State Emergency Orders & Related Regulatory Guidance

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Michigan Safe Start Plan	MI Safe Start Map
A Plan to re-engage Michigan's Economy	Track the risk phases of COVID-19 indicators

MI COVID Recovery Plan	MI COVID-19 Vaccine Information
The Governor's plan includes a strong focus on vaccine distribution, economic recovery, schools and more.	Resources and FAQ's regarding the COVID vaccine

Gov. Whitmer Signs Bi-Partisan COVID Relief Legislation - SB 748 and SB 604

On Dec. 29, Gov. Whitmer signed bipartisan legislation pertaining to COVID relief (SB 749 and SB 604).

SB 748 provided $106 million in funds to help those struggling as a result of COVID-19. The relief legislation includes $55 million in funding to help small businesses impacted by COVID-19. It provides small businesses the opportunity to take advantage of grants of up to $20,000 to help them continue to survive this winter. The legislation also provides $3.5 million in funding to provide grants of up to $40,000 to struggling live music and entertainment venues. It also includes $45 million in direct payments to workers who have been laid off or furloughed as a result of COVID-19.

SB 604 extends much needed unemployment benefits for Michigan workers who have lost their jobs as a result of COVID-19. The benefits under this legislation will be extended from 20 weeks to 26 weeks expiring at the end of March 2021.

The Governor did line item veto $220 million that was included in the legislation of general fund dollars, which would have been transferred to the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. This fund is designed to pool together funding to help businesses fund benefits for laid-off workers. The Governor stated that she vetoed this piece because she believes that those general fund dollars should be spent on vaccines, PPE and other essential services.

The full text of these two bills as presented to the Governor can be found here (SB 748) (SB 604).

MIOSHA Emergency Rules

MIOSHA Emergency Rules Fact Sheet

MIOSHA Emergency Rules FAQ

Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA)—Emergency Rules Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

The Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity and MIOSHA have issued emergency rules pertaining to workplace safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rule 1. Scope and application. These rules apply to employers covered in the Michigan occupational safety and health act, 1974 PA 154, MCL 408.1001 to 408.1094.

Rule 2. Definitions.

(1)(a) “Close contact” means someone who was within 6 feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes starting from 2 days before illness onset (or, for asymptomatic patients, 2 days prior to specimen collection) until the time the person is isolated.
(1)(b) “COVID-19” means coronavirus disease 2019, a severe acute respiratory disease characterized by symptoms including fever, cough, fatigue, and shortness of breath which may progress to pneumonia, multi-organ failure, and death.
(1)(c) “Known cases of COVID-19” means persons who have been confirmed through diagnostic testing to have COVID-19.
(1)(d) “SARS-CoV-2” means severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, the virus which is the causative agent of COVID-19.
(1)(e) “Suspected cases of COVID-19” means persons who have symptoms of COVID-19 but have not been confirmed through diagnostic testing or persons who have had close contact with a person who has been confirmed through diagnostic testing to have COVID-19.

Rule 3. Exposure determination for all employers.

(1) The employer shall evaluate routine and reasonably anticipated tasks and procedures to determine whether there is actual or reasonably anticipated employee exposure to SARS-CoV-2.
(2) The employer shall categorize jobs tasks and procedures into the following risk categories: (a) Lower exposure risk job tasks and procedures; (b) Medium exposure risk job tasks and procedures; (c) High exposure risk job tasks and procedure; (d) Very high exposure risk job tasks and procedures. (Definitions of what job tasks and procedures fall under each of these categories is included in the full order linked below).

Rule 4. COVID-19 preparedness and response plan for all employers.

(1) The employer shall develop and implement a written COVID-19 preparedness and response plan, consistent with the current guidance for COVID-19 from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and recommendations in “Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19,” developed by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA).
(2) The preparedness and response plan shall include the employee exposure determination from Rule 3 and shall detail the measures the employer will implement to prevent employee exposure, including any: (a) engineering controls, (b) administrative controls, (c) basic infection prevention measures, (d) personal protective equipment, (e) health surveillance, and (f) training.
(3) The employer shall make the preparedness response plan readily available to employees and their representatives, whether via website, internal network, or by hard copy.

Rule 5. Basic infection prevention measures for all employers. This section of the rule outlines a number of measures to be used by employers in the workplace to ensure that workers are properly protected if they are required to come to their place of work. Measures include frequent hand washing or use of hand sanitizer, not reporting to work if sick, not sharing work tools increased cleaning and putting in place a policy to encourage remote work to the extent possible. The full list of these measures is available in the full text of the order linked below.

Rule 6. Health surveillance for all employers. This section of the rule provides health screening measures that should be utilized.

Rule 7. Workplace controls for all employers. This section of the rule outlines a number of measures to be used by employers in the workplace. These measures include providing face coverings to their employees, designate a COVID-19 safety coordinator, require 6 feet of distance between employees (to the maximum extent possible), and require face coverings be worn by employees where 6 feet cannot be consistently maintained and in all shared spaces. The full list of measures is included in the full text of the order linked below.

