NEWSLETTER

MAY 11, 2020

Neighbors, 

As Governor Northam rolls out his plans to re-open Virginia’s economy, I want to draw your attention to new requirements and recommendations for businesses and religious institutions to ensure the safety and health of workers, customers, and worshippers under “Phase I:”

  • Executive Order (EO) 61 and Order of Public Health Emergency (OPHE) Three, available here, pertains to businesses and places of worship.

  • Guidelines for All Business Sectors, available here.

  • Guidelines for Religious Services, available here.

Below is information regarding Virginia’s response to COVID-19 from Governor Northam, state agencies, Fairfax County, and community partners. As always, please let me know if you have any questions by calling (804-698-1042) - or emailing DelKTran@house.virginia.gov.

Best, Kathy

Updates from Governor Northam, State Agencies, Fairfax County, and Community Partners

Re-Opening Virginia’s Economy

Additional Details About Requirements for Businesses in Phase I

  • On Friday, May 8, Governor Northam signed Executive Order (EO) 61 and Order of Public Health Emergency (OPHE) Three, available here. Additionally, today, the Governor issued Guidelines for All Business Sectors, which is here.

  • The Governor reiterated that he expects these orders to be effective May 15, unless there are changes in COVID-19 data. Violations of these Orders, like previous ones, are Class 1 Misdemeanors and are enforceable by local law enforcement.

  • EO 61 and OPHE 3 continue to ban public and private gatherings of more than 10 people, including but not limited to, parties, celebrations, or other social events, whether they occur indoors or outdoors. (This restriction does not apply to individuals who are performing a function of their employment or family members living in the same residence.)

  • Additionally, EO 61, OPHE 3, and the Guidelines provide more information about recommended best practices for all businesses that re-open during Phase I. These practices are in regards to maintaining physical distancing between co-workers and between members of the public; enhanced cleaning and disinfection; and workplace safety practices.

  • EO 61, OPHE 3, and the Guidelines also include specific requirements and suggested best practices customized for the following sectors:

  • Restaurants, dining establishments, food courts, breweries, microbreweries, distilleries, wineries, and tasting rooms.

  • Farmers markets.

  • “Non-essential” brick and motor retail businesses.

  • Fitness and exercise facilities.

  • Personal care and personal grooming services.

  • Campgrounds at state parks and private locations.

  • Indoor shooting ranges.

  • I strongly suggest that you review EO 61, PHO 3, and the Guidelines if you are going to work under Phase I so that you know about the safety precautions that employers should have in place. Similarly, please review these requirements if you patron these businesses so that you know what is expected to ensure yours and workers’ health and safety.

Guidelines for Religious Institutions During Phase I

  • I have heard from many constituents concerned about their ability to gather and worship in person. EO 61 and PHO 3, available here, include requirements for religious services. Additional detailed requirements and recommended best practices are included in a Guidelines for Religious Services, available here.

  • Under Phase I, places of worship are able to conduct in-person services if they meet certain requirements. This includes:

    • Opening at 50 percent indoor capacity.

    • Requiring individuals, with the exclusion of family members, attending religious services to be at least six apart when seated and practice physical distancing at all times.

    • Not allowing items to be passed to or between attendees who are not family members.

Request to Delay Re-Opening of Northern Virginia Region

  • As I noted last week, Governor Northam indicated local governments have the ability to continue with some/all restrictions in place and to move on a slower timeline to re-open their economies. While the information about Phase I above is the state guidance, we may see local communities move at different paces.

  • Chair of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Jeff McKay joined the chief elected officials from other Northern Virginia localities - Arlington County, The City of Alexandria, Prince William County, and Loudoun County - to request Governor Northam re-open Northern Virginia’s economy only after our region meets the health criteria he has laid out for the entire state. You can find the statement from Fairfax County, as well as a copy of the letter sent to Governor Northam, here. 

  • Northern Virginia, compared to other parts of the state, continues to see a heightened number of new confirmed COVID-19 cases and have a higher positive test rate, both key metrics that the CDC recommends considering when planning to re-open the economy. For example, Dr. Norman Oliver, the state health commissioner, noted there were 989 new COVID-19 cases throughout Virginia in the last reporting cycle, of which more than 700 were in Northern Virginia. Further, Northern Virginia’s positive test rate is about 25 percent compared to 10 percent in the rest of Virginia. 

  • Governor Northam has invited local officials representing parts of Northern Virginia to join his scheduled press conference on Wednesday, May 13 at 2pm to discuss their proposal for re-opening our regional economy.

Healthcare Updates

Testing

  • Yesterday, May 10, Virginia reached a milestone by conducting a record 9,801 COVID-19 tests across the state.

Supporting Communities of Color

  • Data shows that communities of color, particularly the African American and Latinx communities, are being disproportionately affected by COVID-19 in Virginia and across the country. The Health Equity Work Group, led by Dr. Janice Underwood, the Chief Diversity Officer, continues to work with various stakeholders to address these health disparities. 

  • They have made 20,000 masks and 20,000 bottles of hand sanitizers available for neighborhoods in Richmond with vulnerable populations. This is the first of many steps the Governor’s administration is taking to support communities of color who are being hardest hit by the public health pandemic. 

Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)

  • The Governor announced that DMV offices across Virginia will remain closed for at least one more week. Virginians are encouraged to continue using online services to the extent possible. As a reminder, there is a 60 day extension for licenses and identification cards that expire between March 15 - May 15 and for car registrations that expired in March and April. You can find the announcement here. 

Education

  • The State Superintendent worked with a group of school leaders to develop recommendations regarding summer school and the next school year for K-12 schools. These recommendations are currently being reviewed by Governor Northam, with input from our state’s public health leaders.

Updates from Community Partners

Metro

  • Today, Metro announced its preliminary plans to ramp up services while continuing to protect the health of workers and customers. Below is a summary of the plans and you can find the announcement here.

  • Metro will continue to ask customers to use their services only for essential trips. Those who use Metro services will be asked to wear face masks/coverings while using the Metro system.

  • Starting this fall, though subject to change, Metro will ramp up services and re-open Metro stations that were closed as part of their COVID-19 response. All Metrobus routes that were previously affected will continue to operate, though some with service limitations like reduced intervals between bus departures. 

  • Once a treatment and/or vaccine is widely available, Metro will return to post-pandemic hours of service and will continue to ramp up service to meet the needs across the region. 

  • After the pandemic, Metro will analyze their response to COVID-19 to assess how they can make the system safer and more resilient to future pandemics. 

View my summary of the 2020 legislative session here.

View my e-newsletters here.

View my new COVID-19 resource page to see a summary of state actions, guidance, and resources here.