On March 26, 2020, Governor Sununu issued Executive Order #17 ordering non-essential businesses to close until May 4, 2020, to aid in mitigating the spread of COVID-19. Exhibit A to the Order identifies Essential Services.
If your business’ function/services are not described in Exhibit A to Executive Order #17, and you believe that your business provides essential services or functions, you may request designation as an essential business. Businesses are asked not to request designation as an “essential business” if the services the business provides or function it serves are described on Exhibit A.
The request to be designated an “essential business” must include your contact information and a brief justification of why the services/function are essential. If your business supports other businesses that provide Essential Services, and that support is essential to their function or operation, then include examples of the industries you serve to enhance the persuasiveness of your request to be designated an “essential business.”
Some businesses have received letters from their customers claiming that because the customer provides Essential Services, their suppliers/vendors are deemed an “essential business”; that is not necessarily the case. In some cases supporting businesses are described in Exhibit A, but not in all cases. We recommend that our clients who have a persuasive claim that their services/functions are essential make a request to the applicable State agency for that determination.
For businesses operating in New Hampshire, the request should be submitted to essential@NHeconomy.com.
For your reference, the following is a link to the COVID-19 related emergency orders issued by the Governor of the State of New Hampshire: https://www.governor.nh.gov/news-media/emergency-orders/