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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem No. 03 Continued Existence of a Local Emergency COVID-19City Council Agenda Report City of Lake Elsinore 130 South Main Street Lake Elsinore, CA 92530 www.lake-elsinore.org File Number: ID# 21-271 Agenda Date: 8/10/2021 Status: Approval FinalVersion: 1 File Type: Council Consent Calendar In Control: City Council / Successor Agency Agenda Number: 3) Continued Existence of a Local Emergency (COVID-19) 1.Find the need to continue the local emergency related to COVID -19 consistent with the findings and proclamations set forth in Resolutions No. 2020-18 and No. 2020-52; and 2.Direct staff to pursue available County, State, or Federal government disaster assistance based on the continued declaration of a local emergency; and 3.Continue activation and implementation of the emergency operations plan's response and recovery which authorizes the City to furnish or receive aid and assistance under existing mutual aid agreements. Page 1 City of Lake Elsinore Printed on 8/5/2021 REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council From: Jason Simpson, City Manager Date: August 10, 2021 Subject: Continued Existence of a Local Emergency (COVID-19) Recommendation 1. Find the need to continue the local emergency related to COVID-19 consistent with the findings and proclamations set forth in Resolutions No. 2020-18 and No. 2020-52; and 2. Direct staff to pursue available County, State, or Federal government disaster assistance based on the continued declaration of a local emergency; and 3. Continue activation and implementation of the emergency operations plan's response and recovery which authorizes the City to furnish or receive aid and assistance under existing mutual aid agreements. Background The Governor of California proclaimed a State of Emergency on March 4 , 2020, due to the introduction of COVID-19 in the State of California. On March 8, 2020, the Riverside County Public Health Officer declared a local health emergency based on an imminent and pr oximate threat to public health from the introduction of COVID -19 in Riverside County, which declaration was ratified by the Riverside County Board of Supervisors on March 10, 2020. On March 17, 2020, the City Manager , in his capacity as Disaster Director, proclaimed a local emergency throughout the City of Lake Elsinore , finding that conditions of extreme peril to the safety of persons and property existed in the City related to the COVID -19 outbreak and that efforts required to prepare for, respond to, mitigate and recover from the increasing spread of COVID-19 imposed extraordinary demands which exceed the City's resources and are beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment and facilities of the City. On March 24, 2020, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2020 -18 Ratifying The Proclamation Of Local Emergency And Proclaiming The Existence Of A Local Emergency (COVID-19), and on June 9, 2020, the City Council adopted Resolution No. 2020 -52 finding and proclaiming the continued existence of a local emergency (COVID -19). Following the adoption by the City Council of the Proclamation of Local Emergency, State law and the Lake Elsinore Municipal Code require the City Council to periodically review the necessity for continuing the local emergency until the emergency is terminated. The City Council last found the continued local emergency existed at is June 22, 2021 meeting. Continued Local Emergency August 10, 2021 Page 2 Discussion The City of Lake Elsinore is subject to State and County public health orders that restrict and/or impose guidelines to conduct certain activities. These restrictions apply regardless of the City’s proclamation of a local emergency. However, the declaration of a local emergency provides a legal basis for requesting and obtaining County, State, or Federal government disaster assistance. The declaration also activates the emergency operations plan's response and recovery aspects and authorizes the City to furnish or receive aid and assistance under existing mutual aid agreements. As of June 15, 2021, Governor Newsom terminated the executive orders that put into place the Stay Home Order and the Blueprint for a Safer Economy. He also phased out many of executive actions put in place since March 2020 as part of the pandemic response, leaving a subset of provisions that facilitate the ongoing recovery. Among these provisions are the Executive Orders relating to the conduct of local governmental meetings via teleconference and virtual technology. The City will continue to monitor these issues and advise the City Council and the community as we work through the unwinding process while maintaining resources necessary to respond to changing circumstances as necessary or appropriate. While key metrics were trending downward in Riverside County and in California, the County Public Health Department reported at the end of July that the COVID-19 health metrics are now trending back up. During the month of July, the County’s case rate increased from 1.9/100,000 population to 10.4, representing a 447% increase. The positivity rate increased from 1.5% to 6.4%, representing a 326% increase. In addition, hospitalizations increased from 42 patients to 190 patients (352% increase). Those patients in the ICU also increased from 14 to 47 (236% increase). As of Monday, August 2nd, new coronavirus cases in California increased 34% over the previous week as 60,953 cases were reported. The previous week had 45,491 new cases. Riverside County reported 3,351 cases and four deaths in the week prior to August 2. A week earlier, it had reported 3,126 cases and four deaths. As of Tuesday, August 3rd, Riverside County added 2,025 confirmed COVID-19 cases, the biggest single-day increase seen in recent months, and hospitalizations increased by 52 patients. Tuesday's cases bring the total to 311,242 since the beginning of the pandemic. The county's case rate is 17.4 per 100,000, an increase from Monday's rate of 16.9 per 100,000 residents. The positivity rate is 9.3%, up from 8.9% on Monday. Riverside County has a "high" community transmission rate, which is defined as having more than 100 total new cases per 100,000 people in the past seven days, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's COVID Data Tracker. As illustrated by the statistical information reported, the public health impacts of COVID-19 have been significant and remain a public health concern.