As a follow-up to its Declaration of Local Disaster due to Public Health Emergency issued on March 13, 2020 (as updated and amended on March 17th, 18th, and 21st), Tarrant County Judge B. Glen Whitley issued Tarrant County’s shelter-in-place order on March 24, 2020 (the “Order”). The Order has been referred to as the “Stay Home, Work Safe” order and is effective as of 11:59 p.m. on March 24, 2020 until 11:59 p.m. on April 7, 2020, unless rescinded, superseded or amended. A full copy of the Order is linked here.

So, what does this new Order mean for Tarrant County residents and businesses and how does it compare to the somewhat similar order issued in Dallas County effective March 23, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. (the “Dallas Order”)?

The Tarrant County Order is similar in many respects as the Dallas Order in that it requires all Tarrant County residents to stay at their place of residence except as allowed by the Order, but it also provides additional clarifications and includes additional business types in the definition of “Essential Businesses” and allows non-Essential Businesses to continue to have employees perform Minimum Basic Operations (described below).

Activities

Under the Order, the reasons that residents of Tarrant County can leave their homes include Essential Travel, Essential Activities, to work in Essential Businesses, Government Service, Essential Critical Infrastructure, or to perform Minimum Basic Operations.

Essential Travel – generally includes (i) travel related to other permitted functions under the Order (e.g. traveling to permitted work, necessary medical-related travel, grocery trips); (ii) travel to care for elderly, minors, dependents, persons with disabilities, or other vulnerable persons); (iii) travel to and from educational facilities for the purpose of receiving materials for distance learning and to receive meals (as applicable); (iv) travel to return to a residence in Tarrant County and travel to leave Tarrant County to return to a residence outside of Tarrant County; (v) travel required by law or court order; (vi) travel by clergy providing religious services and other ministries; and (vii) travel related to funerals.

You can read the rest of the article on the CCSB website