Madison County fines two businesses for violating state mask order

WAMPSVILLE, N.Y. — The Madison County Health Department on Monday announced that for the first time it has cited two businesses for violating New York State’s face-covering executive order.

Madison County fined Troyer’s Country Store in Cazenovia and the Cone Masters ice-cream shop $500 each after employees at each establishment were observed not wearing face coverings when they were in contact with members of the public.

According to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s face covering executive order, employees who are unable to maintain six feet of social distancing when dealing with the public must wear face coverings. The governor has tasked local governments with enforcing his executive order. In recent COVID-19 briefings and conference calls, Cuomo has repeatedly called upon local officials to step up enforcement of coronavirus regulations.

“We do not want to issue citations to our local businesses, but after being properly educated on the executive order and best practices, these locations continued to not enforce the rules with their employees,” Madison County Public Health Director Eric Faisst said in a news release. “Wearing a face covering is one of the best defenses we have against COVID-19.  We have said for months now, and continue to ask people to wear their face coverings when they are unable to maintain social distancing. We hope that we all can continue to work together to limit the spread of this virus.”

Madison County said that when it receives complaints and concerns from the public about small businesses and big-box stores not requiring employees to wear masks, it follows up on them either with a member of the Madison County Health Department or Madison County Sheriff’s Office.