Rule 8. Personal protective equipment requirements for all employers.

(1) The employer shall provide employees with the types of personal protective equipment, including respirators if necessary, for protection from SARS-CoV-2 appropriate to the exposure risk associated with the job. The employer must follow current CDC and OSHA guidance for personal protective equipment.
(2) The employer shall ensure that the personal protective equipment is properly fitted and worn; used consistently; regularly inspected, maintained, and replaced, as necessary; and properly removed, cleaned and stored or disposed of to avoid contamination of self, others, or the work environment.
(3) In establishments that provide medical treatment or housing to known or suspected cases of COVID-19, the employer shall ensure that employees in frequent or prolonged close contact with such cases are provided with and wear, at a minimum, an N95 respirator, goggles or face shield, and a gown.

Rule 9. Industry-specific requirements. An employer of a business, operation, or facility in the industry sectors named below shall comply with the following requirements specific for its business, operation, or facility. (3) Retail, libraries, and museums. Retail stores that are open for in-store sales, as well as libraries and museums, must:

(a) Create communications materials for customers (e.g., signs or pamphlets) to inform them of changes to store practices and to explain the precautions the store is taking to prevent infection.
(b) Require patrons to wear a face covering (unless the patron is unable medically to tolerate a face covering).
(c) Post signs at store entrances instructing customers to wear a face covering when inside the store.
(d) Post signs at store entrances instructing customers not to enter if they are or have recently been sick.
(e) Design spaces and store activities in a manner that encourages employees and customers to maintain 6 feet of distances from one another.
(f) Install physical barriers at checkout and other service points that require close interaction, including plexiglass barriers, tape markers, or tables.
(g) Establish an enhanced cleaning and sanitizing protocol for high-touch areas like restrooms, credit-card machines, keypads, counters, shopping carters, and other surfaces.

Rule 10. Training requirements for all employers.

(1) & (2) The employer shall provide training and communication to employees on SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 and provide it in the primary languages common in their employee population.
(3) The training shall cover: (a) workplace infection-control practices, (b) the proper use of personal protective equipment, (c) steps the employee must take to notify the business or operation of any symptoms of COVID-19 or a suspected or confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19, (d) how to report unsafe working conditions.
(4) The employer shall provide updated training if it changes its preparedness and response plan or new information becomes available about the transmission of SARS-CoV-2 or diagnosis of COVID-19.

Rule 11. Recordkeeping requirements for all employers.

(1) Employers must maintain a record of the following requirements: (a) training. The employer shall maintain a record of all COVID-19 employee training, (b) screening protocols. The employer shall maintain a record of screening for each employee or visitor entering the workplace, and (c) records of required notifications. The employer shall maintain a record of each notification required by Rule 6 of these rules.
(2) Employers must maintain records for 1 year from time of generation.

These rules take effect upon filing with Secretary of State and shall remain in effect for 6 months until October 14, 2021. For the full text of this emergency rule, please visit this link.

DHHS Emergency Orders

Keeping A Safe Workplace: Guidance For Employers

MDHHS Gatherings and Face Mask Order—Emergency Order under MCL 333.2253 (Effective April 19—May 24, 2021)

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has issued an Emergency Order pertaining to gatherings and the usage of face coverings in the state. This order is in effect April 19—May 24, 2021. Below are some of the highlights of this order:

