Nassau County Executive-elect Bruce Blakeman won’t enforce Gov. Kathy Hochul’s new statewide mask-or-vaccine mandate for when he officially takes office on Jan. 1 – joining a growing list of county officials opposed to the new rule.
“Come January 1st, my administration will move Nassau forward with a common sense approach that acknowledges the facts, science and progress made by our residents while also protecting businesses and jobs from any further damage created by government mandates,” Blakeman, a Republican, said in a statement on Monday.
“Nassau County is not in crisis, and should not be painted with the same broad brush as the rest of the state. Ninety-seven percent of adults in Nassau County have received at least their first dose of the vaccine and Nassau hospitals have adequate capacity to handle existing demand.”
A spokesperson for outgoing Democratic County Executive Laura Curran said the county will “continue responding to complaints” until she’s out of office on Dec. 31.
Hochul’s new edict – which took effect today – requires all workers and customers to wear masks in public indoor spaces if they are not mandated to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination.
The governor said it’s up to local governments to enforce the rule and offending businesses could face civil and criminal penalties, plus a max $1,000 fine per violation.
Hochul has said the measure is necessary as virus cases have risen upstate and hospitals are becoming overwhelmed.
“Some county executives have asked us to do this. So they have what I would call air cover something there. I’ve had calls from even in some of the more rural areas where they’re grateful that we did this so they can explain it,” said Hochul Monday during a Manhattan press conference.
“We have left this to the counties to enforce,” she said, adding: “We hope that counties will enforce it.”
But since the rule was announced Friday, nearly a dozen county authorities have said they either can’t or won’t enforce the new mandate.
“Dutchess County has used considerable resources navigating this pandemic to help keep our residents safe and informed. From a practical perspective, the State’s newest mandate is unenforceable and will become confrontational – and they know it,” tweeted Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro (R) on Sunday.
“As we educate & inform residents to take the necessary mitigation steps to protect themselves & those they love, we will not escalate tension or conflict or further burden our local small biz by allocating resources we do not have to this impractical & unenforceable measure,” he continued.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio meanwhile has said he will continue to educate New Yorkers on the new rule, but the city is also focused on their own vaccine mandate coming up on Dec. 27 requiring all private employees to show proof of vaccination to work in offices spaces.
Starting this fall, city employees have also been required to get inoculated in order to return to work.