The survival of our businesses as we are facing a grave financial hardship. Most massage therapists are self employed so we owe taxes delaying stimulus checks and unemployment that is being offered to us during this situation. It could take months to receive any income outside of our occupation putting us at risk of financial devastation that we won't be able to recover from.

Tattoo artists, body piercers, and shop owners are suffering due to these shutdowns. While some have financial help due to the COVID-19 relief bill, it’s still not enough to keep these businesses running and plenty are already going out of business due to these shutdowns. Families are in deep financial hardship, and $1200 is not enough for these shop owners to keep their business going as well as for their homes to be paid. Small business loans are available; however with the increase in these loans many are not getting the help they need, and paying back those loans will only make it worse for these businesses to thrive.

So that we can get the economy started again and so that hundreds of thousands of licenced professionals can get back to work and off unemployment. And to help with the emotional well being of individuals effected by this quarantine.

Our jobs are essential to our families and our clients with certain skin related conditions that which can be painful! It’s essential to keep small businesses going!

THE SURVIVAL OF INDEPENDENT STYLIST IS AT RISK. WE ARE FACING A GRAVE HARDSHIP. AND THERE HAS BEEN NO SBA. LOANS TO THE BARBER AND BEAUTY SMALL BUSINESS UNDER THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION AS OF YET. HAIRCUTS ARE ESSENTIAL YOUR APPEARANCE MAKES A DIFFERENCE TO EVERYONE INCLUDING YOUR SIGNIFICANT OTHER

Why is this important? During this Pandemic and quarantine, outdoor activities (walking, hiking, exercising, yard work) have still been acceptable while maintaining social distancing. Most parks and neighborhoods have been over flowing with the public on nice days trying to get outside. Camping with immediate family members poses less threat of infection than going to any public park at this time. Seasonal campsite owners pay a yearly “mortgage” fee on said property and typically only reside with immediate family members at their sites. These campgrounds are more often than not private and do not have sites to rent to the general public (if they do those rental sites could continue to be closed temporarily) The sites are situated MUCH more than 6ft away from one another and pose little risk of infection to anyone outside of the household as long as proper social distancing is followed. Please consider reopening private campgrounds by May 15th to assist in the health and well being of michiganders,and Ohioans

Small businesses are the backbone of the economy, groomers included. We believe that providing grooming services is essential to the health and well being of our companion animals. Without proper and routine grooming care and hygiene which includes everything from bathing to nail clipping, gland expression, ear cleaning and more pets can be at risk for a number of negative health impacts including skin infections and coat issues, injuries from overgrown nails, impacted anal glands, and ear infections, just to name a few. Many pet parents are not capable and even fewer properly equipped to groom their pets at home. Grooming services, from storefronts to mobile services, are not at all equivalent to human hair salons . We are more than capable of meeting and exceeding existing safety measures to ensure the public health and stop the spread of Covid 19 while also providing needed services and keeping our small businesses alive. Please allow us to do so!

We're all self employed and NYS unemployment hasn't come through to help, nor has the US government.

I would like the governor to take into consideration that barbers are highly skilled licensed professionals, who have taken courses on contamination of infectious diseases. We are more than capable with guidelines and restrictions put in place, of creating a safe environment while providing our much needed services to our community. Before I outline the system that I would like for you to consider , I would like to talk about why it is so important for us to be open during these dark times.. Mental health is so important at this time and should not be taken lightly. it is very easy in this time of heartache and despair, for a person to fall into a deep depression. there is a saying "when you look good, you feel good and when you feel good , good things happen".. In my 24 years of serving my community as a barber I couldn't agree with that statement more than I do now. Governor, as I'm sure you know, a barber is not just someone that cuts your hair. We are more of a therapist to our clients. Our clients tell us their problems in life and in return we listen and give them advise on how to overcome those problems.. in most cases, they confide in us more than they would their spouse or close family member. what I'm trying to say is, that we as barbers are not only here to make people look good but more importantly we make people feel good about themselves even at a time in their lives when they may think there is nothing to feel good about. We as a whole, would be hard pressed to think of a time when professional barbers were more needed to provide that mental health aspect that we bring to our beloved communities around nyc, than now.. mr governor, the following is an outline of a simple plan that I would like for you to take into consideration, on how to create a safe environment while conducting business in barbershops : 1) the barbershop would run on a strict appointments only schedule to minimize a gathering. . 2) all staff must be wearing a mask and gloves at all times. 3) no client will be allowed to enter without a mask and gloves. 4) as the client enters the shop they will imediately go to the shampoo sink with their barber, they will both remove their gloves and proceed to wash their hands. 5) the barber and client will then put on a new pair of gloves provided by the barbershop and proceed to the barber chair. 6) the client will have to wear the mask and gloves as does the barber, throughout the entire haircut. 7) the trimming of beards and facial hair will not be permitted. 8) the next client will not be waiting in the barbershop for his haircut. He will be in his vehicle or waiting outside for his barber to call him in after the last client has left. It would be a 1 in 1 out system.. This is is a very safe and easy system to run. Mr. Governor, People rely on us to feel good about themselves, especially in a time like this. I have great respect for you and I'm confident that you will understand the importance of the mental health of our communities during this crisis. Thank you

Let us add, there is a severe shortage on sanitizer, Quats (Barbicide), gloves, wipes, and clipper disinfectant State to State. If the sole purpose of the California State Board of Barbering and Cosmetology is to uphold us to strict rules, regulations, and sanitization practices, thus ensuring we are providing a safe and clean environment for our clients without spreading any infectious diseases, please justify your logic in shutting down the only resource holding us accountable during a pandemic! A first in our lifetime. They offices should remain open, even if our Salons are closed. At the least, strategizing on how to ensure our safe return to our salons. Not being an accessible resource for us during this extremely difficult and uncertain time is proving to be very unhelpful and problematic as many of salon professionals are forced to come up with their own ideas as to what they think they will need to go back to work without any hard evidence other than a news source. We expect nothing less than a collaborative effort between the CDC, the State Board of Barbering and Cosmetology of Consumer Affairs, and the Health Department to establish clear and concise safety measures, cleaning and sanitization guidelines if they differ from the ones we are already implementing. Thus ensuring a safe return for us, our clients, our COMMUNITY, and to avoid any future risk of infection. Anxious to return to work safely, Alicia Orabella Orabella Hair Studio Oakland Ca Janice Lewis Salon Non Fiction Sola Salons Walnut Creek Ca Einstein Parades Gents Barber Shop San Francisco Ca Debbie Hollingshead Salon Professional Bakersfield Ca

Many people are out of work and need to get back to work in order to pay their bills and support their families!!!

To get people back to work