The Athens-Clarke County Commission is likely to revive a partial mask mandate as thousands of University of Georgia students prepare to return to campus amid a surge in new coronavirus cases.
The commission is set to vote Tuesday on a measure that would require mask usage indoors, though it would allow private businesses to opt out. Athens would become the third major city in Georgia to reinstitute the requirements, after Atlanta and Savannah adopted similar orders last week.
It sets up a town-and-gown clash over COVID-19 in the hometown of Gov. Brian Kemp. While Athens-Clarke is among the state’s most aggressive counties in adopting coronavirus restrictions, the university and state agencies have not imposed face covering requirements.
And Kemp, a first-term Republican, has consistently opposed statewide coronavirus restrictions to contain the recent increase in cases of COVID-19, fueled by the infectious delta variant of the disease and a sputtering vaccination effort.
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
“We’re not going back and doing any mask mandates. I trust the local school systems with local control,” Kemp said last week. “Our school superintendents have been dealing with this issue for 15 months. They dealt with it all last year. They know how to deal with COVID in their classrooms. I trust them to do that.”
Unlike last year, when Kemp went to court to block local mask rules, he no longer has the same authority to override local rules. Earlier this summer, he let lapse a public health emergency declaration that gave him powers to combat the pandemic.
A growing number of local governments have stepped in. Beyond Atlanta and Savannah, school districts accounting for roughly one-third of Georgia’s public school students have adopted rules requiring masks for students, teachers and staffers returning to classrooms.
Athens-Clarke Mayor Kelly Girtz said the mask order in his county would lift if the uptick in cases subsides. He also said he will recommend a partnership with the state Department of Public Health to offer a cash incentive program for vaccinations as UGA classes resume on Aug. 18.
About 40% of the state’s residents are fully vaccinated, a rate that lags behind most of the nation. But the vaccination rate is worse among younger people. State records show about one-third of Georgians ages 15 to 24 have received a jab of the vaccine.
About the Author
