HIGHLIGHT: DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
Washington: Lunar New Year celebrations have been disrupted by a pandemic and tainted by attacks on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, WUSA-TV reports. “Even before the first case of COVID-19 here in the U.S., our communities, both business and individuals, have been under attack,” said John Yang of Asian Americans Advancing Justice. “The rhetoric from the prior presidential administration certainly did not help,” he said, referring to ex-President Donald Trump, who repeatedly called the coronavirus the “Chinese virus.” The D.C. police department’s Asian Liaison Unit has added more Cantonese- and Mandarinspeaking officers to ensure the community feels safe reporting concerns.
ALABAMA Montgomery: New statistics indicate a disproportionately small number of Black people are getting COVID-19 vaccinations, a trend the state’s top health official said shows the need to increase efforts in the minority community.
ALASKA Juneau: Lawmakers, facing a looming deadline and disorganization in the state House, have asked Gov. Mike Dunleavy to issue a new disaster declaration to aid the pandemic response despite legal questions about his authority to act.
ARIZONA Phoenix: The number of inmates in the state’s prisons has declined 11% since the pandemic began, reflecting a slowdown in the court system that has held far fewer criminal jury trials over the past year.
ARKANSAS Little Rock: Gov. Asa Hutchinson said Friday that states need to take the lead in administering vaccines. He was among a group of governors and mayors who met with President Joe Biden at the White House to discuss Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package.
CALIFORNIA Sacramento: The state will expand its list of people eligible for vaccinations by another 4 million to 6 million, state Health Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly said Friday. Among those becoming eligible March 15 are people with certain cancer, heart, lung and kidney conditions, plus pregnant women, those with Down syndrome, organ transplant recipients and the severely obese.
COLORADO Denver: More than two dozen people have sued the Denver sheriff ’s department, claiming they were exposed to the coronavirus behind bars, The Denver Post reports. Most of the federal lawsuits, largely handwritten, were filed without the help of attorneys since the beginning of the year, the paper reports.
CONNECTICUT Stamford: Gov. Ned Lamont credited the growing number of vaccinations for the state’s declining rate of COVID-19 infection, noting Friday that the number of nursing home residents and people 75 and up getting infected is “way down.”
DELAWARE Wilmington: Latinos have received significantly fewer COVID-19 vaccine doses than white residents, facing barriers every step of the way to sign up, advocates say. Only 2% of Delawareans who have received at least one dose are Latino, state data shows. Just 1% of those who have signed up for a shot identify as Latino. Yet Latinos and Hispanics account for about 10% of the state population and 17% of reported cases.
FLORIDA Orlando: A University of Central Florida student has been diagnosed with a coronavirus variant first found in the United Kingdom. The state leads the nation in cases of the variant, with almost 350 diagnoses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
GEORGIA Atlanta: The state House is considering legislation that would require hospitals and nursing homes to allow visitors, after many cut access because of the pandemic.
HAWAII Honolulu: Mayor Rick Blangiardi has extended coronavirus restrictions through mid-March but said that could change if confirmed cases remain low.
IDAHO Boise: Legislation to make permanent changes in absentee ballot counting procedure headed to the full state Senate on Friday. The Senate State Affairs Committee unanimously approved the measure intended to speed vote counting, which was used in the last general election and spurred by the pandemic.
ILLINOIS Springfield: State public health officials on Friday reported administering more than 95,000 COVID-19 vaccinations in the previous 24 hours, a single-day record.
INDIANA Indianapolis: Federal jury trials suspended last fall amid a surge in coronavirus cases are expected to resume in April in all divisions of the Southern District of Indiana, a judge announced Friday. Chief Judge Jane E. Magnus-Stinson also said clerk offices will reopen Tuesday to the public in all the divisions.
IOWA Iowa City: Gov. Kim Reynolds’ administration informed bidders Friday that it would not award a contract for an outside vendor to operate a call center to help residents set up vaccine appointments. The health department said it was “continuing to evaluate call center solutions.”
KANSAS Mission: Schools would be required to offer full, in-person instruction starting March 26 under a bill introduced Friday in the Senate.
