Governor Gavin Newsom has issued a mandatory stay at home order on Thursday, November 19, 2020. The curfew will take effect on Saturday, November 21, 2020, at 10:00 p.m. and is expected to last one month from that date.

The California Department of Public Health states All non-essential work and gatherings are not allowed from 10:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. This means that all gatherings with members of other households and all activities that take place outside the place of residence are to stop during the listed time frame of 10:00 p.m to 5:00 a.m. Members of the same household may leave as long as they do not interact with members of another household. This stay at home order does not apply to activities associated with maintenance or usage of critical infrastructure or those experiencing homelessness.

This applies to all California counties in tier one, or purple tier, of California’s blueprint for a safer economy. Being in the purple tier means that the virus is widespread with more than seven daily cases per 100k with more than 8% new positive cases.

This stay-at-home order comes in wake of the recent surge of COVID-19 cases throughout California, moving Orange County from the red tier to the purple tier. It is an attempt to curve the recent rise in COVID-19 cases and protect high-risk individuals by limiting non-essential gatherings to stop the spread of the virus. California is currently experiencing 16.5 new COVID-19 positive cases per day per 100k people with a 5.2% positivity rate according to the blueprint.

According to the California Department of Public Health, the activities that take place from 10:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. are often non-essential gatherings and instead promote social activities and lessen the likelihood of people practicing COVID-19 preventative measures such as social distancing and wearing face coverings.

This stay at home order is less restrictive than the one introduced back in March. While the currently limited stay at home order only applies during the night and is expected to last one month, the stay at home order back in March had no specific time restrictions and no estimated time to last.

The stay-at-home order is currently set to last until 5:00 a.m. Monday, December 21, 2020, but the California Department of Public Health notes that this date may be revised as needed.