Newsom Rolls Out New Re-Opening Guidelines, Says They’ll Be ‘More Stubborn This Time’

Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) has rolled out a re-opening plan for California’s 58 counties that will force them to meet uniform metrics, based on a four-tier color-coding system, before many of their businesses and organizations can resume indoor operations. 

Under the color-coding system, counties with more than 7 daily new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents, or a positivity rate of over 8%, are assigned the color purple and are blocked from reopening “many non-essential indoor business operations.” These purple counties encompass 87% of the state’s population, and the new guidelines only allow for a county to move up into the next tier after a minimum waiting period of three weeks.

Furthermore, the pandemic figures must fall into the guidelines of the upcoming tier for two weeks before they can be officially changed. 

“We’re going to be more stubborn this time,” acknowledged Newsom of the mandatory waiting period. “We didn’t do that last time, and that is a significant distinction between what we’ve learned from the past and what we now are advancing in this more stringent — but we believe more steady — approach.”

NEW: California is launching a Blueprint for a Safer Economy.

It’s simple.

Your county will be assigned a color based on:
– Case rate
– Positivity rate

Your color determines how businesses can operate in your county.

Find your color & what’s open ➡️ https://t.co/xtXFwVeWc2 pic.twitter.com/fFXR7rbtU1

— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) August 28, 2020

The four color-coded tiers include: 

• Purple: Widespread risk. Most non-essential indoor business operations are blocked from opening. This tier is reserved for counties with 7 daily positive cases per 100,000 residents and an 8% positivity rate. 
• Red: Substantial risk. Some non-essential indoor business operations are blocked from opening. This tier is reserved for counties with 4-7 daily positive cases per 100,000 residents and a 5-8% positivity rate. 
• Orange: Moderate risk: Some indoor business operations are open with certain modifications. This tier is reserved for counties with 1-3.9 daily positive cases per 100,000 residents and a 2-4.9% positivity rate. 
• Yellow: Minimal risk: Most indoor business operations are open with certain modifications. This tier is reserved for counties with less than 1 daily positive case per 100,000 residents and a 2% or lower positivity rate. 

Eight of California’s fifty-eight counties fall into the “red” category, another eight fall into the “orange” category, and only three fall into the “yellow” category, according to data from The Los Angeles Times. Furthermore, the color-tier system establishes different reopening criteria based on the business, establishment, or organization in question. 

For example, under the guidelines, a county with a “red” designation (i.e., between four to seven reported daily coronavirus cases per 100,000 people) can allow gyms to open at 10% capacity, museums to open at 25% capacity, churches to open at 25% capacity or at a maximum occupancy of 100 people — whichever figure is smaller — and indoor shopping centers to open at 50% capacity. 

Once these counties reach the “yellow” designation (i.e., only one reported daily coronavirus case per 100,000 people in the county), gyms can reopen at 50% capacity, museums can reopen at regular capacity with modifications, churches can reopen at 50% capacity, and indoor shopping centers can reopen with modifications.