In the course of her reporting on local government this year, WORT news director Chali Pittman kept noticing a certain principle being invoked: the nondelegation doctrine.

What is the nondelegation doctrine? And why has it played such a key role in state and local government response to the COVID-19 pandemic? Today on the show, Chali speaks with Nicholas Bagley, professor of law at the University of Michigan, to get some answers.

They discuss the role of government and administrative law, how power is distributed across the three branches, and examples of how the nondelegation doctrine has been invoked during the pandemic this year in Wisconsin and Michigan as governors and local agencies have attempted to act swiftly while legislatures have brought lawsuits challenging the executive branch’s power.

Nicholas Bagley is a professor of law at the University of Michigan, where he teaches and writes in the areas of administrative law, regulatory theory, and health law. Previously, he was an attorney with the appellate staff in the Civil Division at the U.S. Department of Justice. In addition to his scholarly writing, he is a contributor to The Atlantic and The Incidental Economist​, a prominent health policy blog.