Beaufort County Council to consider mask requirement. Will it be consistent?
People who live, work or vacation in Beaufort County may soon be required to wear a mask in public.
Beaufort County Council has called a special meeting to discuss requiring people wear face masks “in certain places where individuals will not be able to social distance,” according to the meeting’s agenda.
The meeting, scheduled for 4 p.m. Wednesday, comes after Hilton Head and Beaufort passed ordinances requiring customers to wear masks inside most buildings. Bluffton leaders are planning to vote on a less stringent requirement on Tuesday. Port Royal will consider an ordinance on Wednesday.
The county’s ordinance would be for unincorporated parts of Beaufort County.
It’s unclear whether Beaufort County’s draft ordinance — which has not yet been publicly posted — will be in line with the requirements established by other area municipalities. If the draft ordinance differs in requirements or penalties for violators, it could cause confusion for people in areas like Bluffton, which has many pockets in unincorporated Beaufort County.
County spokesperson Liz Farrell said the county is in the process of drafting its ordinance and that leaders “want to get it as close as possible” to the ordinances approved by Hilton Head and Beaufort.
On Monday, just before the Town of Hilton Head approved its ordinance requiring face masks for customers in all commercial spaces, Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner stressed the importance of uniformity among municipalities’ different face mask requirements.
“I would strongly encourage the municipalities of Bluffton, Port Royal, Beaufort and the county of Beaufort to consider having an ordinance that is consistent throughout Beaufort County, which will remove a lot of confusion,” Tanner said.
If the county and area municipalities passed similar rules and requirements for face masks, it would send a “consistent message” to people who travel throughout Beaufort County and would make things “a whole lot easier” for officers to enforce, Tanner said.
Hilton Head’s ordinance changed dramatically over the weekend, requiring people to wear face coverings in all commercial places instead of just in pharmacies and grocery stores. The ordinance is similar to the one approved by the city of Beaufort later on Monday requiring people wear face masks while inside any buildings open to the public.
The penalties for violators are different.
Violators of the ordinance in Beaufort are subject to a civil fine. On Hilton Head, the violation is a misdemeanor.
Bluffton leaders are planning to vote at 2 p.m. Tuesday on an ordinance requiring all customers to wear masks when visiting grocery stores and pharmacies and requiring all restaurant, retail, salon, barber shop, grocery store and pharmacy employees to wear face coverings when interacting with the public.
Bluffton Mayor Lisa Sulka told The Island Packet on Monday that town leaders could make changes to the draft ordinance on Tuesday to more closely match Hilton Head and Beaufort.
“I want to see what council’s comments are about spreading the brush a little wider,” she said. “I’m not against amending anything to make everyone on the same page. We’re all in this together.”
Bluffton’s meeting on Tuesday and Beaufort County’s meeting on Wednesday will be streamed live.
