California regulators descend on Yuba and Sutter as coronavirus battle with Newsom heats up
The battle between California’s governor and two counties over reopening businesses amid the coronavirus crisis escalated this week when Alcoholic Beverage Control regulators visited a handful of restaurants in Yuba and Sutter counties, telling them to shut down.
The visits came on Tuesday, the day after health officials in those counties allowed a partial reopening of businesses, notably restaurants, stores, hair salon and gyms, despite a March order by Gov. Gavin Newsom that all such businesses in California should close to reduce potential spread of the coronavirus.
“Agents asked those ABC licensed locations to close to in-house dining voluntarily, until it is safe to re-open, in order to help stop the spread of COVID-19,” ABC spokesman John Carr told The Sacramento Bee Wednesday evening. State officials noted that failing to do so could constitute a misdemeanor crime. “As of today, we have not filed any administrative actions against any businesses visited yesterday.”
Sutter County officials said some hair salons received emails from the state as well advising them to comply with Newsom’s order shutting down salons and barbers among other businesses in the state.
“If businesses continue to put public health and safety at risk by not following the state and local shelter in place orders, and if circumstances warrant it, the board may pursue disciplinary action against their license,” the state Board of Barbering and Cosmetology wrote in a memo on its website about renegade businesses. “This will not be taken lightly ... we expect our licensees to comply.”
The visits angered county leaders, who have been arguing that Newsom should let counties with low virus rates decide for themselves when and how to reopen their ailing economies.
Sutter County Board of Supervisors Chairman Ron Sullenger told The Bee on Wednesday the county’s legislative representatives are talking with the governor’s office this week in hopes of persuading Newsom to allow Sutter and Yuba to continue pursuing their own reopening path faster than the rest of the state without being hassled.
Sullenger said the two counties have only had 50 confirmed COVID-19 cases and three deaths, and that there are no patients currently in local hospitals.
“We are not trying to pick a (fight) here,” he said. “We believe we have a scientific path here. We believe we are pursuing the health and economic benefit for our counties. That is where we stand. We are not necessarily trying to be defiant.”
The Yuba-Sutter health order allowing partial business reopenings, however, represents one of the first formal challenges to Newsom’s stay-at-home order.
Assemblyman James Gallagher, a Newsom critic, said the governor cannot hold rural counties to slower reopening timeframes desired by big coastal cities where the virus has hit harder.
“In the north state, our communities have met the scientific criteria for re-opening and we’re not going to wait for San Francisco and Los Angeles in order to reopen,” said Gallagher, R-Yuba City. “If this is truly about science and not politics, the governor shouldn’t push back against local public health officers who are moving forward with their phased re-opening plans.”
Newsom fired back Tuesday, saying the two counties are making a “big mistake” that could threaten the slowed rates of infections and deaths caused by the coronavirus.
“They’re putting the public at risk, they’re putting our progress at risk,” Newsom said. “They put those businesses at risk, not only the health of those communities at risk.”
The Sutter and Yuba county sheriff’s offices reported Wednesday they have stepped in to talk with local businesses and state representatives in an attempt to “mediate this issue moving forward.” The sheriffs advised businesses to consult their attorneys for advice is approached by state regulators.
‘We’d like to move forward, but ...’
The reopening Monday of some county businesses pleased some Yuba and Sutter residents. But it left others concerned.
By Wednesday, local health officials said they too had become concerned by the number of people that were not adhering to the safety precautions in the county reopening order.
Those officials issued a written warning Wednesday to residents and businesses, saying a lack of social distancing and mask wearing in stores and restaurants could trigger a surge of coronavirus infections that might force the county to impose stricter orders.
“It has become clear a number of businesses are not enacting required protocols to ensure the safety of the community,” Yuba-Sutter Health Officer Dr. Phuong Luu wrote in a public warning Wednesday.
“Please understand the orders I issued last week purposefully began by reiterating the ongoing threat from COVID-19 that continues to confront the Yuba-Sutter region,” Luu said. “It is imperative to make all necessary adjustments to the way we conduct business in our community immediately so that we do not run the risk of seeing a resurgence and need to go back to stricter orders.”
A county spokesman said officials have gotten calls from residents concerned about unsafe business activities and were seeing reports in news media about troublesome behavior.
“We’d like to move forward, but that is only going to happen if people comply with the orders,” Sutter County spokesman Charles Smith said. “This is a period where people are getting used to this, and there are going to be questions and concerns.”
On Wednesday, when the Yuba Sutter Mall in Yuba City reopened, many were wearing masks, but not all. Customers and employees generally said they felt safe, but not everyone.
Mohammad Hossain, who has worked for years at a cellphone accessories kiosk in the mall, said he’s on edge.
“Working here is scary. People are not wearing their masks and not maintaining social distancing,” Hossain said.
On the state level, Newsom is beginning his own, slower-paced reopening of the economy this week. He announced Monday that many retail businesses would be allowed to open their doors by Friday for curbside pickup, such as florists, book stores and clothing outlets, as part of Phase 2 of a four-step plan to lift statewide stay-at-home restrictions.
He noted that some counties with lower virus rates would be allowed to reopen lower-risk businesses more quickly than harder-hit counties and suggested that could include opening restaurants for dining as part of Phase 2.
The state regulatory agency overseeing salons and barbers issued a stern memo Friday to licensees saying it expects them to obey the governor’s orders.
This story was originally published May 6, 2020 at 2:33 PM.
