Despite all we are all going through with the fight against and response to the COVID-19 crisis, this morning we received some good news from another battle TRA has been waging on your behalf. TRA and its fellow members of the Alliance for Securing and Strengthening the Economy in Texas (ASSET) coalition have secured an injunction by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas of the city of Dallas’ paid sick leave ordinance (PSL), which was set to begin enforcement on April 1 (tomorrow).

As we have maintained all along, it is our belief that retailers are committed to the well being of their employees, whether that’s implementing policies to protect employee health and safety, providing benefits or working to ensure they can make payroll so employees can take care of themselves and their families. One-size-fits-all policies of these regulations across Texas does nothing but create uncertainty in our economy, which is the last thing employees, employers and job seekers need in the wake of this unprecedented national crisis. Therefore, Texas retailers welcome the federal court’s ruling today on the Dallas PSL ordinance, and look to the Texas Supreme Court to rule in our favor on the Austin PSL ordinance, so that these local PSL can be ruled unconstitutional statewide.

Dear Governor Abbott:

The health and safety of employees, customers and families is the top priority for retailers in Texas. On behalf of the members of the National Retail Federation, the Retail Industry Leaders Association and the Texas Retailers Association, we appreciate your leadership and the swift efforts of your Administration to minimize the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, both in terms of public health as well as the broader economic implications in Texas. Retail is Texas’s largest private-sector employer, supporting over 3.5 million jobs.
Retailers are following recommendations provided by the CDC and share the immediate goal of slowing the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Additionally, many retailers are stepping up during this global health crisis to assist with drive-through COVID-19 testing sites on their properties. Families are counting on retailers right now and retailers are determined to be there for them. This is an unprecedented situation that demands an “all hands on deck” approach, and retailers are eager to do their part. Our organizations believe that retail business owners are in the best position to determine their ability or inability to remain open and serving their communities.
Retailers in Texas and throughout the United States are investing considerable resources and effort into following CDC guidance to routinely clean and sanitize their facilities. Stores that are open to the public are adjusting hours they are open to the public in order to re-stock and sanitize the entire store – including shopping carts, checkout lanes, shelves among other areas. Distribution centers and warehouse facilities not open to the public are also dedicating significant resources to sanitation and following social distancing for their employees.

Counties and local governments in Texas are considering further instructions to close certain businesses they deem “non-essential.” We ask that your Administration carefully consider which businesses are “essential” and “non-essential” retail and provide uniform guidance for every jurisdiction in the state to follow. It is critically important not to overlook the important role that distribution centers play not just in Texas, but in supplying out-of-state communities with essential goods.

Access to information directly from the Office of the Governor Greg Abbott. Find waivers issued by the governor, resources for employers, resources for job seekers, MealFinder Map for Texas Students, Updates from the Texas Education Agency and News from the Office of the Governor. 

https://gov.texas.gov/coronavirus

“The whole of government and the whole community is involved in the fight against COVID-19. We will prevail, but it will take government, the private sector and individual Americans working together.” – FEMA Administrator Pete Gaynor

The federal government continues taking aggressive and proactive steps to address the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The health and safety of the American people is our top priority. FEMA is leading federal operations on behalf of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, which oversees the whole-of-government response to the pandemic. As part of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, HHS continues providing their subject matter expertise as the nation’s pre-eminent public health responders. 

As part of continuous systems updates, the EBT-4 vendor may have planned outages.  Retailers can sign up to receive email or text message notifications about Texas EBT-4 planned outages at: 

https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/TXHHSC/subscriber/new

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) took statewide action Thursday, March 19, 2020 to mirror actions taken locally in Dallas and Tarrant counties earlier this week by declaring a disaster and ordering schools, bars, clubs and gyms to close and for restaurants to offer only "to go" service.

The statewide declaration comes after more than 160 people across the state have been infected by the virus including four who have died, three of whom were in North Texas. In Dallas alone on Thursday, 20 new cases were confirmed including one death.

Governor Abbott Issues Executive Orders In Accordance With Federal Guidelines To Mitigate Spread Of COVID-19 In Texas

AUSTIN - Governor Greg Abbott today announced a series of Executive Orders relating to COVID-19 preparedness and mitigation. The four orders serve to limit public gatherings and help reduce exposure for people across the state. These orders are in accordance with federal guidelines issued by the President and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and will aid in the state's efforts to stop the spread of COVID-19. 

On March 18, 2020 President Trump announced via twitter that there is an agreement to close the US - Canada border to "non-essential" travel. Trade will not be affected.

Source: Twitter/@realDonaldTrump 8:37AM

"We will be, by mutual consent, temporarily closing our Northern Border with Canada to non-essential traffic. Trade will not be affected. Details to follow!"

Fisher Phillips has assembled a cross-disciplinary taskforce of attorneys across the country to address the many employment-related issues facing employers in the wake of the COVID-19 coronavirus – especially now that the World Health Organization has declared the outbreak as a pandemic. The COVID-19 Taskforce has created a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document, which has been continually updated since first published on March 3 and will continue to be updated as events warrant. It has been completely updated to address the many additional workplace law rights and responsibilities given the pandemic designation. You can contact your Fisher Phillips attorney or any member of the Taskforce with specific questions, and a full listing of the Taskforce members and their practice areas is at the end of this publication.

