Vermont Senate OKs Allowing Mask Mandates, Asks for State of Emergency Amid Rise in Cases

Vermont Senate lawmakers passed a bill that would allow towns to adopt temporary mask mandates, the Associated Press reported.

This announcement from the state's Senate comes after Governor Phil Scott requested a General Assembly special session on the topic. Scott continues to ask residents to get vaccines and booster shots to protect the population of the state. However, he remained opposed to statewide mandates, with Newsweek previously reporting that he believes "confrontations over mandates, and the partisan politicization of these issues, ultimately delay the decisions we need these individuals to reach."

The Senate is also asking the governor to declare a state of emergency. The resolution passed by lawmakers urges Scott "to use all possible public health measures to reduce the number of COVID-19 cases and associated deaths and maximize vaccination rates among all eligible population groups." Currently, the governor is pushing back against this request.

Some municipalities are still asking for a statewide mandate. The mayor of Montpelier, Anne Watson, told local news station WCAX 3 that the proposed measure from Scott is "not necessarily going to cover a contiguous space and we know that people are always coming in and out of our respective towns and we know that it would be more effective if we could have the entire state be covered."

Despite having one of the highest rates of COVID-19 vaccination in the U.S., it is also a hotspot for infections. Vermont Department of Health recently reported 235 new cases. The CDC recently identified the state as an area of high transmission as well.

The House is expected to meet and consider a similar proposal soon.

For more reporting from the Associated Press, see below.

Scott has said that Vermonters must do their part to protect the elderly and that he will continue to encourage the use of masks indoors.

The Vermont League of Cities and Towns asked for the option of allowing municipalities to put in place masking requirements.

"We are in the midst of a pandemic and our transmission rate is rising and it affects ... different communities in different ways," said Senator Jeanette White of Windham County. "This bill is very, very narrowly designed to allow towns to address the pandemic as it affects their jurisdiction by requiring masks in public places."

Some senators who voted against the measure said it was heavy-handed and burdened towns that might not have the resources to enforce it.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its masking guidelines this fall to areas of substantial or high transmission.