Agenda - Council - 03/30/2020 - Emergency Special

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This document is made available electronically by the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library as part of an ongoing digital archiving project. http://www.leg.state.mn.us/Irl/execorders/execorders.asp STATE OF MINNESOTA Executive Department FT, Zi-4111% Governor Tim Walz Emergency Executive Order 20-20 Directing Minnesotans to Stay at Home I, Tim Walz, Governor of the State of Minnesota, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and applicable statutes, issue the following Executive Order: The COVID-19 pandemic presents an unprecedented challenge to our State. On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization ("WHO") characterized the COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic. Despite efforts to contain COVID-19, the WHO and the Centers for Disease Control ("CDC") indicate that it is expected to spread. Confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Minnesota are rapidly increasing. On March 15, 2020, Minnesota detected the first confirmed cases caused by "community spread" —infections not epidemiologically linked to overseas travel. By March 17, 2020, all fifty states had reported a confirmed case of COVID-19. By March 20, 2020, the CDC had confirmed more than 15,000 COVID-19 cases in the United States. And on March 21, 2020, the Minnesota Department of Health ("MDH") announced the first confirmed fatality due to COVID-19 in Minnesota. Community spread of COVID-19 in Minnesota and nationwide is increasing. As of March 24, 2020, Minnesota had 287 confirmed COVID-19 cases, with 35 hospitalizations. It is further expected that increased testing capacity would demonstrate that COVID-19 is circulating in communities across Minnesota that currently have not identified a confirmed case. Minnesota has already taken proactive steps to ensure that we are ahead of the curve on COVID- 19 prevention and response. On March 13, 2020, I issued Executive Order 20-01 and declared a peacetime emergency because this pandemic, an act of nature, threatens the lives of Minnesotans, and local resources are inadequate to address the threat. On March 15, 2020, I issued Executive Order 20-02 ordering the temporary closure of public schools. On March 16, 2020, I issued Executive Order 20-04 ordering the closure of bars, restaurants, and other places of public accommodation. Recent developments, including the presence of community spread in Minnesota, the rapid increase in COVID-19 cases both globally and in Minnesota, and the first COVID-19 related death in our state, require Minnesota to take additional proactive measures to slow the spread of this pandemic. Slowing the community spread of COVID-19 is critical to ensuring that our 1