(Saturday - January 09, 2021) - With Covid-19 cases continuing to plague the area, with no apparent letup, the Dickinson County Board of Commissioners is expected to officially declare a "state of emergency."

The declaration will be taken up at the start of the Board's regular meeting on Monday. This declaration will hopefully help provide some much needed relief to the County and to local units of government, to replace some of the revenues they have lost as a result of the Covid-19 crisis and the accompanying lockdowns.

Here is the text of the resolution to be considered by the board:

On January 11, 2021 and continuing, the County of Dickinson, Michigan, because of Corona Virus COVID-19, The State of Emergency declared by the Governor of the State of Michigan and a National State of Emergency declared by the President of the United States, as a result of this situation, the following conditions exist:

Dickinson County, including all cities and townships within this county, are experiencing high numbers of COVID-19 cases. The high number of COVID-19 cases may result in limited access to first responder health and safety resources.
Additionally, there may be an impact on the elderly and student who are provided meals, and other services. The uptick in COVID-19 cases could place a hardship on those providers to get services to their clients and students.
Also, because of the monitoring requirements that are placed on the local health department personnel, additional staff may be needed if the current status of health concerns deteriorates.

Dickinson County has limited resources to combat and respond to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Therefore, as Chairperson of the Board of Commissioners of Dickinson County, in accordance with Section 10 of 1976 PA 390, as amended, I hereby declare, as approved by a unanimous vote of the Dickinson County Board of Commissioners, that a "state of emergency" exists within our jurisdiction; that the response and recovery elements of our emergency operations plan have been activated, and that local resources are being utilized to the fullest possible extent. This declaration will remain in effect until terminated by the Dickinson County Board of Commissioners.

This meeting of the County Board of Commissioners will be held virtually, online and on telephone, via the Zoom platform.  The session will begin at 6:00 PM on Monday.

There are several ways in which you can participate in the meeting.

You can log into Zoom using the following link information:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89501967524?pwd=dXdBcUM55Ud2eXpxamMzNGRkQ1BkQT09

If you have already downloaded the Zoom application, log in using the following information:
Meeting ID - 895 0196 7524
Passcode - 600663

To participate by telephone:
Dial: 1-312-626-6799
When prompted, enter meeting ID - 895 0196 7524
When prompted, enter passcode - 600663