NJ Lifts More COVID-19 Restrictions: What You Can, Can't Do

NEW JERSEY - Friday is set to be New Jersey's biggest reopening day since Gov. Phil Murphy began rolling back restrictions during the summer of 2020 as the state is poised to reopen several areas of dining, entertainment and sports.

According to Murphy, the coronavirus restriction rollbacks come largely due to increased vaccination efforts, an expansion of vaccine eligibility and data-based hospitalization evidence within the last several weeks. As of 9 a.m. Friday, New Jersey has administered 3,274,585 COVID-19 vaccine doses.

As of Friday, restaurants, cafeterias and food courts can increase indoor capacity limits from 35 to 50 percent, excluding employees. The changes also include indoor recreation facilities, amusement centers, personal care services (barber shops, nail salons, and other personal care businesses) and entertainment businesses (including casinos, movie theaters and gyms).

For entertainment centers where performances are given such as movie theaters, performing arts centers, and other concert venues, the indoor limit will be capped at 35 percent of the maximum capacity. The limit must never be larger than 150 people, excluding the entertainment center's staff.

Seating will still not be allowed in bars, Murphy has said.

In addition, the indoor gathering limit will increase from 10 people to 25 people as face-covering and social-distancing requirements are strictly observed. The general outdoor gathering limit will increase from 25 people to 50 people.

However, certain outdoor events, religious services or ceremonies, political events, weddings, funerals or memorial services, can be treated "differently from casual social gatherings … which occur on a more frequent basis and typically do not present the same compelling need," the executive order continues.

The number of people at indoor gatherings, including political activities, wedding ceremonies, funerals, or memorial service, is limited to 35 percent of the capacity, with no more than 150 total.

Any private residence or residential unit will be considered a single room.

"50 percent capacity is a limit that will continue to restrict the congregation of large numbers of individuals in indoor settings," Murphy's executive order reads.

The world’s largest movie theater chain AMC has announced that it will be opening almost all of its U.S. sites starting Friday. Theaters will open with enhanced cleaning, contactless ticketing, distanced seating and mask mandates, according to a statement from AMC. The chain touts 27 locations in New Jersey.

"We believe we can confidently take these steps as our COVID-19 metrics continue to trend in the right direction," Murphy said. "However, our mask mandate and COVID-19 health and safety protocols remain in effect. I am hopeful that we'll be able to take further steps in expanding capacity responsibly and incrementally guided by public health data."

The expansion also serves as good news to those participating in interstate youth sports, as the outdoor gathering limit increase also coincides with the expiration of the prohibition on outdoor interstate youth sports competitions. Starting Friday, attendees will be limited to players, coaches and officials and up to two parents or guardians per participating athlete. Indoor interstate sports competitions will still be prohibited.

But one key area of New Jersey has yet to see major reopening progress: schools. As he faces mounting pressure to get children back in the classroom, Murphy insisted that schools open "now" citing recent funding from the American Rescue Plan at a Wednesday news conference. Passed by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden, the package provides nearly $2.8 billion to New Jersey schools. Much of this funding is meant to help schools reopen and combat the learning loss "we know has occurred," he said.

Murphy recently noted that New Jersey will follow "to some degree" new guidance released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that addresses one of the fastest-growing groups in the Garden State: the fully vaccinated. The new guidance suggests fully vaccinated people can meet indoors without a mask and can forgo physical distancing.

Last weekend, the governor also told CBS3 that he believes New Jersey can return to some semblance of normality by Memorial Day weekend.