Grand Forks City Council passes mask mandate

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – The Grand Forks City Council passes a mask mandate in a seven to nothing vote.

The mandate goes into effect immediately and will stay in place until Grand Forks Public Health officials say Grand Forks County is in a yellow Covid-19 risk level.

There is no fine for not wearing a mask, but someone not wearing a face covering can be removed from a business if they don’t put one on.

In an interview with KVRR in August, Mayor Brandon Bochenski said he would not impose a city wide mask mandate at the time saying the city has smart people that don’t need the government telling them what they need to do.

During this press conference, @GrandForksCity Mayor Brandon Bochenski called masks “an effective way to fight the spread of asymptomatic carriers.” He describes why he will not mandate them in his city. #Covid19 pic.twitter.com/aeS7Z4tlyn

— Austin Erickson (@AEricksonKVRR) August 13, 2020