KENTUCKY Louisville: A Bullitt County fire department announced one of its officials has died of the coronavirus, just over two months after its chief died following a COVID-19 diagnosis. Battalion Chief Major Garry Key of the Zoneton Fire District died Saturday after a nearly monthlong fight with the disease.
LOUISIANA New Orleans: Mayor LaToya Cantrell couldn’t join mayors and governors meeting with President Joe Biden on Friday because a screening test – which turned out to be inaccurate – was positive for the coronavirus, her office said. Cantrell’s press secretary said she received her first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday. “The vaccine does not cause a positive test, as it does not contain any actual virus,” Norton stressed.
MAINE Portland: Gov. Janet Mills increased capacity limits for some houses of worship Friday. They are now able to accommodate five people per 1,000 square feet, or up to 50 people, whichever is greater.
MARYLAND Annapolis: The General Assembly passed a pandemic relief measure Friday that will deliver more than $1 billion in tax relief and economic stimulus for lowincome families and small businesses. Lawmakers gave the bill final approval after the House withdrew provisions that critics said would have steered relief to undocumented immigrants.
MASSACHUSETTS Boston: The state has launched an online tool to make it easier for residents to find vaccination locations, the Baker administration announced Friday. The COVID-19 Vaccine Finder can be accessed at vaxfinder.mass.gov.
MICHIGAN Detroit: More than $4 million in COVID-19 relief grants has been disbursed to 144 nonprofits throughout Wayne County. Nonprofits have stepped up as residents face financial hardships and other losses amid the pandemic, said County Executive Warren Evans.
MINNESOTA Minneapolis: Gov. Tim Walz on Friday said he was raising the maximum occupancy in bars and restaurants and at private events and celebrations.
MISSISSIPPI Jackson: The number of African Americans who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 rose slightly in the prior 10 days, but overall numbers of Black residents getting vaccinations are still lagging far behind white Mississippians, according to data available Friday.
MISSOURI Liberty: St. Louis County Executive Sam Page said Friday that better communication about the state’s vaccine distribution plan should help reduce frustration that erupted publicly last week between Gov. Mike Parson and some eastern Missouri health officials. Parson on Thursday said St. Louis-area health officials were misleading residents when they complained that the region was not getting enough vaccine doses to serve its population.
MONTANA Helena: A statewide mask mandate in place since July was lifted Friday by Gov. Greg Gianforte. The state’s chief medical officer resigned from his post Thursday, the day after Gianforte announced he would lift the mandate. Dr. Gregory Holzman did not say in his letter of resignation whether the move was connected to the governor’s decision to lift the requirement.
NEBRASKA Omaha: State officials have told retail pharmacies and local public health agencies offering COVID-19 vaccinations to give at least 90% of doses to senior citizens, Gov. Pete Ricketts said Friday, even though other groups are also eligible under the state’s plan.
NEVADA Las Vegas: School and union officials have approved a plan for employee coronavirus testing when the youngest Las Vegas area students return to campus March 1 for partial in-person learning.
NEW HAMPSHIRE Concord: The 400-member state House is heading back inside. In the calendar published Friday, House Speaker Sherm Packard, R-Londonderry, said the House will meet Feb. 24-25 at a sports complex in Bedford. Since the start of the pandemic, lawmakers have met several times at an ice arena, on an athletic field and from their cars in a parking lot.
NEW JERSEY Trenton: Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy said Friday that he was signing an executive order to permit up to two parents or guardians to attend indoor and outdoor school sporting events.
NEW MEXICO Santa Fe: The state Supreme Court has rejected a GOP challenge to emergency procedures in the state House of Representatives that have moved hearings and deliberations almost entirely online as a precaution against COVID-19.
NEW YORK Albany: Gov. Andrew Cuomo further loosened coronavirus restrictions on restaurants statewide Friday even as the Bronx, Queens and Staten Island reported upticks in new cases. The Democratic governor said restaurants and bars would be able to stay open until 11 p.m. starting Sunday.
