WATCH LIVE THURSDAY AT 12PM: Newsom to reveal rules for California businesses opening Friday
Gov. Gavin Newsom has been easing restrictions at the state level very slowly. The next round of reopening is scheduled to start Friday, May 8, when retail businesses will be allowed to open for curbside pickup.
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But California's cautious rollout of new rules has left a lot of people scratching their heads. Here's a breakdown of what we know - and what we don't know - about how the state is reopening.
The Four Stages
California plans to reopen its economy in four phases:
Stage 1: Everyone is either staying at home or a member of the essential workforce
Stage 2: Reopening lower risk workplaces, including:
Stage 3: Reopening higher risk workplaces, which require close proximity to other people, including:
Stage 4: Ending the stay-at-home order, which would allow for the reopening of:
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What stage are we in now?
When the state allows some retail businesses to open Friday, we'll be slowly moving from Stage 1 to Stage 2. It's sort of like a Stage 1.5.
What businesses are allowed to operate and which aren't?
Starting May 8, bookstores, clothing stores, toy stores, florists and other similar retailers will be allowed to do curbside pickup only. That means no in-store browsing. Associated manufacturers that support those retail supply chains will also be allowed to resume production.
Those businesses will only be allowed to reopen if they follow additional safety and hygiene protocols that will be released Thursday.
There are other businesses in Stage 2 that are not allowed to reopen at this time, such as dine-in restaurants, office buildings and shopping malls.
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When will we move into Stage 3?
Gov. Newsom has not yet offered a timeline of when he plans to relax more restrictions.
Is it possible we move back a stage?
Yes. The state may decide to enact stricter shelter-in-place restrictions if coronavirus cases start to spike.
ABC30 streams Gov. Gavin Newsom's daily press conference live on ABC30.com and Facebook.
For more news coverage on the coronavirus and COVID-19 go to ABC30.com/coronavirus