Supervisor Hahn Proposes Plan to Allow Retail to Reopen with Safety Protocols

SAN PEDRO– Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn is urging Gov. Newsom to allow retail businesses statewide to reopen under the same health protocols that “essential” retail businesses have been allowed to operate under.

Under the State of California’s stay at home order, “non-essential” retailers are closed and have only recently been allowed to open for curbside pick-up only.  Meanwhile, “essential” retailers like Target, Walmart, and Costco have been allowed to stay open for in-store shopping with safety protocols in place because they sell groceries and other essential items in addition to non-essential products.

“What seemed to be a necessary measure at the early onset of this crisis has unintentionally created winners and losers in this ‘pandemic economy,’ with large retail businesses able to operate, while small retail businesses are struggling and limited to curbside pickup,” said Supervisor Hahn.  “This needs to change.”

In a letter to Governor Newsom, Supervisor Hahn urged that these restrictions be adjusted to the smaller retail shops that are losing business everyday to big box stores. She has proposed updating the State’s public health order to immediately allow all retailers to open with:

Limited capacity

Face covering or mask requirement for employees and customers

Physical distancing

“If these measures are working to keep essential retail businesses like Target, Home Depot, and Costco open and safe, they can certainly be applied to all retailers,” said Hahn.