Jeffrey C. McKay, Chairman, Board of Supervisors Fairfax County, has issued the following update to the Fairfax County Community on Monday, March 16, 2020:

“Today I had the opportunity to stop by the Health Department to see the excellent work of our response teams answering the questions of residents. In the last week, 17,000 people signed up for the County’s text notifications, and separately, the call center received 265 calls this morning.

Local Declaration of Emergency

What are you doing? (At 10 a.m. Tuesday) the Board is holding an emergency session to consider making a local Declaration of Emergency.

What does this do? This does two things primarily: 1. This declaration streamlines and expedites Fairfax County Government's access to emergency disaster funding and 2. It allows the County to use its authority to procure goods to address the emergency.

How can I watch? The online live stream, on TV on Cox channel 1016 or Verizon/Comcast channel 16, listen by dialing 703-324-7700, or view following the meeting on demand.

Information on Fairfax County Services

The Health Department has a number of resources on COVID-19:

• Visit the County site on COVID-19, Health Department Website, see their FAQs, and tips for social distancing.
• Sign up for text message alerts: text FFXCOVID to 888777
• Call the Health Department from 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. weekdays and 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. 703-267-3511
• Email: ffxcovid@fairfaxcounty.gov. This account will be staffed Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

If you have further questions or are in need of services, below are some good references:

Neighborhood and Community Services provides access and referrals to both government and community-based resources for assistance with, but not limited to: food, shelter, employment, financial assistance, and healthcare.

• Call: 703-222-0880, TTY 711; Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p..m

Community-based resources for food assistance and donations can again be found here.

For small businesses in need of relief, we have created a web page that we will continue to update with guidance.

Mass Gatherings and Community Events:

• Fairfax County now recommends cancelling public events with 50 or more people, per the CDC.
• All public events in Virginia with 100 or more people have been cancelled by Governor Northam.
• For events of any size (public or private), organizers and participants each have a responsibility to reduce the chance of disease transmission.
• Persons considering attending any event, regardless of the number of people attending, should consider the risks and benefits in deciding to attend. In particular, those who are at high-risk of severe disease if they become infected – persons who are older than 60 years old, have chronic illness, have a compromised immune system, are pregnant – should know the status of COVID-19 in the community and not attend the event if local infection is widespread.

Here are County guidelines for those planning an event:

Fairfax County Government

All County agencies have been directed to identify core functions that we must continue to carry out. We are shifting resources to those essential functions, as needed.

We strongly encourage residents to conduct County business online if possible.

Taxes

• The deadline for seniors and people with disabilities to apply for tax relief has been postponed to June 1.

The following programs have been extended:

• Real Estate Tax Relief for the elderly (65+)
• Tax Relief for People with disabilities
• Personal Property or “Car Tax” Relief

Fairfax County Parks, Libraries, and Community Facilities

• Fairfax County parks (indoor), libraries, and community facilities are closed for two weeks.
• This includes: recreation, nature, community, resource and teen centers, golf courses, historic sites, athletic fields, and picnic shelters.

Senior Centers and Adult Day Health Care Centers

• All Fairfax County Senior Centers and Adult Day Health Care Centers are closed until further notice.
• Fairfax County is providing meal delivery services to registered participants who wish to obtain them.

Utilities

We have reached out to area utility companies to assure that they are working to protect those at risk of utility disconnection. We have received confirmations from:

• Verizon, Comcast, and Cox, have pledged to keep customers connected for the next 60 days and not terminate services to any residential customer or small business that are unable to pay their bills. Read more.

· Dominion Energy suspended disconnections. Read more.

· Washington Gas will be waiving late fees and suspending disconnections. Read more.

Fairfax Connector Bus

• There have been no changes to Fairfax Connector services, however cleaning protocols have been reviewed and updated.
• Increased vehicle cleaning cycles are occurring with a special focus on bus interiors and critical touchpoints. These cleanings incorporate disinfection procedures indicated to be effective against COVID-19.

Metro

Metro is reducing service:

METRORAIL service:

• Monday-Friday: Trains will operate every 12 minutes on each line throughout the day. The rail system will maintain normal hours, opening at 5 a.m.
• Saturday: Trains will operate every 12 minutes on each line, with service from 7 a.m. until 1 a.m. (normal Saturday service).
• Sunday: Trains will operate every 15 minutes on each line, with service from 8 a.m. until 11 p.m. (normal Sunday service).

METROBUS service:

• On weekdays, bus service will operate on a Saturday supplemental schedule.
• Weekend bus schedules are unchanged.
• WMATA also asks that customers do not use Metro to go to healthcare appointments if you are showing signs of illness.

Other changes:

• Fairfax County has cancelled the secure document shredding event for Saturday, March 21, at the Gerry Hyland Government Center. It will be rescheduled at a later date.
• The Supreme Court of Virginia has declared a judicial emergency. All non-essential state court proceedings are suspended effective March 16 to April 6, 2020.

Finally, we received questions about how to detect coronavirus in its early stages. According to the CDC the following symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure:

• Cough

• Fever

• Shortness of breath

As we have more information to share, my office and Fairfax County Government will continue to update residents.

Thank you for your support and patience as we work to manage this challenging, complex, and rapidly evolving situation.

Jeffrey C. McKay

Chairman, Board of Supervisors