Masks will now be recommended but not required in most Pima County government buildings. The change is due to the rapidly dropping COVID-19 case counts in Pima County.

The new building mask rule goes into effect March 12 and applies to all staff and visitors to county buildings. Some county facilities, such as health clinics, will still require masking at the discretion of the County’s Chief Medical Officer.

The Board of Supervisors will resume in-person board meetings at its next meeting March 15. The public will not have to wear a mask but will still be required to adhere to physical distancing,

Acting County Administrator Jan Lesher says she is relaxing mitigation rules with cautious optimism

She said the count may need to tighten the mitigation strategies again if there is another major spike.

Lesher said another factor influencing her decision was the 90% vaccination rate of county staff.