UTAH, April 19, 2022 (Gephardt Daily) — The Utah Transit Authority announced Tuesday it will no long require its mass transit users wear masks.
“In response to the federal court ruling, #UTA is no longer requiring masks to be worn on our system,” the 8:15 a.m. tweet says.
“We continue our enhanced cleaning and disinfecting measures, and will keep providing masks on our buses and trains for riders who wish to use them.”
A federal judge in Florida on Monday struck down the Biden administration’s mandate requiring that travelers on airlines and public transportation wear masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
U.S. District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, a 2020 appointee of Donald Trump, ruled in a 59-page opinion that the mask mandate, first enacted in February 2021, is unconstitutional.
Mizelle ruled the administration lacks the statutory power to impose the mask mandate under the 1944 Public Health Service Act, which allows the government to impose restrictions in the interest of “sanitation.”
She did not agree with the administration’s argument that the definition of “sanitation” gives it the leeway it to impose travel restrictions.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week extended the mandate for 15 days through May 3, citing a sharp increase in the seven-day moving average of COVID-19 cases.
