Little Rock mayor issues mask mandate for public places despite Arkansas' ban
LITTLE ROCK (KATV) — Little Rock Mayor Frank Scott Jr. issued a mask mandate in public places in the city on Thursday.
The mayor said that Pulaski County continues to be among the counties reporting the most new COVID-19 cases and he must do something to slow the spread with the start of school less than two weeks away.
Mask-wearing is also strongly encouraged in other indoor places such as restaurants and grocery stores.
The new requirement takes effect Friday and is in place until Aug. 31.
The mayor also said that the yard waste collection has been temporarily halted due to staffing issues within the public works department. This pause is indefinite, and residents will be notified when the service will resume.
State lawmakers passed a ban on public mask mandates in April, but Little Rock City Attorney Tom Carpenter said he's not worried.
"The ban on public mask mandates is a statute that says something but it doesn’t say that it’s taking away police powers. It doesn’t say that it’s taking away property rights. It doesn’t say that it’s going to compensate for taking those powers away or those rights away, therefore I don’t think it’s enforceable," Carpenter said.
Carpenter said the city is in a unique situation as it's hospitals continue to be strained due to the increase of COVID-19 cases.
"We really don’t have an idea of when this is going to end, but what we do know is 90 percent of the unvaccinated, 90-something percent of those not wearing masks are the ones that are ending up in the hospital," Carpenter said.
Last week, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson declared a public health emergency amid a surge in COVID-19 cases and announced a special legislative session to amend Act 1002 that prevents public schools from requiring masks.
Hutchinson said the declaration will allow the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management to seek staffing assistance from health workers outside the state. It also eases the process for retired health workers to re-enter the workforce and for medical students to become licensed.
A previous emergency declaration expired on May 30 as cases declined and vaccinations increased. But vaccinations have since reached a plateau, leaving the state with one of the lowest vaccination rates in the nation. The low vaccination rate and the spread of the highly transmissible Delta variant have driven a surge in new cases and hospitalizations.
The 93rd General Assembly began a special session on Wednesday to debate amending ACT 1002.
