Columbia Mayor issues ‘State of Emergency’ for schools in city limits

Mayor Benjamin announced Wednesday that the State of Emergency mask mandate will cover 40 schools

Columbia, SC (WOLO)—  The Mayor of Columbia has declared a state of emergency — and he’s primarily focused on masks in schools.

This as case numbers of COVID and the more contagious delta variant continues to rise and vaccinations remain low. Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin says it’s time to make masking up mandatory….again.

The mayor says this is one fight he is will to take to protect children in the city, and the educators who teach them as they get ready to return to the classroom in 2 weeks.

“We’re watching some amazingly difficult trends that leaves each and everyone of us deeply disturbed…” The rise of the delta has not only overpowered our health system with a more contagious version of COVID, but we have watched this rage 10 fold just in the past month.”

The rise in case numbers, so troubling Mayor Benjamin says he is leaving no options off the table if it can protect those who often can not protect themselves. This includes children in the state of South Carolina who under the age of 12 are not able to get vaccinated.

In an effort to try to slow the spread once students return to school, Mayor Benjamin announced a State of Emergency mandatory mask mandate. It will cover 40 elementary and middle schools in Richland School District One and Two, public or private as well as daycare centers.

The Mayor says that he has spoken with various Mayors, elected and appointed officials, South Carolina’s Attorney General, as well as parents concerning the issue.  He says he is encouraged that regardless of political affiliation, their beliefs on vaccinations, or facial coverings, “protecting our children is something that we can all rally around.”

This new mandate will be managed by the Columbia Fire Marshall and could lead to a $100 dollar fine for those who fail to comply. While the Mayor says he has “legal authority to take this action” Not everyone agrees.

According to the South Carolina Department of Education who commented on requiring students to wear masks back on July 27th,  they say a new measure put in place by the General Assembly can not force schools to make students wear face covering. They released a statement saying in part,

“In S.C., the General Assembly adopted a budget measure that prevents school districts from requiring face coverings.
This means that while the use of face coverings may continue to be encouraged in accordance with public health recommendations, S.C. public schools will not be adopting the CDC’s recommendations for required mask use.”

Mayor Steve Benjamin says he is willing to fight this battle all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court if need be. City Council members will meet Thursday morning to ratify the measure.

Stay with ABC Columbia News as we bring you updates on this story on air and online.