McMaster refuses to create SC mask policy, so local governments acted on their own
Though coronavirus cases are surging in states that don’t require residents and visitors to wear masks in public, S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster has been steadfast in his refusal to create a statewide mask mandate.
He has repeatedly told Palmetto State residents that they should put on a mask, but he has said it would be “impossible” or “problematic” to try to enforce the measure, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a top S.C. health official have said could help slow the spread of COVID-19.
On Friday and again Tuesday, McMaster and his office offered the following assessment: A statewide mask rule would give a “false sense of security,” or “safety,” to South Carolinians.
McMaster’s position comes as South Carolina has seen a massive uptick in coronavirus cases, with state health officials reporting a record 1,741 cases Tuesday, more than 500 new daily cases since June 10 and more than 1,000 cases in ten of the last 12 days.
Some local government leaders say McMaster’s resistance to imposing a statewide mask rule has left it up to them to take their own steps to slow the spread of the potentially deadly COVID-19 virus. As of Monday, at least fifteen local governments in South Carolina have voted to require their residents to wear masks, beginning a patchwork quilt of mask rules across the state.
“We’re basically on our own to try to figure out what we can do to avoid the spread,” said Beaufort Mayor Billy Keyserling, whose city council on Monday adopted its own mask rule requiring anyone in a public building to wear one.
But state health officials say efforts on the part of local officials aren’t enough to stop South Carolina’s recent coronavirus boom. South Carolina’s state epidemiologist Linda Bell said last week a statewide mask ban would be more effective.
As of Tuesday, all but 14 states have issued some sort of statewide requirement that would order either their residents, employees or customers to wear masks. So have the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam, according to the National Governor’s Association.
Fourteen states require all their residents to wear masks while in public. That includes North Carolina, who’s governor issued the order last week. It went into effect June 26.
Can a statewide mandate be enforced?
The thrust of McMaster’s argument against a statewide order is his assertion that such a rule could not be enforced statewide. No authority exists to enforce such a mandate across the state, he said, adding it would be “impractical.”
McMaster’s office would not explain, when asked by The State, how a statewide mask requirement is different than other statewide rules the governor has enacted in the state of emergency.
But during a news conference Friday, the governor compared a statewide mask order to when he closed down beaches and public waterway accesses earlier this year.
“We barely had enough people to do that, and everyone activated from the Department of Natural Resources and SLED and the local authorities and sheriffs and everyone involved,” McMaster said. “That was a herculean task, and we just barely accomplished it because there was an enforcement mechanism there and it was a criminal penalty.”
A statewide mandate could also create a “false sense of safety,” McMaster’s spokesman, Brian Symmes, added Tuesday, declining a request to elaborate on the governor’s thinking.
On Friday, McMaster had tied the false sense of security back to enforcement.
“For me to tell you that we are going to require people to wear a mask and then not be able to enforce it gives a false sense of security to those who believe that everybody is following the rules,” McMaster said.
Many local municipalities have chosen to rely on code enforcement officers instead of charging police with enforcing local mandates, and several have only implemented fines for those who don’t follow them.
Yet, even without a staunch enforcement mechanism, some areas have seen an increase in people wearing masks. In Columbia, where a mask requirement went into affect Friday, reporters for The State noticed a marked difference in the number of people wearing masks.
Greenville Mayor Knox White said he’s seen the same in his area, which has led the state for the most confirmed coronavirus cases for the last few weeks. He added that the city’s mask requirement has also pushed more residents across Greenville County into wearing masks.
“All of this exists on voluntary compliance,” the Greenville Republican said. “But I do think having a law, you’re going to have a much higher compliance.”
Local leaders take charge
Some mayors say their cities were pushed to create a mask requirement due to the governor’s reactions to the coronavirus.
Greenville Mayor White said his city decided to take action before the governor took a hard stance on a statewide mask mandate. He said the city’s leaders made their decision by taking cues from McMaster’s repeated statements urging residents to wear masks.
“We felt that it was consistent with his earlier orders,” White said. “He was actively urging everyone to wear masks.”
On the other hand, Beaufort Mayor Keyserling said he and other mayors in Beaufort County felt the need to take action after a lack of leadership from state and national leaders.
“The short version is because nationally the leadership and the state leadership is not listening to the medical community,” Keyserling said. “If you listen to the CDC or you look at Dr. (Anthony) Fauci or you look to Dr. Bell in DHEC, they are all describing that we’re spiking and we need to do something about it.”
Both Bell and Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, have repeatedly expressed the need to curb the spread of the coronavirus by practicing social distancing and wearing masks.
Without a statewide ordinance, the blanket of protection that the group of Beaufort County mayors tried to create has some holes it in. There are parts of the county that aren’t touched by any mask ordinances.
This has created confusion in some residents who commute to and from areas that have different mask requirements, as well as businesses that may straddle municipal lines, Keyserling said, adding, “Having different types of rules is unfair to them.”
Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg, a Democrat whose city has seen some of the highest daily case counts of any county for the last week, agreed.
“Frankly, I think it would be easier for local jurisdictions if there was a statewide action, but given the governor’s inclination, it certainly was appropriate for us as a local government (to require masks),” Tecklenburg said.
“It’s one of the few tools in the tool box we’ve got,” he added.
Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin pointed out that Columbia frequently outpaced the state when it came to coronavirus responses. For example, Columbia issued a “stay at home” order before the state did and also instituted a curfew, he said.
“America is struggling with COVID-19 because we haven’t had a complete national approach focused on testing, tracing and in support of isolation to make sure we would eventually flatten the curve,” the Columbia Democrat said. “As a result, a number of governors have also followed the lead of the president.”
“It has significantly increased the response of local governments to act,” he added.
But, Benjamin said, relying on local governments is not the most preferable way to tackle COVID-19.
“I would rather it be a statewide approach.”
This story was originally published July 1, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
