SLC Mayor Erin Mendenhall issues mask mandate for government buildings

Today I signed an executive order requiring the public and City employees —vaccinated or not — to wear masks in City-owned buildings and facilities. We look to the CDC and health experts to guide our decisions & this move is in keeping with that commitmenthttps://t.co/czWwlrb9pq

— Mayor Erin Mendenhall (@slcmayor) July 28, 2021

“As a City we’ve always looked to the CDC and our health experts to guide our actions against the spread of COVID-19, and today is no different,” said Mendenhall in a statement, referring to the spike in coronavirus cases in Utah. 

In order to care for COVID-19 patients, some Utah hospitals have postponed elective surgeries. 

“It’s clear that cases are rising across the nation and right here in Utah. This measure we are taking is an important step in protecting everyone working or visiting a City facility,” Mayor Mendenhall said.

Mendenhall’s order is effective July 28, 2021, until amended or rescinded. 

There are a handful of exemptions outlined in Mendenhall’s executive order.  

The exemptions are as follows: 

• While actively eating or drinking, provided that the individual remains in place while eating or drinking;
• While alone or only with other members of the same household in an office, room, cubicle, vehicle, or similar enclosure;
• When communicating as or with an individual who is deaf or hard of hearing if the speaker wears a face shield or uses alternative protection such as a plexiglass barrier;
• When engaging in work authorized by the City where wearing a face mask would create a risk to the individual, as determined by government safety guidelines; 
• When needed to confirm identity;
• While outdoors and maintaining a physical distance of at least six feet from any individual from a different household; and 
• Children younger than three years old.