Traveling across the state — or just across the Valley? Find out if your destination requires face coverings in public.
Arizona mayors are free to make wearing face masks mandatory to slow the spread of coronavirus, Gov. Doug Ducey said Wednesday, a turnabout amid pressure as the state became a national virus hotspot.
The Republican governor, who entered his weekly virus news conference for the first time wearing a face mask but took it off to speak, said allowing cities to decide would work better than a statewide mandate.
Mayors in Phoenix, Tucson and Flagstaff said they would move quickly to require masks. Mesa Mayor John Giles tweeted that he will issue a proclamation mandating masks in the city. Other local officials have since announced plans to implement face covering mandates.
Here’s a list of municipalities who have responded to Ducey’s announcement:
- Avondale: Masks are required in businesses with large capacities (retail stores, grocery stores, gyms, etc.) beginning June 21.
- Casa Grande: Residents are now required to wear masks when in public buildings and private businesses.
- Chandler: Masks are required for people over the age of 6 in public spaces where social distancing is not “practical.”
- Flagstaff: Mayor Coral Evans updated her initial emergency proclamation to require that masks be worn in public, starting Saturday at 8 p.m.
- Gilbert: The Town Council voted to require masks in public, starting Friday at 5 p.m.
- Glendale: The City Council plans to vote on a mandatory mask mandate during their Friday meeting.
- Mesa: Mayor John Giles announced plans to issue a proclamation requiring masks to be worn in the city.
- Phoenix: The City Council voted Friday to implement a mask measure, going into effect Saturday at 6 a.m.
- San Luis: Mayor Gerardo Sanchez and Vice Mayor Maria Cecilia Cruz signed an emergency order Wednesday night, requiring face coverings be worn in public.
- Scottsdale: Masks are required in public beginning June 19.
- Tempe: Officials said masks will be required while in public beginning Thursday.
- Tucson: Mayor Regina Romero issued an emergency proclamation requiring masks beginning Saturday at 6 a.m.
- Tolleson: Mayor Anna Tovar issued an emergency declaration requiring masks be worn in public starting 8 a.m. Saturday.
Arizona had the most daily new cases in the nation per capita for a seven-day average through Monday and the positive rate of people tested for the virus also topped all other states at nearly 16%. In comparison, New York, once the center of the U.S. outbreak, had a seven-day average positive rate of slightly more than 1%.
A month ago Arizona’s rolling average for a week was 3.76 per 100,000 compared with the most recent average of 17.98 per 100,000 people, and the positive testing rate was just 6.5%.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Camaron Stevenson Camaron is the Founding Editor and Chief Political Correspondent for The Copper Courier, and has worked as a journalist in Phoenix for over a decade. He also teaches multimedia journalism at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.
