Assemblyman Nick Chiaravalloti (D-31) is applauding Gov. Phil Murphy (D) and New Jersey Department of Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli for lifting 10 p.m. restaurant curfews statewide and increasing indoor dining capacity to 35 percent – effective Friday.
By John Heinis/Hudson County View
“This is amazing news for our small businesses and I trust that they will do what is right to keep their employees and customers safe,” Chiaravalloti said in a statement.
“I would like to send my heartfelt thanks to Governor Phil Murphy and Health Commissioner Judy Persichilli who heard our requests and worked to make it happen.”
Murphy announced late this morning that he would be relaxing coronavirus-related restrictions at restaurants.
The Record first reported the news prior to Murphy confirming he would be signing an executive order to loosen COVID-19 guidelines ahead of the Super Bowl.
Chiaravalloti was the first member of the state legislature to ask for bars to remain open until midnight for Sunday’s big game, which he did in a January 14th letter to Murphy and Persichilli.
He later received support from across the aisle in Republican state Sens. Declan O’Scanlon (R-13) and Tony Bucco (R-25), the latter of which who started a petition in hopes of getting Murphy to give restaurants at least one day without a curfew.
However, at his coronavirus press briefing this morning, Murphy said the matchup between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Kansas City Chiefs didn’t impact this decision.
“I feel confident in signing this order because of the recent trends at our hospitals and the rate of transmission. For instance, on January 13th, we reported 3,726 confirmed and suspected COVID cases in our hospital,” the governor began.
“Today, three weeks later, we’re reporting a decrease of about 20 percent of that number. While some of these numbers are still high … we believe that we can make this expansion without leading to undue further stress on our healthcare system.”
