New Jersey Administrative Code
Title - EXECUTIVE ORDERS
Title 55 - CHRIS CHRISTIE
Section - Executive Order No. 150 (2020)

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 6, March 18, 2024

Governor Philip D. Murphy

Executive Order No. 150 (2020)

An Order Setting Forth Outdoor Dining Protocols and the Process to Expand Premises for Liquor License Holders

Issued: June 3, 2020.

Effective: June 3, 2020.

WHEREAS, in light of the dangers posed by Coronavirus disease 2019 ("COVID-19"), I issued Executive Order No. 103 on March 9, 2020, the facts and circumstances of which are adopted by reference herein, which declared both a Public Health Emergency and State of Emergency; and

WHEREAS, through Executive Order Nos. 119 and 138 (2020), issued on April 7, 2020, and May 6, 2020, respectively, the facts and circumstances of which are adopted by reference herein, I declared that the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency continued to exist and declared that all Executive Orders and Administrative Orders adopted in whole or in part in response to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency remained in full force and effect; and

WHEREAS, in accordance with N.J.S.A. App. A:9-34 and -51, I reserve the right to utilize and employ all available resources of State government to protect against the emergency created by COVID-19; and

WHEREAS, as COVID-19 continued to spread across New Jersey and an increasing number of individuals required medical care or hospitalization, I issued a series of Executive Orders pursuant to my authority under the New Jersey Civilian Defense and Disaster Control Act and the Emergency Health Powers Act, to protect the public health, safety, and welfare against the emergency created by COVID-19, including Executive Order Nos. 104-133, Nos. 135-138, and Nos. 140-149 (2020), the facts and circumstances of which are all adopted by reference herein; and

WHEREAS, on March 16, 2020, I signed Executive Order No. 104, which limited all restaurants, dining establishments, and food courts, with or without a liquor license, all bars, and all other holders of a liquor license with retail consumption privileges, to offering food delivery and/or take-out services only, meaning that they could not allow the on-premises consumption of food or beverages; and

WHEREAS, on March 21, 2020, I signed Executive Order No. 107, which superseded Executive Order No. 104 (2020) in full but continued the prohibition of on-premises consumption of food or beverages; and

WHEREAS, given the decrease in the rate of reported new cases of COVID-19 in New Jersey, in the total number of individuals being admitted to hospitals for COVID-19, and in the rate of reproduction for COVID-19 infections in New Jersey, the State can begin to take certain steps to lift certain restrictions that were designed to limit person-to-person contact; and

WHEREAS, even as the rate of reported new cases of COVID-19 decreases, the ongoing risks presented by COVID-19 mean that many of the State's current measures must remain in place, both to reduce additional new infections and to save lives; and

WHEREAS, after consultation with officials from the Department of Health ("DOH"), I announced a multi-stage New Jersey's Road Back Plan ("Plan") for the methodical and strategic reopening of businesses and activities based on scientific data and metrics concerning the level of disease transmission risk and essential classification; and

WHEREAS, the State is implementing its reopening process and has begun to relax restrictions on certain businesses, including the authorization of curbside pickup at retail establishments, the resumption of non-essential construction, and the allowance of a number of lower-risk outdoor activities; and

WHEREAS, consistent with this Plan, I have issued a number of Executive Orders, including Executive Order Nos. 133, 142, 143, 146, and 147 (2020), which authorized the openings of parks, beaches, lakefronts, and several outdoor recreational facilities and activities, with social distancing, cleaning, sanitizing, and hygiene practices in place, given repeated observations from public health experts, including but not limited to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ("CDC"), that outdoor environments present reduced risks of COVID-19 transmission as compared to indoor environments; and

WHEREAS, consistent with this Plan, I issued Executive Order No. 148 (2020), which allowed additional numbers of individuals to gather outdoors, consistent with the same repeated observations from public health experts, and Executive Order No. 149 (2020), which authorized the gradual restart of ordinary child care services, certain youth sporting activities, and summer camps, with social distancing requirements; and

WHEREAS, consistent with this Plan, non-essential retail businesses can begin to open their brick-and-mortar premises to the public, but should be held to the same minimum requirements that have applied to essential retail businesses since Executive Order No. 122 (2020) was signed in early April; and

WHEREAS, given the reduced risks of COVID-19 transmission outdoors, the State can begin to allow restaurants, bars, and other food or beverage establishments to provide in-person service at areas designated for food and/or beverage consumption ("outdoor dining") in accordance with CDC and DOH safeguards, but indoor dining still poses a higher risk of transmission at this time than outdoor dining; and

WHEREAS, indoor dining also entails a higher risk than indoor retail operations, as indoor dining typically involves individuals sitting together in one location for a prolonged period of time, while in indoor retail settings, individuals neither congregate in large groups nor remain in close proximity for extended periods and so the risk of COVID-19 spread is reduced; and

WHEREAS, to limit the spread of COVID-19 and thus to protect public health, establishments can only open to the public to offer outdoor dining where such food and/or beverage consumption is conducted in a way that ensures groups of individuals will be appropriately spaced apart, and there must be strict limits in place governing when individuals may enter the premises; and

WHEREAS, to limit the spread of COVID-19 and thus to protect public health, establishments can only open to the public to offer outdoor dining where such food and/or beverage consumption is conducted in a way that ensures critical Statewide health standards are met, which are being issued simultaneously by DOH; and

WHEREAS, because this Order establishes options for outdoor food and/or beverage consumption that accommodate the lack of indoor dining options as a result of COVID-19, individuals must have access to the same smoke-free options that they would have had under State law at the indoor premises of a food or beverage establishment, and which will continue to ensure that individuals can access in-person dining options without exposure to secondhand smoke during the Public Health Emergency; and

WHEREAS, many restaurants or bars will not have sufficient outdoor space to serve their patrons, and thus may seek to use additional space for outdoor food and/or beverage consumption, including other areas of their property, such as parking lots, and shared spaces, such as sidewalks, streets, and parks; and

WHEREAS, municipalities are in the best position to make decisions on allowing restaurants or bars to expand their service footprint on their property and potentially into shared spaces in a way that comports with public safety; and

WHEREAS, if municipalities choose to make shared spaces available to restaurants or bars, it is incumbent upon them to distribute these spaces equitably among restaurants or bars who may feasibly seek to use them; and

WHEREAS, the Constitution and statutes of the State of New Jersey, particularly the provisions of N.J.S.A. 26:13-1et seq., N.J.S.A. App. A: 9-33 et seq., N.J.S.A. 38A:3-6.1, and N.J.S.A. 38A:2-4 and all amendments and supplements thereto, confer upon the Governor of the State of New Jersey certain emergency powers, which I have invoked;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, PHILIP D. MURPHY, Governor of the State of New Jersey, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and by the Statutes of this State, do hereby ORDER and DIRECT: