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A new San Jose regulation requires people to wear face coverings in certain circumstances outside of their homes and cars, but residents probably won’t notice any major differences in their day-to-day lives.
The new city ordinance, which went into effect after receiving approval by the San Jose City Council Tuesday night, will almost entirely fall in line with the county order that was instituted about two weeks ago. It marks a much lighter approach than what was initially proposed by councilmembers Sergio Jimenez and Chappie Jones, which called for requiring face coverings be worn in almost any setting where people commingle with others outside their household.
The only difference between the city and county orders is that the San Jose ordinance requires that residents wear face coverings while waiting in line for a business, according to San Jose City Attorney Richard Doyle.
Where are you required to wear a mask?
- Inside of any business — indoors or outdoors — including grocery stores, convenience stores, supermarkets, laundromats and restaurants.
- Waiting in line to enter at any business or retrieve items from businesses with curbside pickup
- Engaged in essential Infrastructure work
- Obtaining healthcare services, including hospitals, clinics, COVID-19 testing locations, dentists and pharmacies
- Waiting for or riding on public transportation
Do you have to wear a mask anytime you’re outside of your home?
You are not required to wear a mask if you’re driving alone in a car or if you are exercising outside, such as walking, hiking, bicycling, or running.
The city’s ordinance “recommends” that people engaged in outdoor recreation carry a face covering with them so that they can put them on “in circumstances where it is difficult to maintain compliance with social distancing requirements.”
Who is exempt from the order?
- Children under the age of six
- People who can show that a medical professional has advised them that wearing a face covering may pose a health risk to them
- People who have trouble breathing
Why is the city implementing this?
Various other cities within Santa Clara County, including Milpitas, and other Bay Area counties — San Francisco, San Mateo, Alameda, Contra Costa and Marin — instituted mandatory face covering orders more than a month ago to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Santa Clara County initially refrained from instituting an official order to spare police from having to enforce yet another law. But about two weeks ago when county officials updated the county public health order, they added the new face covering stipulation.
San Jose city officials contend that the city’s ordinance is crucial to stopping the spread of the coronavirus as shelter-in-place orders are lifted and will create uniformity between the city, county and the rest of the Bay Area.
“What is really imperative for me moving forward is the fact that we are finally reopening the economy, though perhaps not at a pace that many would prefer, including myself,” Mayor Sam Liccardo said at a city council meeting Tuesday night. “But I really do believe that we’ve got to give everyone every tool possible to ensure that we can manage and reduce the potential spread so that we can get back to work.”
Guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control recommend wearing cloth face coverings in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain in order to slow the spread of the coronavirus and to help stop people who don’t know they have the virus from transmitting it to others.
How will it be enforced?
San Jose Police Chief Eddie Garcia has repeatedly stated in recent public meetings and news conferences that his officers will give warnings rather than criminalizing non-business violations of the county shelter-in-place order through misdemeanor citations.
Garcia has voiced opposition for the ordinance, citing concerns that strict enforcement would disproportionately affect low-income residents, homeless people, and those with limited English fluency.
“It is simply not our role,” Garcia said at a city council meeting last month. “To have calls for service, and have officers respond for individuals not wearing masks, is again treating a public-health issue and making it a public-safety issue.”
If a person who is not wearing a mask refuses to leave a business where it is required, Garcia said officers would respond to those as a disturbance or trespassing call.
How does this relate to the protests?
In the wake of the ongoing daily protests in which hundreds of people are gathering in large crowds in downtown San Jose, some community members and city leaders have voiced concerns about how the demonstrations could potentially lead to an uptick in COVID-19 cases.
At the council meeting Tuesday night, a handful of residents spoke to the fact that officers who are monitoring the protests — and at times coming in very close contact and detaining people — were not wearing masks.
Resident Annie Koruga called the officers’ missing face coverings “a terrible policy” if the city wants to “stop COVID-19 as opposed to spreading it.”
“I find it completely ridiculous that you sit here and say you want to prevent it when you’re not doing so in your police department,” Koruga said.
Garcia, the city’s police chief, told the council that his officers wear masks when they’re going to be “in contact with people that they think have COVID-19 or that could have COVID-19 or are in close contact with the community.”
As for the policing of protests and late-night looting and vandalism in recent days, Garcia said it would be “nearly impossible” for officers to wear an N-95 mask on top of their tactical gear, helmet and potentially a gas mask. He did, however, add that the department is looking for ways to ensure that officers who are dealing with people that are detained start wearing a mask once they’re off the front line.
