SC Gov. McMaster announces decal program to ID restaurants following COVID-19 rules
Gov. Henry McMaster says he won’t require people to wear masks in public, but he wants customers to have a way to hold restaurants accountable if they see employees failing to take precautions aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus.
McMaster, the state’s tourism agency, and the S.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association on Tuesday announced the Palmetto Priority initiative, aimed at showing the public whether a restaurant is following precautions recommend by the Centers for Disease Control and the state’s Department of Health and Environmental Control to limit the the virus’ spread.
The program’s rollout comes as the state’s daily case counts have eclipsed 1,000 on several days over the past week. On Tuesday, DHEC announced that 890 additional people had tested positive for COVID-19 in the state.
Nearly one in six — or 17.4% — of the tests reported Tuesday came back positive, which was a record high in the state.
“It’s going to be partly expected when you’re testing more and we are,” McMaster said. “Am I concerned about the fact people seem to not be social distancing, not be wearing masks when they ought to be wearing masks? Yes, I am worried about that,” McMaster said. “That’s why we keep saying please follow the advice.”
The program allows restaurants to voluntarily commit to following key cleaning and safety guidelines and it also calls for restaurateurs to take online courses and to have a limited DHEC food safety inspection.
After completing the training and inspection, restaurants would receive an 8-inch decal to display at their establishment.
“If you go into a restaurant and it doesn’t have this decal, that doesn’t have this seal, go somewhere else,” McMaster said. “That’s what I would do. That’s what I’m going to do. That’s what I encourage everyone to do.”
On an online portal, set up at Palmettopriority.com, diners can comment on their experiences at restaurants including saying whether staff wore masks or the restaurant promoted social distancing.
If there are complaints for not following guidelines, restaurant association staff will discuss the issues with restaurateurs, said John Durst, the president and CEO of the S.C. Restaurant and Lodging Association.
“It’s important to stress this is a one-on-one conversation we will be having with the restaurateur to be sure this has come to our attention, and to work with them to resolve the issue,” Durst said.
Four violations of the program would lead to a loss the certification.
The program is similar to the Greenville Pledge program, a partnership between the city, business and development leaders. Businesses are encouraged in the program to place a sign on their windows pledging to follow CDC and DHEC guidance, such as employees socially distancing, regularly cleaning and employees wearing masks.
More than 400 businesses in Greenville have taken the pledge.
Under the initiative announced Tuesday, restaurants that meet training requirements, require employees to wear masks once they complete the training and have a DHEC inspection will get the decal saying they’ve met the program requirements.
The program is meant to reassure customers that restaurants are taking precautions, as well as an incentive to businesses to have employees wear masks.
Even though the governor and DHEC officials have expressed concern about people not regularly wearing masks or social distancing, McMaster has said he would not require people to wear masks in public. The city of Columbia adopted an ordinance to require masks in public and Richland County is considering an ordinance to do the same. Greenville adopted an ordinance on Monday requiring people to wear masks in grocery stores and pharmacies.
McMaster has said he believes there are constitutional concerns with a mask mandate.
As the case counts increase and the percentage of tests coming back positive increases, McMaster said he doesn’t expect to ask the Legislature to consider a mask requirement.
“We’re not to that point, that could happen in the future, but we don’t foresee that,” McMaster said. “We believe these measures will work.”
McMaster would not specify when such a move may be necessary.
“You can’t put a number on it because it depends on a lot of variable factors,” McMaster said.
In May, McMaster allowed restaurants to again have in-person dining with capacity restrictions.
Guidelines include limiting the number of guests per table to eight people, spacing tables at least eight feet apart, having paper menus, and not having salt and pepper shakers on tables.
This story was originally published June 23, 2020 at 4:17 PM with the headline "SC Gov. McMaster announces decal program to ID restaurants following COVID-19 rules."
