From
Cathy DiMaggio, City Secretary
Title
Resolution ratifying and extending the Declaration of Local State of Disaster due to the Corona Virus (COVID-19) Community Transmission within the North Texas Region
Presenter
Mayor Ron Jensen and City Manager Tom Hart
Recommended Action
Approve
Analysis
On Friday, March 13, 2020, Mayor Jensen signed a proclamation declaring a local state of disaster, made pursuant to Section 418 of the Texas Government Code and the City Charter Article 3 Section 23, which authorizes the City Council and Mayor of the City of Grand Prairie to restrict gatherings within the city limits to no more than 500 people and to require that all public, private, and commercial labs report the number of COVID-19 tests conducted on a daily basis to the city. The proclamation also provides the city manager the ability to quickly enact other measures intended to protect the health and welfare of the public.
The proclamation comes in consultation with Dallas County, which is the city’s public health authority, and other cities in the county. County Judge Clay Jenkins also issued a proclamation that restricted gatherings across the county to 500 people.
The mayor’s proclamation took effect immediately and will expire in seven days unless renewed by the Grand Prairie City Council.
Financial Consideration
None at this time.
Body
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF GRAND PRAIRIE, TEXAS, RATIFYING AND EXTENDING THE DECLARATION OF DISASTER DUE TO THE CORONA VIRUS (COVID-19) COMMUNITY TRANSMISSION WITHIN THE NORTH TEXAS REGION; PROVIDING THE CONSENT OF THE CITY COUNCIL TO THE DECLARATION, CONTINUATION OR RENEWAL OF THE DECLARATION OF DISASTER FOR A PERIOD OF SIXTY (60) DAYS; PROVIDING AUTHORITY FOR THE MAYOR TO TERMINATE THE DISASTER DECLARATION; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE
WHEREAS, in December 2019, a novel coronavirus, now designated COVID-19, was detected in Wuhan, China; and
WHEREAS, on March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a worldwide pandemic; and
WHEREAS, COVID-19 spreads between people who are in close contact with one another through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes; and
WHEREAS, the identification of "community spread" cases of COVID-19 in the region could potentially signal that transmission of the virus may no longer be limited to travel to outbreak areas or contact with travelers who have visited outbreak areas, and
WHEREAS, on March 12, 2020, Dallas County declared a local disaster for public health emergency and issued an accompanying order relating to community gatherings ; and
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, Texas Governor Greg Abbott declared a statewide public health disaster; and
WHEREAS, on March 13, 2020, Mayor Ron Jensen issued a proclamation declaring a local disaster for public health emergency for the City of Grand Prairie and providing measures designed to prevent deaths in the City of Grand Prairie for a period of seven (7) days; and
Whereas, the City Council has determined that the duration of the additional measures in the proclamation should be extended to abate the public health threat,
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the City Council of the City of GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas:
Section 1. THAT pursuant to 418.108 (b) of the Government Code, the state of disaster will be extended as and the orders specified in Exhibit “A” shall be in effect for sixty (60) days on and from the date of this order, provided however that this declaration may be terminated before the expiration of thirty days by subsequent order of the Mayor, and may be continued or renewed beyond thirty days from its date of issuance only with the consent of the City Council of the City of Grand Prairie.
Section 2. THAT pursuant to 418.108 (c) of the Government Code, the declaration shall be given prompt and general publicity and shall be filed promptly with the City Secretary.
SECTION 3. THAT this Resolution shall be and become effective immediately upon its adoption and approval.
PASSED AND APPROVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GRAND PRAIRIE, TEXAS, ON THIS THE 17TH DAY OF MARCH, 2020.