COVID-19 Reopening Plan, Proclamation Extensions, and Government Operations – MRSC

February 2, 2021 by Jill DvorkinCategory: Strategies and Programs , Open Public Meetings Act , Public Records Act , COVID-19

Editor's note: This is an updated and republished version of a blog post originally written on January 13 and updated again on January 28. This version contains new information about Proclamation 20-28.15, which addresses in-person meetings, the Open Public Meetings Act (OPMA), and the Public Records Act (PRA), as well as the updated Miscellaneous Venues guidance issued on February 1.

This updated blog sets out our latest understanding of where things stand for local governments based on a recent conversation with Governor Jay Inslees office clarifying some questions related to daily government operations and conducting open public meetings during the COVID-19 emergency.

As of January 11, Washington State is operating under the new COVID-19 reopening plan called theHealthy Washington Roadmap to Recovery, made effective through the governorsProclamation 20-25.12. And on January 19, the governorextended 26 proclamations, including the OPMA/PRAProclamation 20-28.15, through the duration of the COVID-19 emergency or until rescinded. This followed action by the legislature on January 15, which passedSCR 8402, extending statutory waivers and suspensions contained within those 26 proclamations.

For now, agencies in Phase 1 jurisdictions still may not hold an in-person component to their public meetings. Phase 2 jurisdictions may have an in-person public meeting component, limited to 25% capacity or 200 people, whichever is fewer, and consistent with the revised Miscellaneous Venues guidance. Local government operations are to be guided by locally-developed operational plans, described further below.

The latest OPMA/PRAProclamation 20-28.15states, in relevant part:

Proclamations 20-28, et seq., are amended to (1) recognize the extension of statutory waivers and suspensions therein by the Washington State Legislature until termination of the state of emergency pursuant to RCW 43.06.210, or until rescinded, and (2) similarly extend the prohibitions therein until termination of the state of emergency pursuant to RCW 43.06.210, or until rescinded, whichever occurs first.

So, what does this mean for public meetings? Because this is a simple extension of the previous proclamation (version 14), we must look toProclamation 20-28.14to determine the rules applicable to meetings subject to the OPMA. Proclamation 20-28.14 requires that all public meetings must be held remotely but provides an option for an in-person meeting component consistent with the business meetings requirements contained in the Miscellaneous Venues guidance, which is incorporated into Proclamation 20-25, et seq. The relevant language states:

As an exception to the above prohibition, public agencies holding public meetings may, at their option and in addition to hosting the remote meeting elements described above, include an in-person component to a public meeting if all of the following requirements are met:

1. The open public meeting complies with the guidelines for business meetings, found in the Miscellaneous Venues guidancehere, as incorporated into the Proclamation 20-25 et seq., Stay Safe Stay Healthy - Rollback of County-By-County Phased Reopening Responding to a COVID-19 Outbreak Surge;

The Miscellaneous Venues guidance was updated February 1 to reflect the new phasing approach. Business meetings are prohibited in Phase 1 regions but allowed in Phase 2, consistent with the requirements set forth in the guidancemeetings allowed up to 25% capacity or 200 people, whichever is fewer (excluding staff), with several safety measures that must be met.

While the previous Stay Safe - Stay Healthy plan (the last version can be found atProclamation20-25.11) followed a four-phase reopening approach based on metrics measured at the county level, the new plan divides the state into eight regions and currently contains only two recovery phases.

The eight regions in theRoadmap to Recoveryare based largely on Emergency Medical Services (EMS) regions used for evaluating healthcare services. The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) will evaluate each region based on a set of four metrics. The metrics look at trends in COVID-19 disease rate, hospital admission rate, intensive care unit (ICU) occupancy, and COVID-19 test positivity rate.

The firstRoadmap to Recovery Reportwas issued by the DOH on Friday, January 8, with every region starting in Phase 1. On January 21, the state launched a newRoadmap to Recovery Dashboardthat will be used for the DOH evaluation and reporting. Based on an update to the Roadmap to Recoveryannounced by the governoron January 28, a region must meet three of four metrics to move from Phase 1 to Phase 2 (previously a region must have met all four metrics) and continue to meet three of four metrics to remain in Phase 2. Two regions (Puget Sound and West) moved to Phase 2 on Monday, February 1. The updated Roadmap to Recovery also changes the timing of the DOH evaluation and potential changing of phases from weekly to every two weeks.

Thischart in the Roadmaplists broad categories of activities allowed in Phases 1 and 2, although more specific guidance is available for many activities on the governorsCOVID-19 Reopening Guidance for Business and Workerspage.

The latestRoadmap to Recoveryand updated COVID-19 Reopening Guidance for Business and Workersprovide guidance and benchmarks for certain local government activities; however, how a local government chooses to conduct their daily operations, within CDC and other recommended safety parameters, remain largely within their discretion. The governor recognizes local control and the need for local governments to develop their own appropriate operational plans.

On June 19, Governor Inslee issued thismemo to local governmentsthat encourages them to use the Safe Start Reopening Guide for State Agenciesin developing their own safe start plans. The governor continues to recommend that local governments use this guide in developing their plans (Version 5, linked above, is the most recent).

The state guidance covers:

For state agencies, the guidelines for activities described in the Roadmap to Recoveryand updated COVID-19 Reopening Guidance for Business and Workersare intended to act as minimum standards for operations. On p. 6, the guidance states:

The phases in the governors Healthy Washington - Roadmap to Recovery plan act as a minimum standard for how businesses, counties, and regions can reopen.

For example, continued telework is strongly encouraged and offices should remain closed for those government agency activities that would fit within theProfessional Servicescategory. For those services that cannot be provided remotely, the plan sets a limit of 25% capacity. Similarly, the governors office recommends applying these benchmarks for local government operations.

In the previous phased re-opening plans, customer-facing government services were not allowed to resume until Phase 3. Our understanding from talking with the governors office is that this prohibition was part of the former phasing plan and is no longer applicable. Again, local governments will need to make their own plans, prioritizing and resuming services as safely as possible, using current statewide capacity and safety guidance, as applicable.

On January 19 the governor extended dozens of proclamations until the termination of the emergency, or until rescinded. Some proclamations affecting local governments include20-64.5and20-23.14.

The governors website contains afull list of all updated proclamations.

The actions of the legislature and governor extending the emergency proclamations until the termination of the emergency will provide more certainty going forward, without having to wonder whether any given proclamation will be extended or renewed after the rolling expiration dates. Local governments should be using the Roadmap for Recovery and related activity-specific guidance in developing their own operational plans. Meetings subject to the OPMA continue to be guided by the specific limitations set forth in Proclamation 20-28.15.

As always, we recommend consulting with your agencys legal counsel with questions and keeping a close eye onMRSCs websitefor the latest guidance regarding local government operations during the COVID-19 emergency.

MRSC is a private nonprofit organization serving local governments in Washington State. Eligible government agencies in Washington State may use our free, one-on-one Ask MRSC service to get answers to legal, policy, or financial questions.

VIEW ALL POSTS BY Jill Dvorkin

See the original post here:

COVID-19 Reopening Plan, Proclamation Extensions, and Government Operations - MRSC