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While Mayor Frank G. Jackson had mandated a face covering order, Cleveland City Council on Wednesday (July 15th) passed legislation requiring the wearing of face masks when in public around others, including in bars, restaurants and in vehicles for-hire, such as taxis or Uber rides.

The ordinance also orders bars and restaurants to establish seating arrangements that keep groups of patrons at safe distances from one another, thereby avoiding any possible contact with the Covid-19 virus. The safe-distancing seating arrangement, once it is set, will then dictate how many people may be allowed in the establishment. Any business or person violating the mask or safe-seating order is subject to civil penalties – first a warning, then a $25 fine for each violation. 
 
The ordinance also requires any business in the city -- in the event an employee is stricken by the virus – to immediately disinfect and sanitize the premises. Failure to do so would result initially with a warning, followed by a $1,000 fine for each violation.  If ignored, the business could face a $3,000 fine for each violation.
The local ordinance mirrors an order by the State of Ohio, though, unlike Cleveland, the state law imposes criminal fines, not civil fines. Gov. Mike Dewine recently mandated masks in counties that reached a Level 3 in terms of new infections, meaning high new cases and spreading. Cuyahoga County reached that and all residents and visitors in the whole county must wear masks. Ord. No. 556-20