From Cook County MN - April 14. 2020

The Cook County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to extend the county’s COVID-19 state of emergency at its meeting earlier today.

The resolution, an extension of the board’s March 17, 2020, declaration, lengthens the state of emergency an additional 30 days.

The text of the resolution is shown below.

WHEREAS, COVID-19 is a viral respiratory illness caused by a coronavirus that has not been found in people before;

WHEREAS, COVID-19 is an illness which is potentially fatal to older adults and people who have serious chronic medical conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and lung disease; 

WHEREAS, coronavirus is known to spread rapidly among populations without preventative measures and rapid action by local authorities;

WHEREAS, Cook County has a higher than average population of older adults, a higher than average level of movement across its borders related to Cook County's tourism industry and its seasonal population;

WHEREAS, preventing the rapid spread of coronavirus and related fatalities among the Cook County population and its visitors requires swift action by the Cook County Board of Commissioners, its staff, and CookCounty public officials;

WHEREAS, Cook County has already been required to purchase, and will continue to purchase, necessary equipment, software, and other technological resources to allow for teleworking and the provision of essentialservices to its citizens and visitors without increasing the risk of transmission of the coronavirus;

WHEREAS, Cook County anticipates being required to expend additional financial resources to prevent the spread of coronavirus and make related communications; and for providing essential services to individuals inquarantine and isolation as a result of exposure to coronavirus or testing positive for the virus or COVID-19 illness;

WHEREAS, on March 17, 2020, at the request of the Cook County Emergency Manager and related to the foregoing circumstances, the Cook County Board of Commissioners declared Cook County in a STATE OF EMERGENCY during the COVID-19 outbreak in Cook County of March, 2020;

WHEREAS, on April 13, 2020, the Cook County Emergency Manager requested that the Cook County Board of Commissioners continue the local declaration of a State of Emergency given the COVID-19 outbreak in theState of Minnesota was ongoing, numbers of new positive cases across in the state had recently drastically increased, and the "peak" for positive cases in the State of Minnesota was at best several weeks in the future;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Cook County Board of Commissioners  hereby continues the local declaration of a State of Emergency for conditions resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak for anadditional 30 days. 

Adopted by the Cook County Board of Commissioners this 14th day of April, 2020.