Paragraph 1(e): “Employee” means that term as defined in section 2 of the Improved Workforce Opportunity Wage Act, 2018 PA 337, as amended, MCL 408.932, and also includes independent contractors.
Paragraph 1(h): “Face mask” means a tightly woven cloth or other multi-layer absorbent material that closely covers an individual’s mouth and nose.
Paragraph 1(i): ”Fully vaccinated persons” means persons for whom at least two weeks has passed after receiving the final dose of an FDA-approved or authorized COVID-19 vaccine.
Paragraph 1(k): “Gathering” means any occurrence, either indoor and outdoor, where two or more persons from more than one household are present in a shared space.
Paragraph 1(m): “Indoors” means within a space that is fully or partially enclosed on the top, and fully or partially enclosed on two or more contiguous sides. Additionally, in a space that is fully or partially enclosed on the top, and fully a partially enclosed on two non-contiguous sides, any part of that space that is more than 8 feet from an open side is indoors.
Paragraph 1(r): “Principal symptoms of COVID-19” means at least 1 of fever, uncontrolled cough, or atypical new onset of shortness of breath, or at least 2 of the following not explained by a known physical condition: loss of taste or smell, muscle aches, sore throat, severe headache, diarrhea, vomiting, or abdominal pain. Per section 1(j) of 2020 PA 339, this definition represents the latest medical guidance, and serves as the controlling definition.
Paragraph 2(a) (1-2): This paragraph indicates that in-person board meetings can resume as long as they are at non-residential locations and no more than 25 people are gathered.
Paragraph 2(b): Outdoor gatherings are permitted at (1) residential venues 50 or fewer persons are gathered; (2) at non-residential venues 300 or fewer persons gathered.
Paragraph 2 (c): The limitations to gatherings in sections 2(a) and 2(b) do not apply to:
- (1): Incidental, temporary gatherings of persons in a shared space, such as a workplace.
- (2): Workplace gatherings that occur consistent with the Emergency Rules issued by MIOSHA on October 14, 2020 and subsequently extended.
Paragraph 2 (d): As a condition of hosting a gathering under this order, organizers and facilities must design the gathering to encourage and maintain physical distancing and must ensure that persons not part of the same household maintain 6 feet of distance from one another to the extent possible.
Paragraph 4(a): Gathering restrictions for facilities. In addition to the gathering limitations set forth elsewhere in this order, the following limitations apply to gatherings in the following facilities: (a)A gathering at a retail store must not exceed 50% of total occupancy limits established by the State Fire Marshal or local fire marshal. Nevertheless, a retail store may permit one customer at a time to enter if strict adherence to the 50% total occupancy limit would otherwise result in closure.
- (1): Retail stores must establish lines to regulate entry and checkout, with markings for patrons to enable them to stand at least six feet apart from one another while waiting.
Paragraph 7. Face Mask Requirement at Gatherings.
- (a): All persons participating in gatherings are required to wear a face mask.
- (c): Except as provided elsewhere in this order, a person responsible for a business, store, office, government office, school, organized event, or other operation, or an agent of such person, must prohibit gatherings of any kind unless the person requires individuals in such gatherings (including employees) to wear a face mask, and denies entry or service to all persons refusing to wear face masks while gathered.
- (d): A person responsible for a business, store, office, government office, school, organized event, or other operation, or an agent of such person, may not assume that someone who enters the facility without a face mask falls within one of the exceptions specified in section 8 of this order, including the exception for individuals who cannot medically tolerate a face mask. An individual’s verbal representation that they are not wearing a face mask because they fall within a specified exception, however, may be accepted.
Paragraph 8. Exceptions to face mask requirements. Although a face mask is strongly encouraged even for individuals not required to wear one (except for children under the age of 2), the requirement to wear a face mask in gatherings as required by this order does not apply to individuals who:
- (a): Are younger than 2 years old;
- (b): Cannot medically tolerate a face mask;
- (g): Are asked to temporarily remove a face mask for identification purposes;
- (h): Are communicating with someone who is deaf, deafblind, or hard of hearing and whose ability to see the mouth is essential to communication.
- (m): Are engaging in an activity that requires removal of a mask not listed in another part of this section and are in a facility that provides ventilation that meets or exceeds 60ft³/min of outdoor airflow per person.
- (n): Are at a residential gathering where all persons are fully vaccinated and not experiencing the principal symptoms of COVID-19.
Paragraph 9. Contract Tracing Requirement for Particular Gatherings.
- (d): Upon request, businesses, schools, and other facilities must provide names and phone numbers of individuals with possible COVID-19 exposure to MDHHS and local health departments to aid in contract tracing and case investigation efforts.
- (e): Data collected under this section: (1) Must not be sold, or used for sales or marketing purposes without the express consent of each patron; (2) Must be protected as confidential information to the fullest extent of the law; (3) Must be not provided to law enforcement or immigration officials except upon receipt of a lawful subpoena from a court or other lawful court order; and (4) must be retained for 28 days by the collecting organization, after which time the data must be destroyed. If facilities use existing data to fulfill this requirement, they may instead follow their own pre-existing data retention and destruction policies at the conclusion of the 28-day retention period.
Paragraph 10. Implementation.
- (a): Nothing in this order modifies, limits, or abridges protections provided by state or federal law for a person with a disability.
- (b): Under MCL 333.2235(1), local health department are authorized to carry out and enforce the terms of this order.
- (c): Law enforcement officers, as defined in the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards Act, 1965 Public Act 203, MCL 28.602(f), are deemed to be “department representatives” for purposes of enforcing this order, and are specifically authorized to investigate potential violations of this order. They may coordinate as necessary with the appropriate regulatory entity and enforce this order within their jurisdiction.
- (e): Consistent with MCL 333.2261, violation of this order is a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 6 months, or a fine of not more than $200.00, or both.
- (f): Nothing in this order affects any prosecution or civil citation based on conduct that occurred before the effective date of this order.
- (h): Consistent with any rule or emergency rule promulgated and adopted in a schedule of monetary civil penalty under MCL 333.2262(1) and applicable to this order, violations of this order are also punishable by a civil fine of up to $1,000 for each violation or day that a violation continues.

This order, with the exception of sections 7(e) and 8(a), takes effect on April 19, 2021, at 12:01 AM, at which time the March 19, 2021, order entitled Gatherings and Face Mask Order is rescinded. Section 7(e) and 8(a) take effect at 12:01 a.m. on April 26, 2021. This order remains in effect through May 24, 2021, at 11:59 PM. Persons with suggestions and concerns are invited to submit their comments via email to COVID19@michigan.gov. For the full text of this order, please visit this link.

Capacity Limit Fact Sheet