April 27, 2021 10:30 a.m.

The Douglas County Board of Commissioners have joined a coalition of 76 other county commissioners and judges, as well as the President of the Oregon Restaurant & Lodging Association, in signing and sending a letter to Governor Kate Brown asking her to reconsider her plans to impose additional closure mandates on restaurants, bars and small businesses in Oregon.

A release from the Board, said the letter is in response to the Governor’s statement issued on Tuesday of this week in which she announced plans to change her State Mandated COVID-19 Risk Level Guidance program for Oregon counties that started last November. The release said that means shutting down restaurants and businesses, as well as severely limiting other services in many Oregon counties beginning on Friday.

Commissioners said the Governor also announced changes to the timeline for the monitoring and movement periods “…for the already restrictive and business punishing program” to one-week increments instead of two. The release said that would create even more uncertainty and employment woes for already struggling businesses and their employees.

Commissioners said the letter to Governor Brown represents the first-time county governments, via the Association of Oregon Counties, have united forces with the ORLA to pen a very direct letter to the Governor. A copy of the letter is linked: https://douglascounty-oregon.us/DocumentCenter/View/7520/4-27-2021-AOC_ORLA-Letter-to-Governor-Kate-Brown