On April 23rd, Governor Cooper issued Executive Order 135 extending his statewide Stay At Home Order (Executive Order 121) for another nine days.  The Governor’s Stay At Home Order was due to expire on April 29th; EO 135 extends it … Read more

To slow the spread of COVID-19, to comply with Governor Cooper’s stay-at-home order, and to deal with budget stresses,  many local governments are considering furloughs. A furlough occurs when one or more employees are put into a temporary leave without … Read more

On Wednesday, my colleague Diane Juffras published What to Do When an Employee is Infected with or Reports Exposure to COVID-19. She addressed a number of important issues, from the leave that must be provided to employees, to the actions … Read more

As the fight against the coronavirus wages on, local government purchasing officers, clerks, department heads, and others who handle procurements are scouring every vendor and supplier they can think of to find everything from surgical masks and gloves to rental … Read more

I have been on a quixotic mission to try to get people not to use the word “quarantine” to refer to the stay-at-home orders that have been issued in North Carolina and elsewhere. I’ve lost this argument in popular culture, … Read more

The first case of COVID-19 in North Carolina was announced on March 3. By April 9, the state was reporting over 3500 cases and 65 deaths from the disease. Rapid spread of a new communicable disease is a historic and … Read more

[UPDATE: Section 4.31 of Session Law 2020-3 enacted new G.S. 166A-19.24, which imposes a variety of procedural requirements on remote meetings held by public bodies during a state of emergency declared by the Governor or General Assembly. As defined by … Read more

As counties and cities continue their efforts to protect public health and safety during the COVID-19 crisis, some have discovered that their local emergency ordinances need updating.  For jurisdictions that do not regularly face the threat of natural disasters such … Read more

Understandably, COVID-19 has certainly slowed the demand for short-term rentals (STRs). In fact, at least one county in North Carolina has prohibited STR operators from renting their properties to out-of-county and out-of-state guests while the state is under the stay-at-home … Read more

THIS BLOG POST HAS BEEN UPDATED ON SEPTEMBER 30, 2020 On Monday morning, April, 6, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued regulations implementing the Emergency Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (the Emergency FMLA Act”) and the Emergency … Read more