NEW JERSEY — Three New Jersey industry leaders spoke with Assemblyman Brian Bergen Thursday about what is and isn’t working for restaurants during the coronavirus pandemic. The conversation took place through a Facebook Live event that streamed on the NJ Assembly GOP’s Facebook page.

Gov. Phil Murphy initially closed all New Jersey bars and restaurants for eat-in service on March 16 limiting service for takeout and delivery orders only.  On June 15, he allowed restaurants to offer outdoor dining but rolled back plans for indoor dining at 25 percent in early July.

Here are some of the highlights of the discussion with Marilou Halvorsen, president of the New Jersey Restaurant and Hospitality Association; Mike Perro, director of operations of P.J Whelihan’s Restaurant Group; and Bob Wagner, managing partner of Ott’s Restaurant Group.

1. Roughly 80 percent of restaurant workers are still unemployed – even after outdoor dining.

Only 23 percent of the almost 300,000 restaurant workers laid off in March has returned to work following the opening of outdoor dining said Halverson.  “So that is a huge number of people who are still unemployed and probably contributing to the unemployment numbers right now.  And they don’t have the extra $600 still coming in.”

2. Curbside pickup almost bankrupted most in the industry.

“We were teetering; we were on the brink,” explained Perro.  “Thank God, outdoor dining came along when it did or we probably wouldn’t be sitting here right now having this discussion.”

Wagner said that there were still dozens of restaurants in his area of Burlington County that operate only with curbside pickup.  “I don’t know how they do it; I really don’t,” he said.  “It’s sad.”

3. Bad weather complicates outdoor dining.

While everyone agreed that outdoor dining has been a lifesaver, operating in the weather-dependent outdoors presents new challenges for restaurant owners struggling to make ends meet.

Frequent thunderstorms over the last few weeks have made many owners give away as much as fifty percent of the meals prepared said Wagner.  “So it’s a lose, lose again,” he said.  “Because of the thunder and lightning, they can’t sit underneath a metal frame tent.”

Also detracting many customers, July was the hottest month on record in New Jersey in 125 years of record keeping.  But worrying restaurants for the future is the upcoming colder weather in the fall or winter.

“I can’t imagine what is going to happen if we can’t have indoor dining over the fall and winter period,” said Perro.  “It is going to a disaster for the industry.”

4. Unfriendly landlords prevent some restaurants from expanding outdoors.

Wagner said bad landlords are hurting many owners he knows.  “Some of these people who are stuck with these landlords and these leases that won’t let them use parts of the parking lot call me up for help and I don’t know what to tell them,” he said, “And these stories are every day that you hear this stuff.”

5. Murphy’s reversal on indoor dining had a catastrophic effect on many restaurateurs.

“It was catastrophic,” explained Halverson.  “They spent tens of thousands of dollars bringing in all their supplies, sanitizing their restaurants, training staff for new protocols and taking people off unemployment – it just created havoc for both employers and employees.”

She hopes that Murphy will sign a bill working its way through the legislature, sponsored by Assembly Republican Leader Jon Bramnick and Senate President Steve Sweeney, that would reimburse restaurants for money spent on food and supplies in the days before restaurants were supposed to be able to open for indoor dining.

6. Neighboring states have reopened indoors safely.

Halverson said that states, such as Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, and Pennsylvania did not experience an uptick of cases after moving to indoor dining at 25 or 50 percent.  “There is no science to say that restaurants are dangerous,” she said.  “A majority of people know how to do it and do it safely.  And that is real science.”

“There is a precision to how we operate our restaurants under these circumstances,” added Perro who also operates a restaurant in Horsham, Pennsylvania.

7.  Restaurants have some of the toughest safety and cleaning protocols already in place.

Halverson said her industry has safety standards as high as in health care – and certainly higher than retail outlets.  “One of the things we do better than really anybody is the cleanliness,” she said.

8.  Governor Murphy has not met directly with industry experts to discuss options.

Halverson said that her organization talks with his staff on a regular basis but that numerous attempts to meet with the governor have not worked out.

“Maybe if he actually spoke with people like Mike and Bob and other people to really understand and walk him through what we do every day, he would be more comfortable,” said Halverson.  “Unfortunately we were told that he would not meet with us.”

NEW JERSEY — Amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Phil Murphy signed an executive order to create modified vote-by-mail (VBM) election for the Tuesday, November 3 General Election. The order suspends the sending of sample ballots and requires that each county’s elections officials send VBM ballots with pre-paid postage to all active registered voters for the General Election. Additionally, every voter will have the option to either return their ballot through a secure dropbox or turn in their ballot at a polling location on Election Day. The Administration is working with the Department of State to implement a new online voter registration system where New Jersey residents will have the opportunity to register to vote. The online system will launch on September 4, 2020.

“COVID-19 has impacted nearly every aspect of our lives, from our health and safety to how we participate in our democracy,” said Governor Murphy. “This virus continues to threaten public health, and with today’s announcement, we are ensuring that New Jersey voters do not have to make a decision between exercising their right to vote and protecting their well-being.”

“Every voter deserves to participate in free, fair, and safe elections,” said Secretary of State Tahesha Way.  “By sending every New Jersey voter their ballot in the mail, we are protecting the health of voters, elections workers, and our democracy.”

In order to address the influx of VBM ballots, the executive order will extend the deadline to allow ballots being returned through the United States Postal Service (USPS) with a postmark on or before November 3rd to be counted as a valid ballot by the County Clerk, if received by 8:00 p.m. on November 10th. Ballots without a postmark that are received by the county boards of elections within 48 hours of the closing of polls on November 3rd shall be considered valid.

The executive order will also require a minimum of at least one polling place in each municipality and a minimum of 50 percent of polling places in each county to provide New Jersey voters with access to in-person voting opportunities, including accommodations for voters with disabilities.

