Seattle business owners ‘egregiously’ flouting reopening rules could face jail, fines
Jul 17, 2020, 11:38 AM | Updated: 11:58 am
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan announced new enforcement measures Friday for businesses not adhering to rules laid out in Gov. Inslee’s reopening requirements.
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City officials with the Department of Finance and Administrative Services (FAS) will remain “primarily” focused on measures related to “outreach and education to help businesses comply.” That being so, “repeated and/or egregious” offenders could have their business licenses suspended, and could face criminal charges with a maximum penalty of 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine.
“For weeks, the City has been doing extensive outreach and education with our businesses on public health guidance,” Mayor Durkan said in a news release. “While the vast majority are complying with facial coverings and capacity restrictions and have made changes following outreach efforts, the City is prepared to take additional enforcement action against businesses that are egregiously and repeatedly violating state law and public health guidance.”
Seattle — currently in Phase 2 of Inslee’s Safe Start plan along with the rest of King County — requires businesses to have every person inside their establishment wear a protective face covering. Children under five years old and those with preexisting medical conditions or disabilities are exempt from the mask requirement.
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On Thursday, Gov. Inslee warned that “we as individuals need to step up,” and that “if we don’t get the virus under control, we will have to take steps backward.”
“We cannot rule out the possibility of another stay home order this year,” he cautioned.
Durkan hopes to have these new enforcement measures help keep the region from backsliding in the reopening process in the days ahead.
“Our individual and collective actions in the coming weeks will be critical to not have to go back to Stay Home, Stay Healthy,” she stated.
