Earlier today (2/9/22) Governor Hochul lifted the mask mandate for indoor public spaces. Starting tomorrow, Thursday 2/10, masks are not required to be worn indoor areas other than public transit, schools, health care facilities and nursing homes.
Your library can still require patrons to wear masks if your safety plan/policy states so. Libraries can justify their mask policy using local data such as active positive case rates. It’s important that your safety plan be updated to include the details or benchmarks that are used. Additionally, since libraries are chartered under the Department of Education, it is not a stretch for libraries to mirror what their local school is doing. The mask mandate for schools (set to expire February 21) has been extended to the beginning of March for now.
NCLS recommends libraries to at least adopt the mask recommendations and guidelines from the CDC, if your library hasn’t already. Updated information can be found here: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/about-face-coverings.html.
