05/11/2020
On Monday, May 11, 2020, Governor John Bel Edwards announced that the State of Louisiana will effectively end the "Stay At Home" order this Friday, May 15. In doing so, Gov. Edwards says our state will enter Phase One of reopening our state. Phase One is expected to last for 21 days (or June 5th). An update will be made to the public on June 1st to announce what the next Phase will be.
Governor Edwards said today that the state will be releasing details in a memo on Thursday, May 14 as to what businesses will be able to safely reopen and what restrictions will be in place. Business owners and church leaders are encouraged to read the memo when it is released, on Thursday, to learn more. Business owners and church leaders are also encouraged to use the state's website (opensafely.la.gov) to receive the latest information on the phases of return and what social distancing guidelines will be required for their specific operation in each phase. Please note that it is the responsibility of the business owner to read, understand, and adhere to the guidelines of the state memo.
To be helpful, our Office will publish the memo to Facebook and in the DPSO App when it is provided to us. If you are an employee with a question, please seek the advice of your employer. If you are an employer, please use the tools provided by the state to stay informed on your business operations moving forward. The DeSoto Parish Sheriff's Office is here to help, however, we also understand that there will be a variety of businesses that could fall into uncertain gray areas. We want to encourage every business owner to seek first the state memo, and tools that are already in place by visiting https://gov.louisiana.gov/
Some takeaways from the question/answer portion of todays announcement:
- Businesses will fall into three categories that appear to mean: Essential, Restricted Re-Open, and Remain Closed. Most businesses will likely fall into the mid category of a restricted re-opening.
- All customers will be required to wear masks when patroning any business.
- Businesses that fall into the Restricted-Reopening category will be restricted to serving only 25% of their buildings maximum capacity.
- Resturant tables must separate each family/table 10 feet apart from others.
- Hair Salons, Nail Salons, Barber Shops, Gyms and Resturants were mentioned in the announcement as able to reopen with restrictions in place on Friday, May 15.
- Businesses that were mentioned in the announcement that would remain closed were: Massage Parlors and Tattoo Shops
In response to the COVID-19 public health emergency, businesses were required to close or restrict activity to preserve and protect the health and safety of the citizens of Louisiana. Because of the success of these efforts, Louisiana is now ready to move forward with opening businesses in a safe, p...
