Local Essex County Guidance
As of June 16, 2021, Most COVID-19 restrictions are lifted as 70% of New Yorkers 18+ have received their first dose of COVID vaccine. New York State’s health guidance and New York Forward industry specific guidelines—including social gathering limits, capacity restrictions, social distancing, cleaning and disinfection, health screening, and contact information for tracing are now optional for retail, food services, offices, gyms and fitness centers, amusement and family entertainment, hair salons, barber shops and personal care services, among other commercial settings.
Unvaccinated individuals continue to be responsible for wearing masks, in accordance with the new CDC guidance. Consistent with the State’s implementation of the recent CDC guidance, masks are still required for unvaccinated individuals, even in settings where the New York Forward guidance has been lifted.
Further, the State’s health guidelines continue to be in effect for large-scale indoor event venues that hold more than 5,000 people, pre-K to grade 12 schools, public transit, homeless shelters, correctional facilities, nursing homes, and health care settings per CDC guidelines. Guidance for large gatherings are listed below.
Current Guidance (including guidance for indoor events over 5,000 people)
COVID-19 Large Gathering Event Notification Form
Visit forward.ny.gov for current and archived industry/event rules and guidance.
School Guidance
K-12 School Guidance – Updated 6.7.21
New York State Regional Monitoring Dashboard
Regional Control Rooms
Regional Control Rooms have been created per region to monitor the regional infection rate during the phased reopening period. Members of the control room include local elected officials, as well as hospital and state representatives that will monitor public health metrics and can delay or halt reopening if indicators fall below identified This group also monitors business compliance with reopening guidelines and ensure that local officials are enforcing these rules when necessary.
Individuals who have concerns related to compliance of executive orders (such as operation of businesses or gatherings) can file a complaint by visiting https://mylicense.custhelp.com/app/ask or calling 1-833-789-0740.