Last week, New York governor Andrew Cuomo (D) declared a public health emergency in response to the flu epidemic, which has now seen cases in 47 states.

But despite this epidemic, one corporate front group is advocating for banning cities from enacting legislation guaranteeing paid sick days to employees.

The Florida Chamber of Commerce said Wednesday that one of its top legislative priorities this year would be blocking local governments from adopting paid sick-time measures such as the one pending in Orange County.

At a news conference inAi??Tallahassee, Chamber President Mark Wilson said his powerful business group wantsAi??a lawAi??that would ban cities and counties from creating varying paid-sick-leave rules across the state.

Advocates of a sick-leave ballot measure in Orange County — where the local council denied people the right to vote on such an effort this past election — blasted the Chamber’s move.

“It’s not surprising that the chamber wants to deny 50,000 people the right to vote on an issue that they can legally petition their government on,” said Stephanie Porta, executive director of Organize Now. “Just as the chamber will be counting votes on this disenfranchising bill, we will as well.”

Recall that the Florida Chamber is sponsored by some of the biggest corporate names in the state. Its board of trustees includes representatives from AT&T, Walt Disney, IBM, and others.