Download This Version in Microsoft Word format
TO REQUIRE CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS IN THE STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA TO WEAR FACE COVERINGS IN PUBLIC TO PREVENT THE SPREAD OF COVID-19.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. (A) For the purposes of this section, "face covering" means a cloth, fabric, or other soft or permeable material, without holes, that covers a person's nose and mouth and remains in place without the use of the person's hands, including, but not limited to, handmade masks, bandanas, face shields, surgical masks, and "N95" respirators.
(B) Every person over five years of age who is working, living, visiting, or doing business in the State of South Carolina is required to wear a face covering if he is:
(1) inside a building open to the public;
(2) waiting to enter a building open to the public; or
(3) in an outdoor space where a group of ten or more is gathered, regardless of the ability to social distance.
(C) Nothing in this section requires the wearing of a face covering under the following circumstances:
(1) while eating or drinking at a restaurant or other public place;
(2) if wearing a face covering would cause or aggravate an existing health condition; or
(3) if communicating with the deaf or hard of hearing.
(D) A person required by this section to wear a face covering who does not comply with the requirements of subsection (B) is subject to:
(1) any penalties in effect in the local jurisdiction of the violation, so long as the penalty meets or exceed a civil fine of:
(a) twenty-five dollars for a first violation;
(b) fifty dollars for a second violation; and
(c) one hundred dollars for each subsequent violation; or
(2) in the absence of a locally enacted penalty or a locally enacted penalty that does not meet or exceed the penalties provided for in item (1), a civil fine of:
(a) twenty-five dollars for a first violation;
(b) fifty dollars for a second violation; and
(c) one hundred dollars for each subsequent violation.
SECTION 2. This joint resolution takes effect upon approval by the Governor and expires upon the issuance of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines that do not include the wearing of face coverings to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
This web page was last updated on January 12, 2021 at 2:59 PM