New Jersey Administrative Code › Title - EXECUTIVE ORDERS › Title 55 - CHRIS CHRISTIE › Section - Executive Order No. 155 (2020)

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
Governor Philip D. Murphy
Executive Order No. 155 (2020)
An Order Allowing for Limited In-Person Instruction at Institutions of Higher Education and Trade and Training Schools, Beginning July 1, 2020
Issued: June 18, 2020.
Effective: June 18, 2020.
WHEREAS, in light of the dangers posed by COVID-19, I issued Executive Order No. 103 on March 9, 2020, the facts and circumstances of which are adopted by reference herein, which declared both a Public Health Emergency and State of Emergency; and
WHEREAS, through Executive Order Nos. 119, 138, and 151, issued on April 7, 2020, May 6, 2020, and June 4, 2020 respectively, the facts and circumstances of which are adopted by reference herein, I declared that the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency continued to exist and declared that all Executive Orders and Administrative Orders adopted in whole or in part in response to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency remained in full force and effect; and
WHEREAS, in accordance with N.J.S.A. App. A:9-34 and -51, I reserve the right to utilize and employ all available resources of State government to protect against the emergency created by COVID-19; and
WHEREAS, as COVID-19 continued to spread across New Jersey and an increasing number of individuals required medical care or hospitalization, I issued a series of Executive Orders pursuant to my authority under the New Jersey Civilian Defense and Disaster Control Act and the Emergency Health Powers Act, to protect the public health, safety, and welfare against the emergency created by COVID-19, including Executive Order Nos. 104-133, Nos. 135-138, and Nos. 140-154 (2020), the facts and circumstances of which are all adopted by reference herein; and
WHEREAS, to protect the health, safety, and welfare of New Jersey residents by, among other things, reducing the rate of community spread of COVID-19, I issued Executive Order No. 104 on March 16, 2020, the facts and circumstances of which are also adopted by reference herein, which established statewide social mitigation strategies for combatting COVID-19, including the cessation of in-person instruction at all institutions of higher education; and
WHEREAS, Executive Order No. 104 (2020) also gave the Secretary of Higher Education (the "Secretary") the authority to grant a waiver to allow in-person instruction to students on a case-by-case basis where a compelling rationale to allow such instruction exists; and
WHEREAS, on March 20, 2020, Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, State Director of Emergency Management, issued Administrative Order No. 2020-3 clarifying that the facilities closed to members of the public pursuant to Executive Order No. 104 (2020) included all libraries and computer labs at public and private colleges and universities; and
WHEREAS, to further limit community spread from person-to-person contact through use of social mitigation measures, Executive Order No. 107 (2020) required institutions of higher education to continue to cease in-person instruction and continued the authority of the Secretary to grant waivers to allow in-person instruction to students on a case-by-case basis where a compelling rationale to allow such instruction exists; and
WHEREAS, given the decrease in the rate of reported new cases of COVID-19 in New Jersey, including a reduction in the total number of individuals being admitted to hospitals for COVID-19, the State can take steps to lift certain restrictions that were designed to limit person-to-person contact; and
WHEREAS, even as the rate of reported new cases of COVID-19 decreases, the ongoing risks presented by COVID-19 mean that many of the State's current measures must remain in place, both to reduce additional new infections and to save lives; and
WHEREAS, after consultation with officials from the Department of Health, I announced the multi-stage New Jersey's Road Back Plan ("Plan") for the methodical and strategic reopening of businesses and activities based on scientific data and metrics concerning the level of disease transmission risk and essential classification; and
WHEREAS, as the State moves forward with its reopening plans, it is reasonable to take an approach based on which industries can safely proceed while minimizing the spread of COVID-19, due to the challenges associated with assessing the circumstances of every individual entity; and
WHEREAS, consistent with this Plan, I issued Executive Orders No. 148 and 152 (2020), which allowed additional numbers of individuals to gather indoors and outdoors, consistent with the same repeated observations from public health experts, Executive Order No. 149 (2020), which authorized the gradual restart of ordinary child care services, certain youth sporting activities, and summer camps, including school district-operated summer educational programming, with social distancing requirements, and Executive Order No. 150 (2020), which permitted restaurants, bars, and other food or beverage establishments to provide in-person dining outdoors, again with social distancing requirements, and Executive Order No. 154 (2020), which allowed personal care service facilities to open in accordance with certain health and safety standards; and
WHEREAS, on June 13, 2020, Colonel Patrick J. Callahan, State Director of Emergency Management, issued Administrative Order No. 2020-15 permitting all libraries at public and private colleges and universities to reopen to the public for curbside pickup and drop-off, subject to specific health and safety requirements; and
