The vast majority of California counties will be allowed to ease restrictions on businesses, under new guidelines unveiled by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday.
Under the new benchmarks, Newsom said that 53 of the state’s 58 counties now have the option of allowing more retailers to open, including shopping centers and dine-in eating at restaurants, along with curbside pickup and the resumption of manufacturing.
"We're moving into an important few weeks ahead of us, and we're going to start seeing a lot more activity," Newsom said.
The changes announced on Monday are the result of subtle shifts in the reopening benchmarks that the Newsom administration has required counties to reach before clearing businesses to resume.
Counties will no longer have to go two weeks without a coronavirus death under the new guidelines; instead they can move into Phase 2 of the state's reopening by hitting goals based on tests, infections and hospitalizations.