| Updated: 11:47 p.m.
Although a new Utah law means mask mandates will end statewide this weekend, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said nothing will change in the capital.
HB294, which lifts mask requirements Saturday, allows counties to extend their own local mandates. The Salt Lake County Council opted Wednesday not to do so. But Mendenhall said the law does not apply to her own local authority and emergency powers. She issued a proclamation extending the current mask mandate, in line with her numerous other declared local emergencies since March 2020 that are related to the pandemic.
“This proclamation does not conflict with state’s so-called COVID ‘endgame’ bill,” Mendenhall said at a news conference. “As a city, we will be guided by public health data. Protecting the health of our residents will always be my highest priority.”