[20200327]LSB10434_2019冠状病毒疾病应答：宪法对私有财产的保护.pdf

CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress Legal SidebarLegal Sidebari i COVID-19 Response: Constitutional Protections for Private Property March 27, 2020 As communities respond to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the interests of governments and property owners may clash. Governments have an interest in controlling spread of the disease, providing testing and treatment, and helping individuals and businesses cope with widespread disruptions of daily life. State and local governments pursue these interests through their police powers, which give them broad latitude to take measures addressing public health, safety, and the general welfare of those within their jurisdictions. The federal government lacks “a general federal authority akin to the police power.” But acting under its enumerated authorities, including under the Commerce Clause and the General Welfare Clause (as supplemented by the Necessary and Proper Clause), Congress has ample power to enact legislation to deter the spread of COVID-19, and indeed several laws enacted long before COVID-19s outbreak afford the President and executive agencies significant discretion to take measures