As COVID-19 rages, some SC lawmakers want to take steps against any federal mask rule
Some South Carolina lawmakers are taking a stand against any future federal mask mandate, filing a bill that would stop state government officials from enforcing it.
S.C. Reps. Mike Burns, Bill Chumley and Stewart Jones, all Republicans, filed a bill last week that would stop any employee, department or official of the state from enforcing a nationwide mask requirement issued by the president, Congress or any federal agency.
Under the bill, any state employee who attempts to enforce a federal mask requirement would be fined $2,000.
The bill does not stop local officials from enforcing mask requirements, Chumley said.
“We just feel like its a matter of personal preference, and people who want to wear a mask should be able to without penalty,” Chumley said. “By the same token, people who don’t want to should be able to opt out without penalty.”
Chumley, who called mask requirements “a personal freedom issue,” said he has heard from some doctors who say that masks do work and others who refute that.
“Liberty and freedom sometimes require making choices,” Chumley said. “I think a person should do their own research and make their own choice.”
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control has firmly stood behind the usage of masks, issuing several reports showing that masks do work when it comes to curbing the spread of the coronavirus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also recommends community use of masks to slow the virus’ spread.
The bill’s filing comes on the heels of conversations of whether or not President-elect Joe Biden will issue a nationwide mask mandate. While Biden has voiced support for the initiative in the past, his most recent COVID-19 plan instead focused on working with state and local leaders to enact their own mandates.
S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster has repeatedly vowed not to enact a statewide mask mandate, but the governor has required masks within entertainment venues and restaurants. A patchwork of cities across the state enacted their own mask requirements.
While the majority of lawmakers practice mask wearing, there has been disagreement within the State House over whether a mask mandate is necessary.
Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey has supported requiring South Carolinians interacting with one another to wear masks in public, but other Republicans have stood against it. Wednesday afternoon, Senate Democrats called on McMaster to issue a 60-day mask mandate in response to a streak of record breaking case numbers that reached more than 3,000 cases on some days.
Some lawmakers, including one of the bill’s sponsors, Jones, attended an anti-mask protest outside of the State House earlier this year, and others have failed to wear one during legislative meetings.
