For Immediate Release: Thursday, December 10, 2020
ROCKVILLE, Md., December. 10, 2020—The Montgomery County Council will introduce, hold a public hearing, and vote on a resolution and Board of Health Regulation that would approve Executive Order 139-20 on the COVID-19 Local Order Amending and Restating Order dated Nov. 10 at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, December 15, 2020. The deadline to sign up to testify is December 14 at 5 p.m.
If approved by the Council, Executive Order 139-20 would be effective December 15, 2020 at 5 p.m.
Below is a summary of changes from the last Executive Order (122-20AM):
General Housekeeping
Incorporated face covering language and gathering size restrictions from the Amended Health Officer Directive dated November 24, 2020.
Incorporated the Governor’s suspension of in-person dining between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. as stated in his last Executive Order.
Updated citations and links to new declarations of emergency and orders issued by the Governor and the Maryland Department of Health.
Changed the word “patron” to “person” to address questions about whether staff count towards occupancy or capacity numbers.
Face coverings
Amended language regarding face coverings for children and sports so the exception only applies while actively playing sports.
Gatherings
Included non-professional sports and events in the definition of social gathering.
Included that one household does not constitute a social gathering unless more than one household is present. If there is more than one household present, each individual present at the gathering would be counted for the purposes of determining compliance toward the applicable gathering limit.
Childcare
Removed requirement that Code of Maryland Regulations (COMAR) staff to child ratios be followed pursuant to the waiver granted by the Maryland State Department of Education.
Fitness Centers
Fitness centers must strictly enforce social distancing and the requirement that persons wear face masks.
Food Service Establishments
Except for licensed health care facilities, indoor dining is suspended.
Restaurants are limited to outdoor dining, carry-out, drive-through, or delivery.
Restricted outdoor dining hours to 6 a.m. through 10 p.m. to comply with the Governor’s last Executive Order.
Retail Establishments
Added language explicitly including large retail and grocery stores.
Changed maximum capacity to one person per 200 square feet of retail space not to exceed 150 persons.
Sports
Removed automatic approval to exceed gathering limits to accommodate parents, guardians, and immediate family.
Sports now follow social gathering size limitations.
Executive Order 139-20 and the Council staff report can be viewed here.
The Council's webpage can be found at www.montgomerycountymd.gov/council.
Documents and information are available at www.montgomerycountymd.gov/council.
NOTE: During the Covid-19 state of emergency, the public is not able to be physically present in the Council Hearing Room. Residents who would like to call in to testify at a Council public hearing need to preregister on the Council's web page at https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/council/calendar.html . Once the public hearing sign up request form is submitted and the public hearing list is created, individuals will receive separate confirmation notifications that include the appropriate phone number to call for the public hearing.
Community members also have the option to provide audio, video and written testimony to the Council using a recently developed online testimony form on the Council's web page which can be found at https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/COUNCIL/PHSignUp.html. The testimony provided with the online option carries the same weight as testimony given at a public hearing. Councilmembers consider all comments as part of their deliberations.
Comments and suggestions are welcome online at http://tinyurl.com/zrbwh5v; via email at county.council@montgomerycountymd.gov; by sending regular mail to County Council, 100 Maryland Ave., Rockville, MD 20850. For information or to express an opinion call 240-777-7900.
The meeting will be televised live by County Cable Montgomery (CCM) on Xfinity channels 6 and 996, RCN channels 6 and 1056; and FiOS channel 30. Also available live via streaming through the Council website at http://tinyurl.com/z9982v8, Facebook Live (@MontgomeryCountyMdCouncil or @ConcejodelCondadodeMontgomery), or YouTube (@MoCoCouncilMD).
# # #
Release ID: 20-494