On April 24, 2020 at 11:00 am, Governor Whitmer issued Executive Order 2020-59 (the “EO”). Unless otherwise specified, the EO is effective immediately and continues until May 15, 2020 at 11:59 pm. Broadly, the EO extends the duration of the stay-at-home order previously issued under Executive Order 2020-42, but with some amendments. Some of those amendments included the following:
- Individuals may freely travel between residences.
- Subject to social distancing requirements, garden stores, nurseries, lawncare, pest control, and landscaping operations may resume.
- Subject to social distancing requirements, operations which process or fulfill remote orders for delivery or curbside pickup may resume.
- Effective April 26, 2020 at 11:59 pm, any individual who is medically able must wear a nose and mouth covering when in an enclosed public space.
Generally, the EO continues the restrictions imposed on municipalities by previous versions of the stay-at-home order. Those restrictions include the following:
- Public meetings should be held electronically.
- To the extent possible, all municipal employees should work from home.
- In-person work by municipal employees is only permitted when such work is necessary to sustain or protect life, to support those operations necessary to sustain or protect life, to maintain the value of inventory and equipment, care for animals, ensure security, process transactions (including payroll and employee benefits), facilitate the ability of other workers to work remotely, or to perform necessary government activities.
- Necessary government activities include, but are not limited to, public transit, trash pickup and disposal (including recycling and composting), activities necessary to manage and oversee elections, operations necessary to enable transactions that support the work of a business’s or operation’s critical infrastructure workers, and the maintenance of safe and sanitary public parks.