Gov. Ricketts bars state agencies from complying with President Biden’s vaccine mandate

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - Governor Pete Ricketts announced Friday that he signed an executive order barring state agencies from enforcing coronavirus vaccine mandates on state workers.

In September, President Biden directed OSHA to write a rule requiring employers with at least 100 workers to force employees to get vaccinated or produce weekly test results showing they are virus free.

“President Biden’s coronavirus vaccine mandate is a stunning violation of personal freedom and abuse of the federal government’s power,” said Governor Ricketts. “While we have encouraged Nebraskans to get vaccinated, this is a personal health decision, and not one that should be coerced. We’ve already made the decision that state teammates at the State of Nebraska won’t be forced to take the vaccine. This order takes the next step and bars cabinet state agencies from complying with coronavirus vaccine mandates from the federal government or other parties.”

“We will continue to use every tool we have in the toolbox to fight back against President Joe Biden’s government overreach, so we can protect the freedom of Nebraskans against big government in Washington, D.C.”

A full copy of the executive order can be found by clicking here.

Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson jointly led with Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt a ten-state coalition in filing a lawsuit against the Biden Administration for imposing a vaccine mandate on federal contractors and federally contracted employees. The lawsuit takes issue with the Biden Administration’s attempt to mandate vaccinations for one-fifth of the U.S. workforce through Executive Order 14042.