A recent post on the Wayne County website describes how the county will enforce Governor Hochul’s mask mandate. County Administrator Rick House says the county will forward all complaints regarding mask mandate non-compliance to the Sheriff’s office.
“Enforcement in this case is education. They would contact individual businesses to say that they got complaints and remind them of the mandate,” says House, according to the Finger Lakes Times.
House says most businesses are abiding by the mask mandate, but there are some that have posted signs saying masking is not required in their store.
“It is a governor’s directive,” he explains. “But there is no criminal law to enforce.”
The Sheriff’s office will provide masks to offending businesses if requested. The decision to enforce the mask mandate in Wayne County is somewhat of a reversal from the county’s previous stance, though there are benefits to enforcing the mandate, including eligibility for $1 million in state funding for the county to purchase KN95 masks.
Additionally, Wayne County is purchasing 25,000 home test kits for $474,000 from Ontario County, a decision that was approved by the Board of Supervisors on January 18.
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