LANSING – Michigan's Declaration of Emergency has been extended once again.

Friday morning, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed Executive Order 2020-165. The new order extends the Emergency and Disaster Declaration until September 4 at 11:59 PM.

In a statement, Whitmer says Michigan is in a crucial time in the fight against COVID-19, and we must do everything we can to protect ourselves, our loved ones and the brave men and women on the front lines of this crisis from a second wave. Whitmer says she signed the new Executive Order using independent sources of statutory authority to continue saving lives. She says she will continue to use every tool at her disposal to protect Michiganders from the spread of the virus.

Every region in Michigan has seen an uptick in new cases over the past several weeks, and daily case counts in late July exceeded 50 cases per million statewide. Michigan's statewide positivity rate has also increased, from a low of 2 percent in mid-June to 3.5 percent in late July. While cases in Michigan have increased since June, the numbers are below the national average, which is 9 percent in late July.