Mayor Brian Treece held a press briefing on Thursday to further clarify his proposed ordinance to mandate masks in Columbia.
Treece said the ordinance is a response to the rapid increase in COVID-19 case numbers in the area since re-opening measures began on May 4th.
“Overnight before 8 a.m. this morning, 14 additional positive cases were added and reported from the state lab, putting us on track to exceed 100 cases within just 9 days,” Treece said.
Treece said this was in stark contrast to the beginning on the pandemic, when it took 55 days to reach 100 cases after the first case was identified in Boone County.
The proposed ordinance would require people above the age of ten to wear face masks in public, and defines a face mask as “a covering made of cloth fabric, or other soft or permeable material that covers the nose, mouth, and surrounding areas of the lower face.”
If the ordinance is passed, individuals who don’t wear a mask, could be fined up to $15.00, and businesses, government, or non-profit entities would be subject to fines of $100 per violation.
There would be a few exceptions, such as when someone is in their own home or vehicle with members of their households, exercising outdoors, eating or drinking in a dining area of a restaurant, or if they have a medical condition that prevents wearing a face mask.
Treece said he expects Columbia/Boone County Public Health And Human Services and the Columbia Police Department to enforce the ordinance realistically - not by watching to make sure every single person has a mask all the time, but rather by seeking to normalize widespread mask usage.
“What we wanna do, again, is set that community expectation, that community standard, and give all businesses the guidance they need that, ‘Hey, the science behind this works and that if we all do it together as a community standard, it will make a difference in those trends,’” Treece said.
Treece noted, during the briefing, that the health department has just received a shipment of masks, which can be distributed to people experiencing homelessness or who otherwise may not know about the ordinance
“As I said on February 25th, this novel coronavirus is really going to expose the inequities in our system. I do think our health department has done a great job with its outreach to that population with extra hand washing stations, education, one-on-one,” Treece said.
The Columbia City Council is expected to vote on the emergency ordinance on Monday, and if the measure is passed with at least a 6-1 vote, the ordinance will take effect immediately.