If you're like I was when I was a kid, you used to get so mad when the president would come on the TV and ruined all of your shows. We were kids, say what you need to say and let me keep watching Full House. Now I am still very much a kid, but I just tend to pay attention a little bit longer.

Today ends the most recent set of mandates for Louisiana set by Governor Edwards. The new proclamations go into effect today and will last for another 28 days. The Governor reported more than 30% of the state is protected due to the the COVID-19 vaccine and that the the state has dropped under a 5% positivity rate and stayed since February.

With these better trending numbers across the state, Edwards decided to lessen restrictions. First and foremost, he has lifted the mask mandate across Louisiana. Edwards commented that the state mandate is lifted, but local leaders and businesses have the right to place their own mandates in place, if desired. The only mandate still in place for masks is on a federal level. Schools, public transit, government buildings, healthcare facilities, and state agencies are still required to have masks.

We are in festival season, so that poses the question of what the capacities will be for these events.

  • Outdoor Events: No capacity limit on crowds, whether they have a mask or not
  • Indoor Events: 100% Capacity as long as attendees are wearing masks or 75% no masks and six feet social distancing
  • Indoor Sports: 75% capacity with social distancing or 100% masks
  • Outdoor Sports: No capacity limit, masks or not
  • Live Music Venues: Ten feet of space from performers and attendees, all attendees must remain seated
  • Food: Buffets can resume normal operations, all indoor dining can resume normal operations
  • Bars: Still seating only to consume, but patrons can now go to the bar for a drink

More and more light is beginning to shine at the end of the tunnel after the two weeks we thought we would be going through a year ago. For more detailed information on the fine print of the proclamation, you can go to the Louisiana Governor website.

LOOK: Here are the 50 best beach towns in America

Every beach town has its share of pluses and minuses, which got us thinking about what makes a beach town the best one to live in. To find out, Stacker consulted data from WalletHub, released June 17, 2020, that compares U.S. beach towns. Ratings are based on six categories: affordability, weather, safety, economy, education and health, and quality of life. The cities ranged in population from 10,000 to 150,000, but they had to have at least one local beach listed on TripAdvisor. Read the full methodology here. From those rankings, we selected the top 50. Readers who live in California and Florida will be unsurprised to learn that many of towns featured here are in one of those two states.

Keep reading to see if your favorite beach town made the cut.

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