Gov. Tony Evers issues order to help plan for security during 2024 RNC in Milwaukee

MADISON - Gov. Tony Evers issued an order Wednesday that allows city, state and federal officials to gather resources ahead of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee to respond to potential emergencies and to plan for large-scale events.

Evers' emergency declaration was issued at the request of the City of Milwaukee and Wisconsin Emergency Management agency, according to the governor's office. It allows for easier cooperation between local and out-of-state law enforcement agencies for security duties and gives all participating officers the power of arrest, according to the order.

As many as 4,500 law enforcement officers from agencies outside Milwaukee could come to assist with the convention that runs July 15-18.

Nine law enforcement agencies from outside the state of Wisconsin have already entered into agreements under the Emergency Management Assistance Compact to provide support at the convention, according to a Wisconsin Emergency Management spokesperson. The compact is a "state-to-state mutual aid agreement" to which Wisconsin is a party state, the order states.

Those states and agencies are:

• Florida: Bradenton Police Department, Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, Panama City Police Department

• Minnesota: Bloomington Police Department, Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office

• Missouri: Missouri State Highway Patrol

• Nevada: North Las Vegas Police Department

• New Jersey: New Jersey State Police

• North Carolina: Concord Police Department

“Note that this list only reflects agencies that have finalized agreements through the EMAC process,” spokesperson Andrew Beckett said in an email this week.

The city is contracting with agencies within the state. It has not yet released the names of those agencies, though before the Democratic National Convention went largely virtual in 2020, the city had tallied more than 100 Wisconsin law enforcement agencies that had committed to assisting with the convention, according to city records from 2019.

Evers' order also leaves open the possibility of using the Wisconsin National Guard during the event if needed.

Evers' spokeswoman Britt Cudaback said the declaration is "a standard part of the preparation" of events like the convention in order to ensure the safety of participants and the community surrounding the event.

A similar declaration would have been issued in 2020 ahead of the Democratic National Convention if the pandemic had not forced the event to be scaled back, according to the governor's office.

Molly Beck can be reached at [email protected]. Alison Dirr can be reached at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Tony Evers issues order to help security plan during RNC in Milwaukee