Governor Bill Lee to allow safer at home order to expire April 30

By Sherman Greer

In an effort to get the state’s economy back on track, Governor Bill Lee announced Monday that he would not be extending Tennessee’s statewide safer at home order that is set to expire April 30.

The announcement sets the stage for many non-essential businesses to begin reopening, some as early as April 27. The governor cited increased testing in Tennessee, stating that “the number of recovered cases exceed the number of active cases in our state” and that “17 consecutive days of only single-digit increases in the number of cases” are some of the considerations that led to his decision. Lee’s announcement applies to all of Tennessee’s counties with the exception of six containing the state’s largest metropolitan cities, including Shelby County which operates its own health department. Lee stated that he would work with the six counties as they develop their own plans to reopen. Social distancing measures will remain in place throughout the state after the order expires.