The Governor has issued an Executive Order that permits commandeering of hotels and other places of temporary residence for the state’s response to COVID-19.
By Winston P. Stromberg, Lucas I. Quass and Cody M. Kermanian
As part of California’s continued response to the COVID-19 outbreak, on March 12, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom issued Executive Order N-25-20, which, among other measures, permits the state to commandeer real property, such as hotels, for the treatment and quarantine of COVID-19 patients. Specifically, the Executive Order provides as follows:
The California Health and Human Services Agency and the Office of Emergency Services shall identify, and shall otherwise be prepared to make available — including through the execution of any necessary contracts or other agreements and, if necessary, through the exercise of the State’s power to commandeer property — hotels and other places of temporary residence, medical facilities, and other facilities that are suitable for use as places of temporary residence or medical facilities as necessary for quarantining, isolating, or treating individuals who test positive for COVID-19 or who have had a high-risk exposure and are thought to be in the incubation period.
On 11 March 2020, the European Commission published its 
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