Whitefish may keep mask requirements under Gianforte
Citing concerns that Montana's new governor might rescind a statewide mask mandate, the Whitefish City Council is considering whether to extend face-covering requirements within city limits to keep COVID-19 cases under control until vaccines become widely available.
The council is scheduled to consider the proposed emergency ordinance Monday evening. The measure would keep in place many of the mask requirements ordered by Gov. Steve Bullock, meaning people 5 and older would still need to wear face coverings in Whitefish bars, restaurants, shops and other indoor spaces that are open to the public, and at public gatherings where 6-foot social distancing isn't maintained.
Individual violations of the mask requirement would be treated as a municipal infraction or as a public nuisance, which the city could enforce through civil legal actions, such as seeking an injunction or a restraining order. The proposed ordinance says businesses that flout the requirements could have their licenses revoked or get reported to the state Department of Revenue.
The ordinance would automatically expire after 90 days, though the council could choose to repeal it sooner.
The Flathead City-County Health Department had recorded 8,831 cases of COVID-19 as of Wednesday. Sixteen infected people were being treated at local hospitals, and 56 people in the county have died of the disease.
The proposed ordinance says "the rapid and significant spread of COVID-19 in our community is placing unprecedented pressure upon the health-care system, public health staff, city and county resources, and schools."
It also notes "incoming Gov. Greg Gianforte has indicated that he may lift Gov. Bullock's directives requiring that face coverings be worn after he is sworn into office," and "the overwhelming consensus of current medical and scientific evidence indicates that wearing face coverings reduces the transmissibility of COVID-19 by reducing transmission of infected droplets in both laboratory and clinical contexts."
Gianforte, a Republican who left Congress to start his term as governor this week, has generally rejected mask mandates, though he has pledged to set an example by wearing face coverings himself and calls it a matter of "personal responsibility."
During a recent news conference, Gianforte said he would announce new COVID-19 rules this week and hinted they would be looser than Bullock's restrictions.
"I’ve always said that the decisions we make on Jan. 4 and beyond need to be based on the facts on the ground, at that point," he said. "I would point out that we’ve seen a precipitous drop in the rate of, the number of new infections per day. That’s encouraging to me."
Attempts to enforce COVID-19 restrictions in Montana have produced mixed results. The state Department of Public Health and Human Services sued five Flathead County businesses accused of flouting Bullock's mask directive; a judge declined to grant a preliminary injunction and the businesses are now countersuing. In Gallatin County, however, local officials recently won a judgment against a bar that had repeatedly stayed open past a county-imposed curfew.
The Whitefish City Council tightened restrictions on businesses for the Halloween weekend to prevent large crowds from forming downtown, but council members have been reluctant to impose longer-lasting restrictions. Some have cited the potential effect of driving bar and restaurant patrons to Kalispell or Columbia Falls, where the same rules might not be in effect.
The council meeting will begin at 7:10 p.m. Monday and be held remotely via Webex video conferencing. Instructions for tuning in and participating can be found on the city's website.
Reporter Chad Sokol can be reached at 758-4434 or csokol@dailyinterlake.com