All public schools will close for in-person instruction on Tuesday, November 3 to allow counties to use their buildings as polling locations, if necessary. Polling locations will be required to follow public health standards, including ensuring six feet of distance, requiring poll workers to wear face coverings and gloves, frequent sanitization of high-touch areas, and providing sanitization materials to all individuals at a polling place.

Click here to view Executive Order 177.

MORRIS COUNTY — Governor Phil Murphy and Department of Education Interim Commissioner Kevin Dehmer announced that New Jersey’s public and private school districts will be open for in-person instruction for the start of the school year. Public school districts can begin the school year via remote-only instruction if they cannot adequately meet critical health and safety protocols outlined in the state’s school reopening guidance, “The Road Back,” which was released in late June. Districts who need to delay the implementation of in-person instruction will be required to submit information to the Department of Education (DOE) describing the health and safety standards that they are currently unable to adequately meet, how they will address outstanding issues in a timely fashion, and a proposed timeline for reopening physical school spaces to students and staff for in-person instruction.

“Our top priority is the health and safety of our students and educators, and we must ensure that schools reopen their doors only when it is safe for them to do so,” said Governor Murphy. “Since releasing our guidance on reopening, we have continued to have frequent discussions with stakeholders and educators across the state. Many districts have expressed that meeting critical health and safety criteria by the first day of school are proving to be a challenge. While we continue to believe that there is no substitute for being in the classroom, allowing districts to delay the implementation of in-person instruction will give them the time and flexibility they need to ensure buildings are ready and welcoming when they do open.”

Governor Murphy signed Executive Order 175, which directed the following for school districts:

• Districts are required to certify to DOE that they can meet the health and safety protocols outlined in the Order, and further detailed in the “Road Back,” before resuming in-person instruction.  Private school districts will also be required to submit this certification;
• Districts that can meet the health and safety protocols shall open to students for in-person instruction in the fall;
• Even if school buildings are open for in-person instruction on the first day of the 2020-2021 school year, districts must provide a remote learning option for parents or guardians who request it for their children;
• Districts unable to adequately meet health and safety reopening protocols must provide remote instruction to all students. These districts are required to submit documentation to DOE detailing which standard(s) the district is unable to satisfy, the anticipated efforts that will be taken to satisfy the standard(s), and a date by which the school anticipates resuming in-person instruction;
• All schools required to participate in the National School Lunch and Breakfast Program and those that voluntarily opt-in to those programs must offer required meals to all children on remote-learning days.

The Order also waives the use of student growth data from standardized assessments for this year’s educator evaluations.

“This action reflects our responsiveness to the varying needs and challenges that each district faces as they prepare for the new school year,” said Kevin Dehmer, Interim Commissioner of Education. “We’re providing the flexibility that some school districts may need to ensure that reopening of schools and in-person instruction is done in as safe a manner as possible.”

“We are pleased to say that in East Brunswick we will be able to meet the health and safety standards outlined in the Department of Education guidance and return to our classrooms in the fall, all while keeping our students and staff safe,” said Dr. Victor Valeski, Superintendent of East Brunswick Schools. “While a return to full-time in-person instruction is not possible for East Brunswick Public Schools, we are confident that the hybrid plan we are offering our students will ensure that all students, regardless of where they will be during the school day, receive a high-quality education.”

“While our goal remains to achieve in-person learning, our district determined that there is still much work to be done to ensure the health and safety of students and staff before we reopen our doors for in-person instruction,” said Dr. Neely Hackett, Superintendent of Willingboro Public Schools. “As a community committed to providing Willingboro students with an education grounded in 21st-century thinking and learning, we remain committed and will work toward taking every necessary step to prepare our buildings, students, staff, and parents for in-person learning for the start of the second marking period.”

Executive Order 175 further permits institutions of higher education to resume in-person instruction not previously permitted under Executive Order 155, provided they can meet previously outlined health and safety protocols from the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education, effective immediately.

“We know how effective in-person learning is as it provides students academic and social supports that cannot be offered as efficiently in remote settings. As colleges and universities restart operations this fall, students will have a wider array of instructional options including in-person, remote, and hybrid learning,” said Interim Secretary of Higher Education Diana Gonzalez. “Regardless of the mode of instruction, our priority is to offer students the best college experience while prioritizing health and safety for all.”

Click here to view Executive Order 175.

MORRIS COUNTY — Senator Joe Pennacchio called in-person voting a fundamental precept of American freedom and criticized Governor Murphy’s decision to limit the November election to vote-by-mail.

“We’ve gone through the Civil War, two world wars, natural disasters, and depressions and we’ve always managed to vote in person,” said Pennacchio (R-26). “More than anything else, this is political.

“You can stand in line at the MVC and Home Depot with no problem at all, but we’re going to prohibit in-person voting,” Pennacchio continued. “Even Dr. Fauci is on-record saying there is no reason people can’t vote in person.

Governor Murphy delayed the June primary election to July and ordered that it be conducted by mail.

Due to confusion with the mail-in ballot process and well-documented problems with the handling of ballots by the United States Postal Service, many residents have expressed concerns that their votes in the July primary were not counted.

“This is a unilateral decision by the Governor,” cautioned Pennacchio. “Our freedoms are being erased by executive decision, with no rationale, no discussion with the Legislature, and no regard to individual preferences. This is too much power for one person.”

Murphy declared a State of Emergency and Public Health Emergency on March 9, when he signed Executive Order 103. It gives him unbridled authority, according to EO 103, “until such time as it is determined by me that an emergency no longer exists.”

Legislation, SCR-117, introduced by Pennacchio in July, would limit the duration of emergency orders and other rules issued by a governor to 14 days if approved by voters. Extending the declarations would require legislative action.