WHEREAS, it is appropriate to allow institutions of higher education to begin preparing their facilities, staff, and students for the 2020-2021 academic year, as substantial preparation is required to address rooming and boarding, course offerings, and additional considerations unique to higher education settings; and
WHEREAS, it is appropriate to allow private trade schools, career schools, and other post-secondary places that offer or maintain a course of instruction or instructional program utilized to prepare individuals for future education or the workplace, to resume instruction as such programs are generally unable to provide instruction remotely and can proceed with in-person instruction while adhering to necessary health and safety standards; and WHEREAS, the Constitution and statutes of the State of New Jersey, particularly the provisions of N.J.S.A. 26:13-1et seq., N.J.S.A. App. A: 9-33 et seq., N.J.S.A. 38A:3-6.1, and N.J.S.A. 38A:2-4 and all amendments and supplements thereto, confer upon the Governor of the State of New Jersey certain emergency powers, which I have invoked;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, PHILIP D. MURPHY, Governor of the State of New Jersey, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and by the Statutes of this State, do hereby ORDER and DIRECT:
1. Effective July 1, 2020, degree-granting public and private institutions of higher education ("IHE") may resume in-person instruction of students for curricula that require labs, technical, clinical, or hands-on instruction and therefore cannot be readily taught other than through in-person instruction subject to the requirements in Paragraph 4 of this Order and all applicable Executive Orders.
2. The Secretary, in consultation with the Commissioner of Health, shall issue health and safety standards for the resumption of in-person instruction and on-campus operations, including housing and dining services, at IHEs ("Restart Standards for all New Jersey Institutions of Higher Education"). These standards are applicable to all degree-granting IHEs that are authorized to resume in-person instruction.
3. In the event that a program operated by an IHE is subject to authorization, accreditation, licensure, approval, or similar requirements by one or more State agencies, in addition to the Secretary, such as the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, the Department of Education, or the Division of Consumer Affairs within the Department of Law and Public Safety, the program must adhere to any health and safety standards issued by such agency or agencies.
4. IHEs that are authorized to resume in-person instruction pursuant to Paragraph 1 of this Order and intend to resume instructional in-person activity on campus must submit a restart plan to the Secretary in accordance with the Restart Standards for all New Jersey Institutions of Higher Education no later than 14 days prior to the expected date of implementation of the plan. Such plans must include, at minimum, the development and implementation of policies and procedures that provide for the following:
a. Training for students regarding COVID-19 sanitization and social distancing practices and protocols as a condition of resuming in-person classes;
b. Training for faculty and staff on appropriate sanitization and social distancing practices and protocols, as well as institutional policies and procedures developed to limit the spread of COVID-19;
c. Use of face coverings for faculty, staff, students, and visitors, except when doing so would inhibit the individual's health;
d. Frequent cleaning and sanitization of classrooms, residences, restrooms, high-touch areas and equipment and shared surfaces;
e. Maintenance of adequate supplies, such as personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies;
f. Continued remote instruction for faculty and/or students who are unable to participate in in-person instruction;
g. Social distancing in classrooms, residence halls, restrooms, and other areas across campus;
h. Limitations on the number of students who may return to residence halls and restricted access to residential common areas;
i. Designation of space(s) for separation of individuals residing on campus who display symptoms consistent with or have a positive diagnosis of COVID-19;
j. A plan for on-campus transportation, which should include protocols for transporting sick students residing on campus to essential appointments as needed;
k. A plan for the operation of research labs, if applicable;
l. A plan for the operation of computer labs;
m. Strategies for food service and dining operations to ensure compliance with all health and safety standards and applicable Executive Orders;
n. A plan for intended resumption of athletics programs, if applicable;
o. A plan for the operation of student services;
p. Strategy for study abroad programs and international travel, if applicable;
q. Performance of health screenings for faculty, staff, students and visitors, and education regarding self-monitoring for symptoms;
r. Commitment to working with local and State officials, including the local health department and local office of emergency management, to share the components of the restart plan and revise same as may become necessary; and
s. Establishment of COVID-19 testing guidance and contact tracing protocols developed in consultation with local health officials and in line with existing State and federal health privacy statutes and regulations. At a minimum, such protocols should include a mechanism to maintain a log of students, faculty, staff and visitors to facilitate contact tracing, and the reporting of any instances of COVID-19 to local health officials. Following submission to the Secretary, such restart plan must be posted on the IHE's website and provided to students and staff in advance of the anticipated date for implementation.