On Oct. 19, Madison County Health Department (MCDOH) announced it had cited two businesses for violating New York State’s face covering executive order; this is the first time a citation has been given.

Troyer’s Country Store in Cazenovia and Cone Masters in Munnsville were each fined $500 for violating COVID-19 regulations.

At each location, employees were observed not wearing face coverings when they were in contact with members of the public.

According to Governor Andrew Cuomo’s face covering executive order, employees who are unable to maintain six feet of social distancing when dealing with members of the public must wear face coverings. The Governor has placed the enforcement of his executive order upon the local governments.

“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,” said Madison County Public Health Director Eric Faisst. “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.”

When Madison County receives complaints and concerns from members of the community about small businesses and the big box stores not requiring employees to wear masks they are followed up on by either a member of the Madison County Health Department or the Madison County Sheriff’s Office.

Residents are asked to remain diligent and to continue to do their part to limit the spread of COVID-19.

For more information, visit madisoncounty.ny.gov/2479/Coronavirus-COVID-19.