COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA

HOUSE OF DELEGATES
RICHMOND

TIM HUGO

C. TODD GILBERT COMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS:

POST OFFICE BOX 309 FINANCE
WOODSTOCK, VIRGINIA 22664 AGRICUTURE, CHESAPEAKE &
NATURAL RESOURCES
MINORITY LEADER RULES

April 21, 2020

The Honorable Ralph Northam

Patrick Henry Building
1111 East Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219

Dear Governor Northam:

Before you read any further, we want you and anyone else who may read this correspondence to
understand that we are not about to ask you to simply return Virginia to normal overnight. This
situation is far from normal. We are strongly urging you to utilize the vast resources and
expertise at your disposal to begin the process of methodically allowing our society and our
economy to function once again.

At this very moment, we can use everything we have learned about this virus to afford Virginia’s
citizens and businesses the ability to get as close to normal as possible without sacrificing public
health. Virginians have already demonstrated how quickly they can adapt to this crisis. Increased
hand-washing, social distancing, self-seclusion and all other manner of pandemic-induced
vigilance and social courtesy now permeates the collective consciousness of our Commonwealth.

The ability of Virginians who work in a number of service industries to re-open their doors and
begin serving customers again under even strict and comprehensive guidelines is paramount in
ensuring Virginia’s economic strength. As you know, the COVID-19 pandemic has left hundreds
of thousands of Virginians out of work, many because their businesses have been required to
shut down.

As such, we write to urge you to consider utilizing the expertise at your disposal to reconsider
whether many so-called “non-essential” businesses can once again serve their customers while
we continue to “flatten the curve” of this pandemic. Virginians are resilient and creative. If given
the opportunity, they will find a way to get back to work while keeping their customers and
employees safe.

Many of the business owners to whom we have spoken were already applying sanitization and
distancing requirements before they were forced to shut down. With additional guidance from
the Department of Health, it seems logical and prudent that protocols could be established which
would allow many of these shuttered businesses to safely service the public and reopen their
doors, even if only on a limited basis.

DISTRICT: (540) 459-7550 • RICHMOND: (804) 698-1015 • EMAIL: deltgilbert@house.virginia.gov

 The threat of COVID-19 is real, and serious. But as two weeks have become a month, and one
month threatens to become two, far too many Virginians are being kept on the sidelines, unable
to innovate to keep their small part of our Commonwealth’s -- and their personal -- economy
running.

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eriously since the on
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andinwith
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pacts COVID-19 creative
will havesolutions.
on our Commonwealth, we must also take into account the
ses, small and large, and their employees are hurting, especially those in the service and
Commonwealth has Central to any such
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and their employees impacted by these necessary actions. If large numbers of small you to take full advantage of our testing
ayoffs for workerscapability
may turn and
into to do everything
permanent within
job losses. Hardyour power
working to aggressively
families are worried,expand it.

At some point, we must begin to re-open our economy before it’s too late for many existing
businesses
nsider, at a minimum, and the livelihoods
an immediate they provide.
90-day extension for stateVirginians
income taxmust
filingbe able to earn a living to feed their
and
ual and business. The rapid loss of sales revenue has put many small businesses in a step. We believe the journey to
families. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single
normalcy in this case starts with one small business at a time.
he tax filings and payments deadline by 90 or more days is another tool to ensure
o provide payroll and other employee benefits, pay bills, and care for their families.
Virginians are up to this challenge. They can, and will, find ways to do business safely if you
yment deadlines for the public will emulate the Federal response, an important factor for
give them the chance. We urge you to trust them and to help them.
file their Federal returns to complete the process of filing their state returns. Doing so
less thing to worry about in this trying time.
Sincerely,
with you as you work to protect the physical and financial health of our fellow Virginians

ogether we will get through this.

C. Todd Gilbert
House Republican Leader

Gilbert KathyDel. Kathy Byron

Byron Del Jay Leftwich
n Leader House
HouseRepublican
RepublicanCaucus Chair
Caucus Chair House Republican Whip

: (540) 459-7550 • RICHMOND: (804) 698-1015 • EMAIL: deltgilbert@house.virginia.gov

Jay Leftwich
House Republican Whip