News From Annapolis | May 28, 2020
Delegate Susan Krebs, District 5
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In This Issue:
  • Governor's COVID-19 Reopening Information
  • CARES Act Resources Available
  • U.S. Census Follow Up
  • Primary Election - June 2nd
  • Delegate Scholarship Awards Information
Maryland Continues with Reopening
Resumption of Outdoor Dining,
Youth Sports, Day Camps, Outdoor Pools Can Reopen Under Strict Protocols and 
Public Health Guidance

Governor Larry Hogan today announced that due to successful Stage One re-openings across the state and improvements in key data and metrics, the State of Maryland can now safely move forward with the completion of Stage One of the ‘Maryland Strong: Roadmap to Recovery,’ which includes the resumption of outdoor dining and outdoor activities such as "low contact" youth sports and youth day camps, and the reopening of outdoor pools and drive-in movie theaters.


Thanks to the hundreds of you who have contacted our office with questions, unfortunately, we do not have all of the answers. The links included in this newsletter are what we know from the Governor’s Office. Some of the information is challenging to interpret and we must just use good judgement as to the spirit of the directives and the goal to weaken and defeat this pandemic. We expect to have another announcement from the Governor as early as next week if all goes well.

The District 5 Delegation- Senator Ready and Delegates Rose, Shoemaker and myself along with our County Commissioners, Sheriff, States Attorney, Mayors and other local elected leaders, have been working to encourage the Governor to reopen Maryland in the most expeditious manner and to allow the local elected officials to determine what works best for their own jurisdictions. We still have a long way to go to be able to get Marylanders back to work, our lives back to a new normal, and our students back to school in the fall.



MARYLAND’S POSITIVITY RATE HAS DROPPED BY HALF

LOWER RISK DOES NOT MEAN NO RISK
Governor Hogan continued to stress the importance of staying home as much as possible, avoiding crowds of people, teleworking when possible, practicing physical distancing, and wearing masks in indoor public areas.

Effective Friday, May 29, at 5:00 pm:
~Important: Please click the links below for detailed information & guidelines.~

OUTDOOR DINING

Restaurants must: 
  • Ensure patrons are appropriately distanced with no more than six people seated at a table, with the exception of members of the same household.
  • Ensure patrons are seated at least six feet away from each other, except for households seated together.
  • Use single-use disposable paper menus or sanitize reusable menus between each seating. 
  • Sanitize outdoor tables and chairs between each customer seating.
  • Staff: Train staff in current COVID-19 health and workplace guidelines, take daily temperature checks, and ensure staff wear face masks.

In an effort to promote safer dining and support the restaurant industry, the governor is encouraging local jurisdictions to expand the footprint of outdoor dining by allowing for the closing of streets and expanding into parking lots and public outdoor spaces. 

YOUTH SPORTS (Low Contact) .  

YOUTH DAY CAMPS .  

 OUTDOOR POOLS
All outdoor pools may reopen with strict safety guidelines including:
  • 25% capacity restrictions.
  • Strict physical distancing and sanitization measures.
  • Patrons will be required to sign-in and sign-out.
  • All pools will be required to post signage warning anyone who is sick not to enter.

STAGE TWO Governor Hogan noted that health officials will continue to watch the data closely, and if these encouraging trends continue into next week, the state will then be in a position to move into Stage Two of the recovery, which would mean lifting the order on non-essential businesses.
Moving Forward to Save "Lives and Livelihoods"
Hello friends,

The Maryland House Republican Caucus sent a letter to Governor Hogan this week strongly urging him to allow for the vast majority of industries in Maryland to reopen in a common-sense way that still protects public health and allows our economy to recover.

We strongly urged him to consider:
  • All personal-service businesses must be given the same reopening opportunities as hair salons and barber shops
  • All retail locations must be allowed to open at greater capacity, without unduly restrictive conditions
  • All restaurants must be permitted to be open with an expansion of indoor capacity redesigned in a manner consistent with CDC recommendations
  • Open all gyms and similar activity centers, with modified capacity and strict cleaning guidelines
  • We strongly urged him to signal that outdoor graduations and other group outdoor activities are not subject to any 10-person gathering limitation, provided that they observe existing social distancing protocols
  • Jurisdictions with significantly lower rates of infection should be given the flexibility to open at up at a faster rate
  • Information was provided to the Governor about other States who reopened earlier and the COVID-19 numbers did not increase

Marylanders rose to the challenge and flattened the curve while we were building up the hospital capacities, increasing the PPE supplies, expanding testing and contact tracing. Lives and livelihoods are at stake - it's time to get back to business in a safe and healthy way!

Susan
Carroll County Health Department
Applications for Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act
The Carroll County Health Department (CCHD) invites Carroll County organizations to apply for reimbursement of expenses procured while fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. 


The application requires the following:
  • A budget plan (using template provided) for the expenditures already incurred and expected future expenditures
  • The CARES Act CRF Fund Reimbursement Request form
  • The minimum request is $1000. 
  • All applications will be reviewed and approved by a local committee, with precedence given to applicants who meet the established priorities. 

The CCHD may only process reimbursement when actual expenses are incurred. However, when the application is approved by the committee, the CCHD will place a hold on those funds to allow for reimbursement when the expenditures are incurred. 

For additional information and application documents, please visit  https://carrollcountymd.gov/caresact

Submit application, documentation and invoices to:
Carroll County Health Department
Attn: Accounts Payable/CARES
290 S. Center Street
Westminster, MD 21157

Funding applications may be submitted until approved funding is depleted.

If you have any questions about this funding opportunity, please contact Donna Buchanan, Fiscal Account Technician Supervisor, at the Carroll County Health Department, at   donna.buchanan@maryland.gov  or 410-876-4831.
COVID-19 Resources
Announcements
2020 U.S. Census:
Every Marylander Counts! Maryland’s undercount in the 2010 census resulted in our state losing almost $1 billion in federal funding for critical programs. The census can be completed by mail, phone, or  on-line.

I am proud to say that Carroll County has the highest census completion rate in the state and one of the highest in the nation - but our goal is 100% complete and we are not there yet.

The Census is based on where you resided on April 1st.

Please be a responsible citizen and complete your Census today!
Primary Election is June 2nd:
Every vote counts! For more Primary Election Information,

Thanks to all who have mailed in your ballots. There is still an opportunity for limited voting at two polling places on June 2nd.


Update on Delegate's Scholarship:
If you are a graduating high school senior and applied for the Delegate's Scholarship, thank you for your patience. In the past, applications were considered and approved prior to the high schools’ awards ceremony.

We received a record number of applications this year, and due to our attention being focused on constituents and their COVID-19 related issues, we have not had the opportunity to get the scholarship committee to review the applications, therefore the awards will not be announced prior to the virtual awards ceremonies. Applicants will be notified by mail or email by mid-summer.

IMPORTANT! If you applied for a scholarship and have decided to attend a different school than on your application, please email our office with the change.
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