Gov. Pete Ricketts is defended his decision to ease social-distancing restrictions in some parts of Nebraska even though the number of confirmed coronavirus cases has surged in the last few days. Ricketts announced Friday that he was relaxing rules for businesses such as restaurants, salons and tattoo parlors in certain regions of Nebraska and allowing all churches to resume in-person services as long as they follow new safety rules. During his weekday news conference on Monday, Ricketts used a highway speed-limit analogy to describe his thinking. He says the state could end interstate traffic deaths by reducing speed limits to 5 mph, but officials don't do that because it's not practical. The governor is also continuing his efforts to get more Nebraska residents registered at test-Nebraska-dot-com. The governor announced yesterday that nearly 89-thousand residents have registered so far, but he says it's still not enough. Governor Ricketts said the survey is now available in English and Spanish, and its first two testing sites will open in Omaha and Grand Island. The governor was joined today by state Economic Development Director Tony Goins to announce the Get Nebraska Going Task Force that Goins says will help local businesses safely re-open.
