Los Angeles City Officials Finally Vote To Remove Covid Vaccination Requirements For Indoor Businesses, Concerts & Large Events
30.03.2022 - 21:13
/ deadline.com
A city of Los Angeles mandate requiring patrons to show proof of Covid-19 vaccination to enter many indoor establishments and large outdoor events is finally being eliminated, with the City Council giving approval today to an ordinance scrapping the requirement. The decision comes weeks after the state and county decided to do the same.
The council voted 13-1, with Councilman Mike Bonin dissenting, to lift the vaccination mandate. The measure passed with an urgency clause, meaning it will take effect as soon as Mayor Eric Garcetti signs the measure and it is formally published by the City Clerk’s Office. It is unclear how long that will take, but it could be as soon as Friday, when the county’s vaccination requirements officially lift.
Without the urgency clause, the city measure would have remained in effect for another 30 days.
The city mandate requires people over age 12 to show proof of vaccination before patronizing indoor restaurants, gyms, entertainment and recreational facilities, personal care establishments and some city buildings. The law also requires people to show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid test to attend outdoor events with 5,000 or more people and indoor events with more than 1,000 attendees.
Enforcement of the requirement, which took effect late last year, has been inconsistent, since it largely relied on business owners to conduct the verifications. In recent weeks — or months — it has been largely ignored.
Council President Nury Martinez introduced the motion calling for a lifting of the requirements. But even with the mandate being lifted, individual businesses will still be permitted to voluntarily require proof of vaccination from patrons.
Bonin, the lone dissenter on the council, said last