Zach Brandon, president of the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce, told the State Journal it’s inappropriate to call for more business restrictions when very few local cases of COVID-19 have been tied recently to businesses. Officials should maintain a balance between public health, the economy and consumer confidence, he said.

“A failed economy has public health consequences,” he said. “To vilify and blame businesses, who are doing everything they can to stay open, to keep people employed, to support our economy … is problematic and a significant potential disruption to the equilibrium.”

Several school districts in Dane County, including Madison, Monona Grove, Middleton-Cross Plains and Sun Prairie, plan to start the school year entirely online, at least through the first quarter. Other districts, such as DeForest, Edgerton and Verona, will offer some degree of in-person instruction.

In mid-June, the local health department eased restrictions on restaurants, bars, gyms and retail establishments and allowed larger indoor and outdoors gatherings. Soon after, the county saw a surge in COVID-19 cases, with officials attributing some of the increase to gatherings in bars and households, especially among young adults.