The city of Boise requires masks inside its buildings. A state bill would end that
If the Idaho Legislature passes a bill that would prohibit local governments from imposing mask mandates, most Idahoans would likely not notice a change to their day-to-day routine.
One large exception to that is the city of Boise, which still requires residents to don face masks in city-owned buildings to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Boise officials say their ability to set such a requirement could go away entirely.
Republican Rep. Karey Hanks, of Anthony, introduced a bill that would prohibit local governments — including school boards, cities and counties — from requiring masks to access public facilities.
Boise previously had a citywide mask requirement, which Mayor Lauren McLean terminated in May 2021. But since September, the city only requires masks to be worn inside all city facilities and at certain large events that require permits from the city.
Kathy Griesmyer, the city’s director of governmental affairs, told the Idaho Statesman on Friday that the biggest risk from the bill is the possibility of more serious COVID-19 outbreaks among city employees.
“Barring public entities from enacting employer-based masking requirements jeopardizes our ability to provide services for our residents,” Griesmyer said by phone.
The city has met resistance to its requirements. In September, it allocated $300,000 for additional security at public-facing buildings where some residents refused to wear masks, particularly at libraries.
Even with a mask mandate in place, the city saw a sharp increase in positive COVID-19 cases among its staff during the omicron variant surge. From Dec. 30 to Jan. 10, the city had 49 positive cases of COVID-19, with the largest numbers coming from the fire, parks and airport departments.
COVID-19 cases, along with a difficulty in filling vacancies, led the city to temporarily reduce in-person services at the City Clerk’s Office and reduced hours at some library locations.
Hanks introduced a revised version of the bill on Monday, no longer including a penalty that would void local health orders for all governments that violate the order. The bill thus far has not received a hearing date.
Other cities in Idaho are also debating mask mandates. The city of Ketchum recently terminated its mandate last week, while Hailey voted this week to keep its in place.
Some Idaho school districts and universities still have mandates in place. The Boise School District has a mask requirement for students and staff. The Board of Trustees was scheduled to discuss any future mandates at its Monday meeting.
Some Idaho public universities, including Boise State and the University of Idaho’s Moscow campus, also have requirements for students, faculty and staff to wear masks in certain buildings. Those, too, would no longer be in effect if the bill became law.
This story was originally published February 14, 2022 at 4:09 PM.
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