MORRIS COUNTY — Morris County has risen to 3356 and increase of 187 cases since last report from Monday, April 13.

The figures reflect open COVID-19 positive cases as of the date and time indicated, not cases which have been closed, some cases which may be pending, or have yet to be entered into the system.

The County of Morris, in partnership with Atlantic Health, is offering drive-thru COVID-19 testing at the County College of Morris, Dover Chester Road, Randolph, NJ 07869, in parking lot 1. Testing is scheduled beginning 9:00 a.m. and is for Morris County residents only. There is no fee for the test.

To sign up for an appointment online click here for details.

Note: Case numbers are updated in the afternoons on Monday-Friday. For statewide numbers, visit the State of NJ COVID-19 Dashboard.

MORRIS COUNTY — Efforts by Assemblyman Jay Webber to reopen state parks and forests is gaining support across party lines and geographic areas.

An online petition that Webber posted on April 7 to rescind Governor Phil Murphy’s executive order to close all state parks had gathered more than 10,000 signatures as of Tuesday.

During an Assembly telephonic session Monday, Webber suggested at that state parks could reopen with reasonable limits that include abiding by social distancing protocols, keeping facilities like bathrooms and picnic shelters closed, banning non-New Jerseyans until the crisis is over or asking people to wear masks.

He noted that some Hudson County and Jersey City officials were also hoping to get Murphy to reverse his decision while neighboring states continue to keep their parks open.

“We are find ourselves as a real outlier in the county,” continued Webber. “The parks and forests remain open in all of our neighboring states.”

He noted that N.Y. Gov. Andrew Cuomo waived all fees for state, local and county parks in March. Pennsylvania, Delaware and Connecticut’s parks also remain open.

“We’re not asking for the parks and the forests in the state to be open without restrictions. What we’re asking for is to help craft a common-sense policy on our parks and forests,” said Webber (R-Morris). “We have 9 million residents in the most densely populated state in the Union and it simply can’t be that the safest number of residents who can use those parks, over a half million acres, is zero. There has to be a number between zero and 9 million that makes sense for the people of New Jersey.”

At the Assembly session, Webber moved to force a vote on his resolution (AR151), which he sponsors with 14 members of the Assembly, asking the governor to reopen all state parks and forests and county parks, but it was tabled by Democrats with a 52-27 vote.

MORRIS COUNTY — MPAC’s next Facebook Live concert will take place on April 17 at 12:30 pm, featuring vocalist Lauren Davidson. Davidson will perform for 20-30 minutes.

The concert can be viewed on MPAC’s facebook page by clicking here.

MPAC launched its Friday Facebook Live series on April 10 with a performance by the jazz duo Acute Inflections. MPAC plans to air a new live concert every Friday for the near future.  Concerts are recorded and can be viewed at later dates.

CMA artist Lauren Davidson is an NYC/NJ based urban country singer-songwriter with one powerful voice.  Since the age of ten, she has been performing professionally by putting her unique voice on display. Lauren comes from a musical family, singing and performing with her father since childhood and later writing songs together. She continues to co-write with him today in addition to other writers on the music scene.

Lauren is inspired daily by artists of many different genres of music including Contemporary Country, Rock, and Pop. She burst on to the country music scene and has become a popular and loved name where she has carved out a niche as an established singer-songwriter. Lauren frequently travels to Nashville and immerses herself in the music city scene as well as both an artist and a songwriter. She writes and collaborates with many writers in town and continues to play shows and share her music.

The country singer has opened for significant Country Music Acts such as Old Dominion, LOCASH, Carly Pearce and Justin Moore among many others. Lauren’s recent release “Ballads EP” has been exclusively featured on The Boot and she was named Nash FM 94.7’s Nash Next Top 10 finalist. Her single, “I’ll Drink To That,” was named the Digital Journal’s Top 5 Female Country Radio Singles in 2017. Lauren most recently sang the National Anthem at Madison Square Garden for the Sold Out 2019 PBR tour.

MORRIS COUNTY —  Morris County has risen to 3169 and increase of 487 cases since last report from Friday, April 10.

The figures reflect open COVID-19 positive cases as of the date and time indicated, not cases which have been closed, some cases which may be pending, or have yet to be entered into the system.

The County of Morris, in partnership with Atlantic Health, is offering drive-thru COVID-19 testing at the County College of Morris, Dover Chester Road, Randolph, NJ 07869, in parking lot 1. Testing is scheduled beginning 9:00 a.m. and is for Morris County residents only. There is no fee for the test.

To sign up for an appointment online click here for details.

The figures reflect COVID-19 positive cases as of the date and time indicated, some cases which may be pending, or have yet to be entered into the system.

Please note the following limitations and provisos related to the data above:

• COVID-19-related deaths are not included in this data. Visit the State of NJ COVID-19 Dashboard for a summary of death totals.
• Pursuant to HIPAA, specific identifying health information of persons testing positive or who have passed due to the virus will not be released.
• Data reflects COVID-19 positive cases on dates and times indicated; some cases may be pending and are not yet entered.
• Data may not include cases with incomplete or incorrect street addresses or PO boxes. Such cases require additional investigation by local health officials.
• Figures do not include persons under quarantine/isolation due to exposure and who have not tested positive.
• The numbers, especially higher numbers, do not necessarily reflect community spread in a specific town. Various factors may be related to high numbers, such as increased testing and facilities with high-risk populations.
• This data should not be used to gauge if heightened precautions are needed in specific towns. Social distancing, hand hygiene, and preventive steps must be followed at all times regardless of the number of cases in a municipality.

MORRIS COUNTY — The Legislature voted to approve a measure (S2342/A3915) sponsored by Assemblywomen Aura Dunn and Yvonne Lopez and Assemblyman Brian Bergen to allow nonprofit corporations to hold meetings in part, or solely, by means of remote communication during a state of emergency.

Dunn, who has extensive experience in the nonprofit sector working for Sesame Workshop (the nonprofit board for Sesame Street), Jump Start: Children First (an early education organization), and Morris Habitat for Humanity, said she was made aware of a law that treated for-profit and nonprofit corporations differently. For-profit corporations had already been afforded the ability to meet virtually, but there was no law extending that right to nonprofits.

“When the Girl Scouts of Northern New Jersey brought this lack of parity to my attention, I immediately authored this legislation to level the playing field,” said Dunn (R-Morris). “The truth of the matter is, nonprofits are doing the work of the people 24/7 during this crisis. My bill now prevents any unnecessary interruptions in the delivery of their services.”

The bill amends the New Jersey Nonprofit Corporation Act to remove the requirements that meetings be held in a physical location during a state of emergency. Under current law, meetings of members must be held in-person and there is no provision to allow members to participate remotely.

“Non-profit organizations are often times the backbone of our communities, whose collective efforts make a difference in the everyday lives of our residents,” said Lopez (D-Middlesex). “Every one of us, including these organizations, must find ways to continue to do work from a safe place, practicing social distancing and helping to reduce the spread of COVID-19. This small technical change in the law will aid organizations who continue to do their best to help those in need.”

During states of emergency, nonprofit corporation members participating remotely would be deemed present and allowed to vote.

“With the technology we have today, remote meetings are not only possible, but very practical,” said Bergen (R-Morris), a member of the VFW and American Legion. “It allows nonprofits to save money and time on reserving physical space and increases accessibility to these meetings. We have to keep up with the times and evolve under the current circumstances.”

If signed by the governor, the act would take effect immediately.