Highlights of Napa County’s Updated Shelter in Place Order Including Cloth Face Covering Requirement

On May 7, 2020, Napa County issued an Order modifying the prior Shelter in Place Order that was issued on April 22, 2020. The full text of the Order can be found here, and the updated FAQs are here.

Here are the key changes in the new Order:

  • The Order requires wearing cloth face coverings when inside places of business and in workplaces when interacting with any person where six feet of physical distancing cannot be maintained.
    • A Face Covering is Not Required When: at home; in your car alone or solely with members of your household; exercising outdoors provided you are staying at least six feet apart from anyone who is not a member of your household (but it is recommended that you have a face covering with you and readily accessible); when eating or drinking.
    • Who Should Not Wear a Face Covering: Children 6 years old or younger may not need a face covering and children under 2 should not wear one;  anyone who has trouble breathing or is unable to easily remove a face covering without assistance; anyone who has been advised by a medical professional not to wear a face covering.
    • Essential businesses must require their employees wear a face covering in any area where others may be present, even if there are no customers or members of the public present at the time. Essential businesses should inform customers about the requirement of wearing a face covering, including posting signs at the entrance to the store or facility.
    • All workers operating public transportation, or operating other types of shared transportation are required to wear a face covering when at work in most settings.
    • Workers doing minimum basic operations, like security or payroll, essential infrastructure work, or government functions should wear a face covering when six feet of physical distance cannot be maintained.
    • For more information on cloth face coverings, including links to guidance on how to make your own mask, see the Napa County requirement here.
  • The Order states that businesses will be permitted to reopen within the State of California’s framework that identifies four-stages to reopening.
    • Non-essential businesses will be permitted to reopen according to the State’s four-stage framework. It is anticipated that Early Stage 2 non-essential businesses may be able to open as early as Friday, May 8, 2020. The list of those businesses, and how they will be allowed to operate, will be provided by the State.
    • Counties may be able to move into Deep Stage 2, but only after the State Public Health Officer provides criteria and procedures for doing so, as well as the template for submitting a “readiness plan” that requires self-certification by the Public Health Officer and approval by the Board of Supervisors.
    • Stage 3 non-essential businesses will not be able to reopen until the Governor determines, on a statewide basis, that counties can move into Stage 3. The Governor has also said this stage is months away.
  • The Order allows drive-in activities that can comply with physical distancing requirements.
  • All construction is now allowed but it must comply with Construction Site Requirements to maintain social distancing and sanitation (see Appendix B to the Order).
  • The Order allows outdoor recreation sports that can comply with physical distancing requirements; however, person-to-person contact sports are still prohibited.
    • The list of approved outdoor recreation activities can be found here.
    • Golfing, use of tennis courts, and use of swimming pools (public and semi-private) are permitted as long as they are used in compliance with social distancing protocols. (The specific, detailed requirements for golf courses remain the same – see Appendix C of the Order).
    • You can exercise outdoors if you will not be in close contact with other people or using equipment that other people outside your household have touched. Fitness centers, gyms, recreational centers, fitness equipment at parks, climbing walls, basketball courts, and other shared sports facilities remain closed.
  • Comment on the Short-Term Lodging Industry
    • The Napa County Public Health Officer has advised the lodging industry that reservations beginning on and after June 1, 2020 may be accepted. However, this is not a guarantee that the reservations can be honored, and short-term lodging businesses should inform customers that their reservations will be cancelled if the local and/or state Shelter-At-Home orders continue to prohibit short-term lodging at that time. Further, lodging businesses should consider how they will provide appropriate sanitation and enforce physical distancing protocols when they are allowed to reopen.
    • The Compliance Task Force will not engage in enforcement activities for lodging businesses that are currently accepting reservations for dates beginning June 1, 2020 and beyond, but making new reservations for dates in May is still prohibited and subject to enforcement.

For more information please contact Marissa Buck.