Daytona Beach to require that masks be worn in public, effective Sunday

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - Daytona Beach will enact a mask mandate effective Sunday.

City leaders discussed at great length the measure which passed late Friday afternoon, though it will not be officially enforced until a later date.  Officials want to get the word out to the public for a period of time. Under the order, residents and visitors will be required to wear a mask while in public.

The action comes following a rise in COVID-19 cases in Volusia County and across the state since the reopening phases began.  As of Friday, there were 1,605 cases of COVID-19 to date in Volusia County since the beginning of the pandemic, with 53 deaths. Over 200 residents have been hospitalized since March.

Mask ordinances around the state are causing confusion for some shop owners and customers.

So far, there has been no statewide mandate, but several cities and counties from the Panhandle to South Florida have made their own ordinances. Now, the Florida Retail Federation is speaking out, saying it's unfair to make employees enforce the mask mandates.

“The mask issue, in and of itself, has shown itself to be very volatile. There is definitely, for some people, a political component to it. We really don’t think our sales associates, who are on the front lines providing services to Floridians, should be the ones to be in the middle of that battleground,” said Scott Shalley, CEO of the Florida Retail Federation.

Despite pressure from democrats Governor Ron DeSantis has refused to issue a statewide mask ordinance.