Sisolak extends Phase 2 through July – 'We can only stay open if we stay safe'

On Monday, Gov. Steve Sisolak announced that Nevada will remain in Phase 2 of his "Nevada United: Roadmap to Recovery" plan.

The governor signed an emergency directive extending the length of Phase 2 through the end of July, due to the trends in COVID-19 infection rates, according to a Monday press release from Sisolak's office.

“Flexibility is one of the core principles in our Roadmap to Recovery, precisely to account for the situation we are in now. As I've said repeatedly, the virus — and our personal actions to help mitigate its spread — drives the timeline," Sisolak said in the release. “As a state, we were able to begin reopening because Nevadans were staying home as much as possible, washing hands frequently and maintaining six feet of social distancing.

"Now, all Nevadans must wear face coverings to help slow the spread as well. We can only stay open if we stay safe.”

According to the release, waiting until at least the end of July will give the state the time it needs to expanded contact tracing to identify trends and to see the impacts of Sisolak's new face-covering directive, announced June 24.

In addition to extending Phase 2 until the end of July, the directive extends the order that says DMV documents, including driver's licenses and registrations that have or are about to expire, will remain valid through Sept. 13.

In addition, he said businesses that have not paid license renewal fees since the beginning of the pandemic in March will have a grace period through Sept. 30 to pay without penalties.

"If statewide trends do not improve or get worse, the Governor will not hesitate to take any action necessary to protect the public and prevent exceeding our hospital capacity, including reinstituting previous restrictions," according to the Monday press release.

Sisolak initially released the Nevada United: Roadmap to Recovery plan on April 30.