Gov Burgum’s Fri COVID-19 News Briefing

Bismarck  (CSi)  Governor Doug Burgum held his COVID-19 news briefing on Friday at the State Capital in Bismarck.

Burgum said the North Dakota Risk Level has moved from the Moderate to the Low Risk Level, which relaxes restrictions on businesses, with the new guidelines based on the type of business.

Burgum  announced North Dakota is moving to the next phase of its ND Smart Restart plan, as the state continues to see a high rate of testing per capita, a low positive test rate and adequate hospital capacity to handle potential surges in COVID-19 cases.

The North Dakota Department of Health Friday confirmed 40 additional cases of COVID-19 out of 2,894 total tests completed, beating the previous record of 2,861 tests on May 15. The positive rate of 1.4 percent also was the lowest since May 17.

With 89 newly recovered cases Friday, the number of active cases decreased to 579, representing .08 percent of North Dakota’s population, and down from 648 active cases two weeks ago. Even in Cass County, the state’s most active county for COVID-19 cases, active cases represent just one-quarter of 1 percent of the population, and the state knows the most about the cases there due to targeted testing and contact tracing by the Red River Valley COVID-19 Task Force, Burgum noted.

Burgum said, “North Dakotans have done a great job exercising individual responsibility to slow the spread of the coronavirus, putting our state in a position to be able to further reopen our economy with a thoughtful, common-sense approach focused on saving lives and livelihoods.  With our increased capacity giving us more confidence to test, trace and isolate positive cases, we are ready to enter the next stage of the ND Smart Restart.”

Under the color-coded health guidance system in the ND Smart Restart plan, the change announced Friday moves the state out of the yellow, or moderate, risk level, and into the green, or low-risk, level – one level before the blue “new normal” level.

With the move from the moderate to low risk level:

• The recommendation for capacity in bars and restaurants increases from 50 percent to 75 percent.
• The recommendation for banquets/weddings increases from 50 percent occupancy up to 250 attendees, to 75 percent occupancy up to 500 attendees.
• Recommended movie theater capacity increases from 20 percent to 65 percent.
• Fitness centers may consider holding classes with high inhalation/exhalation exchange with social distancing, whereas those classes were not recommended under the yellow level.

Burgum reiterated that the ND Smart Restart protocols are recommendations under Executive Order 2020-06.7, and North Dakotans are strongly encouraged to follow them. Businesses and organizations may move forward under the guidelines based on their own comfort level and ability to meet the recommended protocols.

North Dakota has completed 89,599 tests of North Dakotans and has tested 69,453 unique North Dakotans, resulting in a total of 2,520 positive cases and the third-highest per-capita testing rate in the nation. The state has reported 59 deaths of individuals with COVID-19, including two reported today – a woman in her 90s and a man in his 70s, both from Cass County and both with underlying health conditions. Burgum expressed his condolences to their families and the loved ones of all those who have been lost through the COVID-19 pandemic. Thirty-six people remain hospitalized.

For more information on the state’s COVID-19 response, visit www.health.nd.gov/coronavirus or www.ndresponse.gov.

The North Dakota Department of Transportation (NDDOT) will continue to provide driver license and motor vehicle services by appointment only.

No walk-in services are available at this time. Customers need to schedule an appointment ahead of time by visiting our website at dot.nd.gov to complete an online request or by calling 1-855-633-6835.

NDDOT’s Smart Restart program was implemented on May 11, and over the past couple of weeks the agency completed 3,147 driver tests, nearly 4,000 driver license appointments, 49,500 motor vehicle transactions and answered 34,000 phone calls.

In order to provide prioritized services and work through the backlog, we ask that only customers who need the following services call to schedule appointments.

Driver License

• Commercial Driver License (CDL) Permit and Road tests
• H2-A (temporary ag workers)
• CDL renewal with HazMat
• Regular Driver License (Class D) Permit and Road tests
• Work permits (Temporary Restricted License)
• License expired before April 1
• Out of state transfers
• Motorcycle Permit tests
• ID cards for voting

Motor Vehicle

• Vehicle Title work – all types of titles
• Truck weight changes
• Large trucks 2290 required

Please keep in mind, driver’s licenses and motor vehicle tabs that were set to expire on March 1, 2020,  or later remain valid through the duration of the emergency declared by the governor and do not need to be renewed at this time.

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration also has extended the REAL ID deadline to October 2021. Only customers renewing a North Dakota Driver License at this time will be able to obtain a REAL ID during their scheduled appointment.

Many driver license services such as change of address, renewals, replacements and more are available online.

Motor vehicle services such as license plates and titling can also be done by mailing in paperwork. Vehicle renewals can be done online, at a self-service kiosk or by mail. Motor Vehicle kiosk fees for renewing your vehicle are waived until the emergency declaration has ended.

Local Motor Vehicle Branch offices are offering a variety of services. Please call local Motor Vehicle offices for service information at that location or check NDDOT’s website.

In other state news…

The North Dakota Industrial Commission Friday extended the Ag Disaster Relief Loan Program to accept applications from agricultural producers through September 30, 2020. The original sunset date was June 30, 2020. Since the program was made available in January, 218 loans have been approved for $109 million.

The Bank of North Dakota (BND) program covers operating shortfalls and term debt payments, and restructures existing debt. It allows up to a 10-year amortization for chattel and up to a 25-year amortization for real estate; both have a 5-year balloon and the first 12 months may be interest only.

“Some members of our agriculture community are just realizing the impacts of last year’s weather extremes,” the Industrial Commission said in a joint statement. “It is critical that we support our producers through every means possible.”

Farmers and ranchers may access the program by working with their local lender. More detailed information is available at www.bnd.nd.gov.