Click here for more from Fisher Phillips

Dear Texas WIC Vendor Community,

Due to the flexibilities around monitoring permitted by USDA, Texas WIC Vendor Management and Operations Unit (VMO) is immediately suspending the following activities:

Macy’s, Inc. Temporarily Closes Stores Nationwide in Response to COVID-19 Outbreak

NEW YORK—March 17, 2020-- In response to the widespread COVID-19 outbreak, Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE: M) today announced that it will temporarily close all stores by end of business today, March 17, 2020, through March 31, 2020. This includes all Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, Bluemercury, Macy’s Backstage, Bloomingdales the Outlet and Market by Macy’s stores. Macy’s, Inc. will provide benefits and compensation to its impacted workforce.
“The health and safety of our customers, colleagues and communities is our utmost priority. As a result of the recent COVID-19 developments, we have decided to temporarily close our stores. We will work with government and health officials to assess when we will reopen our stores and safely bring our colleagues back to work,” said Jeff Gennette, chairman and chief executive officer of Macy’s, Inc. “During this closure, we will continue to serve our customers through our e-commerce sites.”
All three Macy’s, Inc. brands – Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury – will continue to serve customers through macys.com, bloomingdales.com and bluemercury.com and through its mobile apps.

    The Texas Health & Human Services Commission will be publishing a Vendor News Flash in the near future regarding WIC purchases during this critical time due to measures put in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

-Suspending LEB requirements.  Retailers may sell any items in the LEB category that are on the APL and on the customers’ prescription without fear of an LEB violation (the 85% policy).

On March 17,2020, President Trump and the White House Coronavirus Task Force issued new guidelines to help protect Americans during the global Coronavirus outbreak.

The new recommendations are simple to follow and could have a resounding impact on public health. More information can be found in the attached document and the President’s and Vice President’s remarks can be found here. 

Statement to Industry
March 16, 2020

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is rising to meet the challenges associated with the new coronavirus disease, Covid-19. As leaders of USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and Agricultural Marketing Service, we can assure you that the agencies are committed to ensuring the health and safety of our employees while still providing the timely delivery of services to maintain the movement of America’s food supply from farm to fork.

These agencies are prepared to utilize their authority and all administrative means and flexibilities to address staffing considerations. Field personnel will be working closely with establishment management and state and local health authorities to handle situations as they arise in your community. As always, communication between industry and government will be key. We are all relying on early and frequent communication with one another to overcome challenges as they arise.

In this time of much uncertainty, we know that many of you have questions about how the department will continue to ensure that grading and inspection personnel are available. We have all seen how consumers have reacted to the evolving coronavirus situation and how important access to food is to a sense of safety and wellbeing. It is more important than ever that we assure the American public that government and industry will take all steps necessary to ensure continued access to safe and wholesome USDA-inspected products.

As we come together as a country to address this public health threat, know that USDA remains committed to working closely with industry to fulfill our mission of ensuring the safety of the U.S. food supply and protecting agricultural health.

Dr. Mindy Brashears
USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety

Greg Ibach
USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs
Click here for original article from USDA.gov

Today, as part of our ongoing and aggressive commitment to address the coronavirus outbreak, the FDA updated a policy originally issued on Feb. 29 on diagnostic testing for coronavirus (COVID-19) in order to achieve more rapid testing capacity in the U.S. We believe the unprecedented policy set forth in today’s updated guidance, which addresses laboratories and commercial manufacturers, will help address these urgent public health concerns by helping to expand the number and variety of diagnostic tests, as well as available testing capabilities in health care settings, and reference and commercial laboratories. 

This action demonstrates the FDA’s ability to pivot and adapt as the situation warrants in light of a public health emergency. We are taking steps to support diagnostic development considering the urgent need. We urge state authorities and commercial developers to take all necessary steps to ensure the availability of accurate tests. Inaccurate diagnoses during a pandemic can impair prevention efforts and delay appropriate treatment for sick patients.

As the Coronavirus outbreak continues to grow, we realize a lot of questions arise particularly about the grocery industry and retail industry as the public tries to secure supplies for themselves and their families in preparation for social distancing, closures, and anything else that might arise. Due to the rapidly changing information we have developed a Coronavirus Update Dashboard resource for everyone who wants to have a go-to place for up-to-date information from each TRA member commenting and making statements on the outbreak. We have also included the social media feeds from our national partners NRF and NGA, and other resources like the CDC and The Hill to have a good overview on any statements that may affect the Texas retail industry as these events develop. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us. Be sure to check out the Coronavirus Update Dashboard periodically for direct information from each source.

Governor Greg Abbott has announced that he is waiving certain regulations related to commercial trucking in the state of Texas. The suspensions will expedite commercial vehicle delivery of more supplies in each truckload as Texas works to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) across the state.

These waivers were requested by and will be coordinated through the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), and are part of the actions Governor Abbott is taking under the State of Disaster he declared yesterday.

Coronavirus Update  

"This is Our Watch” launched nationally in November 2017. A full toolkit of resources is available to retailers—including posters, stickers, age verification tools, and more—to help retailers better comply with federal tobacco regulations. Click here to check out the printable materials.

TRA’s Advocacy Summit is a great opportunity to spend a weekend networking with Texas’s most retail-friendly Members of the Texas Legislature and Members of Congress. The event will be held at the Horseshoe Bay Resort in Marble Falls, TX  on March 6-8, 2020 and feature panels with guests from various Texas agencies and the Texas Legislature.

Registration includes access to all panels, speakers, and attendees, all receptions, meals/breaks, and networking opportunities.