On November 19, 2020, the State’s Public Health Officer issued a limited stay at home order (the “Order”). According to the California Department of Public Health (“CDPH”), the Order will help reduce community spread and protect individuals at higher risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19. The Order was issued in response to the unparalleled increase in case rates of about 50 percent in California during the first week in November.

Beginning on November 21, 2020 at 10:00 p.m., all gatherings with members of other households and all activities conducted outside a residence, lodging, or temporary accommodation are prohibited between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. Individuals are permitted to leave their residences as long as they do not interact or gather with persons from other households. The Order does not apply to persons experiencing homelessness, activities that are required by law, and activities associated with the operation and maintenance of critical infrastructure. A full list of California’s critical infrastructure is available at https://covid19.ca.gov/essential-workforce/. The Order will  remain in effect until 5:00 a.m. on December 21, 2020 and may be extended or revised as needed.

The Order only applies to counties designated in Tier One (Purple) of California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy. For counties that move into Tier One (Purple) after November 21, 2020, the Order will go into effect at 10:00 p.m. two days after the county is assigned to Tier One (Purple). The CDPH assigns counties to one of four tiers (“Widespread” – Tier One (Purple), “Substantial” – Tier Two (Red), “Moderate” – Tier Three (Orange), and “Minimal” – Tier Four (Yellow)) based on its test positivity and adjusted case rate. As of November 16, 2020, 41 counties (94.1 percent of the State’s population) are in Tier One (Purple). The status of every county in California can be found at https://covid19.ca.gov/safer-economy/.

Health and Safety Code section 120130 (c) authorizes the CDPH to adopt and enforce regulations requiring strict or modified isolation, or quarantine, for any contagious, infectious, or communicable diseases for the protection of the public health. Though the State has broad authority to issue such directives, and most local jurisdictions have legal authority to enforce them, the Order will undoubtedly pose practical enforcement challenges.

A copy of the Order can be found here.

If you have any questions or concerns, you are welcome to contact the offices of Churchwell White at (916) 468-0950 or email Doug White at Doug@whitebrennerllp.com or Nubia Goldstein at Nubia@whitebrennerllp.com.