A special meeting of the Caddo Commission has been set for Wed. July 8 at 12:30 p.m.
The purpose of the meeting is to put on the Thurs, July 9 commission agenda an ordinance requiring masks in businesses and establishments.
It is expected that the ordinances will be passed at the special meeting and passed at the regular meeting on a split vote.
The ordinance requires that facial covering shall be worn when visiting or working in any business or establishment.
As proposed the ordinance goes into effect upon passage.
The ordinance also requires signage on facial coverings to be posted by each business.
The ordinance sets fines of not more than $250 for the first violation and not more than $500 for each additional violation.
The proposed ordinance has serious flaws that should be addressed at the Wed. work session.
The first is the immediate effect upon passage.
This is probably unconstitutional if not totally impractical. For example Shreveport Mayor Perkin's executive order requiring masks issued Mon. July 6 had an effective date of Wed. July 8 at 5 p.m.
Another problem is the requirements for signage at businesses.
The ordinance sets forth lengthy requirements but does NOT provide an approved sample. Shreveport Mayor Adrian Perkin's facebook page has a suggested signage. The Commission should adopt the same and attach an approved copy to the ordinance.
The ordinance requires businesses to have masks available to individuals who do not have one. No provisions are made to allow businesses the needed time to acquire the masks nor any consideration for the additional business cost.
A business must also institute a procedure to verify "compliance upon customer entry into the establishment." Again, not time is provided to establish a procedure or any consideration of additional costs to the business.
Public safety concerns should be balanced with practicality. Hopefully this ordinance will be seriously considered and not rubber-stamped by the majority of commissioners who support this measure.
