Govs On Deck – October 26, 2020

It’s Monday – let’s do this. Time for another edition of “Govs on Deck!” As a reminder, your favorite newsletter comes out on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. 

As always, questions or suggestions? Send me a note at amestoy@dga.net. You can find us all on Twitter too – @A_Tall_Turner, @CEAmestoy, and @andersonkayjay.

We want this to be helpful, so let us know what other info/what other formats you’d like to see for these updates.

Dem Govs Get It Done: 

NOTE: This is an overview of recent actions, not a comprehensive roundup of everything our incredible governors are doing. Want more examples? Send me an email and I can help you track down answers.

COVID-19 response:

Emergency declarations:

• NEW JERSEY Gov. Phil MURPHY signed an executive order extending the Public Health Emergency.

Reopening efforts:

• OREGON Gov. Kate BROWN announced that Multnomah County has been added to the County Watch List. 

Schools and students:

• WASHINGTON’s proposal to allow low-income students in a wider range of certificate, degree, and industry-recognized programs to receive food assistance through the state’s Basic Food Employment and Training Program, provided they meet all the other eligibility criteria was recently approved by the USDA. Previously, this support was available only to income-eligible students enrolled in vocational programs or basic skills classes, severely limiting the number of students potentially eligible for BFET.

PPE and medical supplies:

• NEW YORK Gov. Andrew CUOMO announced that eight additional Empire State companies have received support from New York to produce needed supplies to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Testing, tracing, and vaccination:

• COLORADO Gov. Jared POLIS announced that the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment has launched its statewide COVID-19 exposure notification system, in partnership with Google and Apple. Coloradans received a notice on their Android and Apple phones with instructions about how to opt-in.  

Worker support:

• CONNECTICUT Gov. Ned LAMONT announced that he is allocating $15 million from the state’s Coronavirus Relief Fund, which utilizes federal CARES Act money, to fund innovative workforce programs that will provide job training to more than 1,000 displaced workers in the state and connect them to high-growth, in-demand jobs.
• OREGON Gov. Kate BROWN extended COVID-19 protections for agricultural workers in employer-provided housing through the offseason. The executive order addresses requirements related to physical distancing, sanitation, and isolation in order to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 among Oregon’s agricultural workers, farmers and ranchers, and surrounding communities.

Family support:

•  CONNECTICUT Gov. Ned LAMONT announced that he has approved the allocation of $1 million from the state’s Coronavirus Relief Fund, which utilizes federal CARES Act funding, to provide supplemental aid to foster parents for the extraordinary costs associated with caring for more than 3,600 children in state care during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Housing support:

• CALIFORNIA Gov. Gavin NEWSOM announced a major injection of new funding to expand and support the state’s Homekey program. The program, which enables the state to purchase and rehabilitate housing – including hotels, motels, and vacant apartment buildings – and convert them to homeless housing has secured an additional $200 million thanks to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee’s approval of a request made by the governor to use additional Coronavirus Relief Funding for Homekey. 

Public communication:

• MONTANA Gov. Steve BULLOCK announced the public can now notify health officials of violations of COVID-19 directives by using the Consumer Complaint Form used to report foodborne illnesses and other public health and safety issues.

Other efforts:

• NEW JERSEY Gov. Phil MURPHY signed two bills ordering reforms to the long-term care industry. The bills implement recommendations from the Manatt Health Report, released on June 3, 2020.

Beyond COVID-19 

Natural disasters:

• LOUISIANA Gov. John Bel EDWARDS is urging all Louisianans to monitor Tropical Storm Zeta as it moves into the Gulf of Mexico over the next few days. It is too early to know the exact path of Zeta, but the current tracking cone does include Southeast Louisiana and the forecast shows Zeta becoming a hurricane before landfall.

Infrastructure:

• CONNECTICUT Gov. Ned LAMONT, Senator Richard Blumenthal, Senator Chris Murphy, Representative Jim Himes, and Representative Joe Courtney today announced Friday that Connecticut has been awarded more than $144 million from the Federal-State Partnership for State of Good Repair Grant Program to help fund the replacement of the Walk Bridge in Norwalk and the Connecticut River Bridge between Old Lyme and Old Saybrook.

Economic development:

• KANSAS Gov. Laura KELLY announced the groundbreaking for a new Empirical Foods ground beef facility in Garden City. The planned facility, which is now the largest single investment in the company’s 40-year history, will bring 250 new jobs and more than $250 million in capital investment to Garden City and Finney County.
• KENTUCKY Gov. Andy BESHEAR congratulated Nucor Corp. on breaking ground on the company’s 400-job, $1.7 billion steel plate manufacturing mill in Meade County, a project expected to employ up to 1,500 contractors during construction.

Stay safe everyone, wear a mask, and wash your hands! See you on Wednesday!