Newsom Calls California’s Early Outdoor Dining Bans ‘Insane in Hindsight’

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has acknowledged that some of his administration’s early COVID-19 restrictions, including bans on outdoor dining, beach closures and delays in reopening some schools, were mistakes. Newsom described the outdoor dining bans as “insane in hindsight.”

The comments have circulated widely on social media, including a post citing Newsom as saying California’s beach closures and school reopening delays “went too far.”

During the early months of the pandemic, California restricted or shut down outdoor dining even as public health evidence increasingly showed the coronavirus spread more easily indoors than outdoors. Many restaurants that had invested in heaters, tents and open-air seating still faced closures or strict capacity limits.

Newsom has also said that large school districts, including those in Los Angeles, “refused to open” during the pandemic. As governor, Newsom had authority to compel districts to reopen but did not exercise it.

A Different Approach in Florida

Florida, under Gov. Ron DeSantis, took a different course during the same period, moving earlier to reopen schools and allowing businesses to keep operating with fewer broad restrictions. Florida’s approach focused on protecting elderly and medically vulnerable residents while allowing younger, healthier residents to resume more normal activity.

Some analyses of excess deaths and age-adjusted COVID mortality during the pandemic years have found higher rates in several states with stricter, longer-lasting restrictions, including California, compared with Florida. New York, under then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, recorded heavy losses early in the pandemic, a toll compounded by a policy that returned COVID-positive patients to nursing homes.

California’s extended school closures have been linked by critics to learning loss and mental-health effects among children that are still being measured years later. Small businesses that could not survive extended periods of reduced or eliminated revenue during the restrictions closed permanently.

Renewed Criticism

Newsom’s admission has drawn sharp criticism from opponents. One social media post responding to his remarks noted that California is still pursuing legal action against Calvary Chapel San Jose over pandemic-era restrictions, and vowed that a future “COVID Accountability Commission” would hold officials responsible for the decisions made during the pandemic.

Newsom’s comments mark a rare acknowledgment from a sitting governor that specific pandemic-era policies went further than warranted, though he has not issued a broader accounting of the full range of restrictions imposed during that period, including mask mandates and extended lockdowns.