NORTH CAROLINA Raleigh: The state is in a stronger financial position than budget analysts anticipated at the start of the pandemic, according to a report from a group of economists. The analysis from the Office of State Budget and Management and the General Assembly’s Fiscal Research Division projects the state will receive $4.1 billion, or nearly 18%, more in revenue this fiscal year than expected.
NORTH DAKOTA Bismarck: Over the past two weeks, the rolling average of daily new cases in the state has fallen by 37%, Johns Hopkins University researchers reported.
OHIO Columbus: Gov. Mike DeWine on Friday publicly rebuked school officials in Akron and Cincinnati for backtracking on commitments to offer in-person learning by March 1, calling that unacceptable after employees in the districts were prioritized for COVID-19 vaccines because of their reopening promises.
OKLAHOMA Oklahoma City: Gov. Kevin Stitt on Friday extended an executive order that includes maskwearing in state buildings and new restrictions on bars and restaurants.
OREGON Portland: Four people who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 tested positive for the coronavirus, the state health authority reported Friday. Oregon is among the first states nationwide to report “breakthrough cases” – people who test positive at least 14 days after receiving their second dose.
PENNSYLVANIA Harrisburg: After weeks of complaints about the state halting its vaccine rollout, the Health Department on Friday ordered providers to get shots into arms more quickly, offer more convenient scheduling and make sure scarce supplies only go to eligible recipients. The state also plans to dramatically cut the number of providers administering the vaccine so more doses will go to those that have proven adept at swiftly using their weekly allotments.
RHODE ISLAND Providence: Providence College is temporarily restricting student movement in response to a recent increase in confirmed coronavirus cases on campus.
SOUTH CAROLINA Columbia: State economists decided Friday to make no changes to 3-month-old revenue estimates, with COVID-19 still causing so much economic uncertainty.
SOUTH DAKOTA Sioux Falls: The Minnehaha County Sheriff ’s Office has tapped about 20 police reserve officers to help with scheduling holes from COVID-19-related staffing issues, including shifts at the jail.
TENNESSEE Nashville: The state’s Department of Health announced access to COVID-19 vaccinations is being expanded under the launch of a federal government program. More than 120 Walmart pharmacy locations across the state will participate.
TEXAS Austin: The state reported 324 more deaths Friday from COVID19 as its death toll since the beginning of the pandemic topped 40,000.
UTAH St. George: A vaccination clinic at the St. George Seniors Active Life Center on Thursday was the largest held so far by the Southwest Utah Public Health Department. Health Department Spokesman Dave Heaton said he expected 3,100 shots to be given by the end of the day.
VERMONT Montpelier: People 70 and older may start registering for COVID-19 vaccine appointments this week, state officials announced Friday, directing most applicants to the Health Department’s website.
VIRGINIA Roanoke: The state Department of Health began moving all the local health districts’ waiting lists into a central system Friday, meaning residents were unable to preregister for vaccines over the weekend. The agency will be replacing local surveys with a link to a unified system expected to launch Tuesday, The Roanoke Times reports.
WASHINGTON Olympia: The state will focus on administering second vaccine doses this week, making appointments to get a first dose very limited, health officials said Friday.
WEST VIRGINIA Charleston: The House of Delegates’ finance committee received a presentation on Gov. Jim Justice’s budget proposal Friday. Justice’s plan calls for a no-growth, $4.56 billion budget that generally keeps funding levels flat. Despite the pandemic, revenues were mostly unchanged from last March thanks to federal COVID-19 aid, low interest rates and tax collections faring better than the worst-case scenario.
WISCONSIN Madison: The coronavirus has taken its toll on the state’s transportation fund, the primary source for road and infrastructure projects, according to a new report released Friday. The nonpartisan Wisconsin Policy Forum reported that the top two revenue sources for the fund, fuel taxes and vehicle registration fees, fell short of projections by more than $116 million in fiscal year 2020 as the pandemic canceled or altered many travel plans.
WYOMING Cheyenne: Cheyenne Frontier Days lost $3.34 million in revenue last year after the pandemic forced the event’s first cancellation in its 124-year history, the Wyoming Tribune Eagle reports.