prosecuted To the fullest extent Of the law. Website information may be distributed Or copied, To the extent allowed by law. Unauthorized use Of the words “Louisiana Department of Public Safety,” Or “Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal” Or the initials “LADPS,” Or “LOSFM” Or any imitation “in a manner reasonably calculated to convey the impression that such [activity] is approved, endorsed or authorized by the Louisiana Department of Public Safety or the Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal is prohibited.”
“This website contains government information which is restricted to authorized users only” – Is this intended to make us believe that there is top secret information that can only be obtained if you register?
IMPORTANT NOTE: You don’t have to register to access the "rules." The Cosmetology Board's website has a link to their “proposed guidelines”--notice that they use the words "rules" and "guidelines" interchangeably. We believe they do this because, in order for their "rules" to have the force of law, the board has to create them according to certain procedural laws. Since they have not created these "rules" in this way, these rules are actually "guidelines" that no one is required to follow. By using the terms interchangeably, the unsuspecting salon owner or barber may think that these guidelines are required.
Also, notice that the guidelines are proposed. THEY ARE NOT MANDATORY. The government cannot require businesses to follow these guidelines.
“This website contains government information which Is restricted To authorized users only And For the intended purpose. The Louisiana Department Of Public Safety (LADPS) Is providing this website As a service To the Public. This website Is subject To monitoring To ensure proper performance Of security features Or procedures. Such monitoring may result In the acquisition, recording And analysis Of all data being communicated, transmitted, processed Or stored by this system. The data collected are limited To information (name, telephone number, mailing address, physical location, And email address) regarding your business. Unauthorized access, use, misuse Or modification Of this website Or data constitutes a violation Of law And will subject the individual To criminal And/Or civil penalties. The usage Of the content, images And logos On the LADPS site by any other website Is strictly prohibited. The misuse Of data without the express written consent Of LADPS Is a violation Of copyright laws And other proprietary rights. (Apparently, your data is now the property of LADPS!)The misrepresentation via modification Of information from this website In any presentation will be prosecuted To the fullest extent Of the law. Website information may be distributed Or copied, To the extent allowed by law. Unauthorized use Of the words “Louisiana Department of Public Safety,” Or “Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal” Or the initials “LADPS,” Or “LOSFM” Or any imitation “in a manner reasonably calculated to convey the impression that such [activity] is approved, endorsed or authorized by the Louisiana Department of Public Safety or the Louisiana Office of State Fire Marshal is prohibited.”
“This website contains government information which is restricted to authorized users only” – Is this intended to make us believe that there is top secret information that can only be obtained if you register?
IMPORTANT NOTE: You don’t have to register to access the "rules." The Cosmetology Board's website has a link to their “proposed guidelines”--notice that they use the words "rules" and "guidelines" interchangeably. We believe they do this because, in order for their "rules" to have the force of law, the board has to create them according to certain procedural laws. Since they have not created these "rules" in this way, these rules are actually "guidelines" that no one is required to follow. By using the terms interchangeably, the unsuspecting salon owner or barber may think that these guidelines are required.
Also, notice that the guidelines are proposed. THEY ARE NOT MANDATORY. The government cannot require businesses to follow these guidelines.
The same thing goes for occupancy restrictions. Occupancy restrictions are set by the Fire Code which is intended for fire safety only; and, it is only for this purpose that the Fire Marshall has authority to enforce occupancy regulations. The state fire marshal cannot make up new requirements without following the procedural laws. He cannot follow procedural laws in creating regulation that is in contravention to the laws of the state which detail the limits of his authority. He cannot arbitrarily decide that businesses must only have 25% occupancy because of any other reason he may deem it to be necessary. He has no authority when it comes to viruses!
This is why we see the term "guidance" being used again: "The State Fire Marshal and the Louisiana Department of Health will continue issuing guidance."
Once again, we ask you to contact the state legislators. Ask them to intervene and stop the tyrannical actions of Governor John Bel Edwards and his band of Merry Men!
Senators: http://senate.la.gov/Senators/byparish.asp
Reps: http://house.louisiana.gov/H_Reps/H_Reps_ByParish.aspx
Also, contact Governor Edwards and tell him the gig is up!
EMAIL: https://gov.louisiana.gov/index.cfm/form/home/4
Phone: (225)342-7015 or (866)366-1121
Disclaimer: This is the place where we tell you that we are not attorneys. However, we feel that it is our civic duty to educate ourselves on the laws of Louisiana and the USA.
This is why we see the term "guidance" being used again: "The State Fire Marshal and the Louisiana Department of Health will continue issuing guidance."
Once again, we ask you to contact the state legislators. Ask them to intervene and stop the tyrannical actions of Governor John Bel Edwards and his band of Merry Men!
Senators: http://senate.la.gov/Senators/byparish.asp
Reps: http://house.louisiana.gov/H_Reps/H_Reps_ByParish.aspx
Also, contact Governor Edwards and tell him the gig is up!
EMAIL: https://gov.louisiana.gov/index.cfm/form/home/4
Phone: (225)342-7015 or (866)366-1121
Disclaimer: This is the place where we tell you that we are not attorneys. However, we feel that it is our civic duty to educate ourselves on the laws of Louisiana and the USA.