Five Regions Now Entering Phase 2 of Economic Reopening

Governor Cuomo today announced that five upstate regions – the North Country, Finger Lakes, Central New York, Mohawk Valley, and the Southern Tier – have satisfied the required statistical benchmarks to begin Phase 2 of New York State’s reopening process.  Phase 2 guidelines can be found here. 

Non-essential businesses that now can reopen in these regions include:

  • Office-Based Jobs: including professional services, administrative support, and information technology
  • Real Estate Services: including building and property management; and leasing, rental, and sales services
  • Retail: including in-store shopping; motor vehicle leasing, rental, and sales; barbershops and hair salons (for limited services); and retail rental, repair and cleaning

Businesses that remain closed include:

  • Malls
  • Dine-in and on-premise restaurant or bar service
  • Large gathering/event venues
  • Gyms, fitness centers, and exercise classes (except for remote or streaming services)
  • Video lottery and casino gaming facilities
  • Movie theaters (except drive-ins)
  • Places of public amusement

Additionally, the Governor announced a new early warning dashboard that aggregates the State’s COVID-19 data collection efforts for New Yorkers, government officials and experts to monitor and review how the virus is being contained on an ongoing basis. The early warning system dashboard, developed in consultation with internationally-known experts, can be found here.

New York City on Track to Begin Phase 1 Reopening on June 8th

The Governor and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said that the City is on track to start Phase 1 of the State’s reopening process on June 8th.   The Governor stated that for NYC to begin Phase 1, which would allow 400,000 workers to return to work, it must work on the following:

  • Hospital capacity must reach 70 percent
  • Establish a sufficient PPE (personal protective equipment) stockpile
  • Satisfy benchmarks for testing/contact tracing
  • MTA preparations
  • Focusing on COVID hotspots, which have already been identified by ZIP code

As part of its preparations for Phase 1 reopening, Mayor de Blasio announced that next week the City will provide small business owners with free facial coverings and create a hotline for business owners who have questions.

Legislative Session

Concluding work early this morning, the NYS Senate and Assembly passed a legislative package to help support New Yorkers during the COVID-19 pandemic and prepare the State for future emergencies. The joint press release issued by the Senate and Assembly majority conferences, which also summarizes the bills passed by both houses, can be found here.

New York State COVID-19 Numbers

Thankfully, we are now firmly on the far side of the COVID-19 plateau in New York State. That said, the number of deaths in the State has increased by 67 since yesterday.