LEBANON — The City Council on Wednesday postponed a decision on whether to schedule a public hearing to rescind Lebanon’s mask mandate, instead opting to continue the discussion later this month.
Councilors debated the city administration’s proposal to end the mandate on June 30, when officials estimate all residents 16 and over will have had the opportunity to be fully vaccinated.
However, after about 30 minutes, they decided to talk further during their May 19 meeting, according to City Manager Shaun Mulholland.
“What they are looking to do is set some sort of standard, and they will discuss that on the 19th, and that will inform people if we have a public hearing in June,” he said in a phone interview Thursday.
Lebanon’s mask mandate, which remains in effect, requires employees to wear coverings over their noses and mouths when they are within 6 feet of co-workers and customers who are not members of the same household.
It also requires masks to be worn by customers and other people when inside any “business, governmental or nonprofit,” or while riding on public transportation, including Advance Transit buses.
Officials in Lebanon and Enfield, which also has a local mandate, have said June could be a target for ending their mask mandates depending on whether COVID-19 cases continue to decline.
Claremont ended its resolution encouraging mask-wearing last week, and New Hampshire’s statewide mask mandate was allowed to lapse by Gov. Chris Sununu last month.