Tradewinds August 2020 Web Final

®
Protection for Safely Reopening Businesses by: Sen. Bob Steinburg, District 1
With Governor Cooper’s economic shutdown
hitting Northeastern North Carolina particularly
hard, I have been fighting in the State
Senate for as much help as possible to reopen
safely. With $125 million to help small businesses
pay employees, rent, and mortgages through
the Golden Leaf Foundation, many businesses
will stay alive. I also fought hard for $700 million
in funding for schools to reopen safely in person
this Fall. But I would like to draw your attention
to another provision you probably have not read
much about in the news. I believe it is one of the
more important pieces of legislation we passed
this year. Let me tell you why.
House Bill 118, entitled COVID-19 Liability Safe
Harbor, passed with bipartisan support in the
House and Senate. Governor Cooper signed
it into law just a few weeks ago. It responds
to the unprecedented situation facing small
businesses who needed to know: if they reopen
with recommended safety precautions in place,
what happens if someone contracts COVID-19
in their business? What happens if a customer
visits their business while afflicted by COVID-19,
knowingly or not? Can they be sued?
In our litigious society, the cost of frivolous lawsuits
could be the final nail in the coffin for these
businesses struggling already. That is why I had
to act. The liability protection we provided businesses
who reopen – with safety precautions in
place – is vital to our economic recovery.
I have talked to many business owners facing
tough choices. They have poured their lives into
pursuing the American Dream – often our businesses
here represent multiple generations of
toil and turmoil. These fine people, and the employees
they represent, are the best of our community.
Beyond the jobs and economic boost
they provide, these are the people who sponsor
Villa
The
Restaurant
Breakfast Specials All Day
Irene and Savvas Rallis
846 Halstead Blvd, Elizabeth City, NC
(252) 338-6206
our school programs and give our community
the unique pride we have for locally made products.
They don’t want to endanger this community
– certainly not! They have poured their lives
into the people here and want to keep building a
better economy for all of us to benefit.
Under HB 118, businesses are required to
provide reasonable notice of the new accommodations
they make to prevent COVID-19
from spreading. It allows for liability only for
“gross negligence, wanton conduct, or intentional
wrongdoing.” That means businesses who
knowingly expose customers by gross negligence
or an intentional disregard for their safety
could still be sued, but the responsible business
owners would be protected. These protections
last six months after the Governor’s Executive
Order expires and do not change any worker
compensation cases. This new law simply protects
businesses who reopen the right way.
The North Carolina Chamber of Commerce
warned of the dangerous impact from hundreds
of “predatory and unwarranted lawsuits” which
were already filed in an attempt to “cash in on
the hard work of others.” The North Carolina
Retail Merchants Association even added this
protection as a “top priority” because of its
immediate impact. I am convinced we had to act
immediately, and we did.
Our community has suffered enough from the
health and economic impact of COVID-19. It’s
time for us to reopen, with new safety precautions
in place, to protect the best of our community
– to protect you, your family, and the
livelihood you need. This new law will help us
weather this storm, and I will not rest until we
do.
It is respectable to have
no illusions, and safe, and
profitable and dull.
-- Joseph Conrad
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