Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb is declaring a mandate to wear a mask in public spaces, when you cannot socially distance from others.

The order, announced during the governor’s press conference today, will go into effect on Monday.

It will apply to Hoosiers who are 8-years-old or older in any location where they can not maintain social distance from those who are not their close family members.

He said that this is a way to blunt the growth in the COVID-19 spread in Indiana.

Holcomb said that it will apply in any indoor public spaces, commercial entities, or transportation services, or in outdoor public spaces where social distancing is not possible.

Exceptions are being made for strenuous physical activities, medical purposes, eating and drinking.

Holcomb said that it is the right time to make the change, because students are getting ready to return to school. This will help keep from sending mixed messages to children, as they see that their efforts to stay masked in schools will be duplicated in their communities.

The governor said that not wearing a mask could lead to a misdemeanor charge, but preferred that people do their civic duty and wear a mask willingly.

Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill disputed whether the governor has the authority to threaten a criminal charge. In an advisory opinion issued Wednesday night, Hill said the governor should call a special legislative session to consider a mask mandate.

Columbus City Council has given its first approvals of a rate hike for the city drinking water system, and a $24.4 million dollar waterworks bond issue for Columbus City Utilities to make improvements to the system.

The new rates would phase in over three years, with the lowest end paying $2.54 per 1,000 gallons starting August of 2021, $2.97 in August of 2023 and $3.16 in 2024. The three new tiers would be under 15,000 gallons a month, up to 285,000 gallons a month and over 300,000 gallons a month.

Prices would also increase for the monthly meter charge depending on the size of the meter, on private hydrants, on fire protection and on automatic sprinkler systems. The changes would also include a system development charge billed to customers connecting to the water system.

Utilities officials say that the average home using 4,000 gallons a month of water would see the water portion of the bill increase from $9.82 a month to $17.97 a month after all the increases are phased in.

The council voted Tuesday night to approve the water rate increases and the bond issue.

The Student’s Fund of Hope is organizing a weekend fundraiser to help the family of a student suffering from bone cancer.

Whitney Budd, with the Student’s Fund explains, the event will be to benefit will be to help cover the expenses of the family of Sarah Taylor, a Hauser student fighting a form of bone cancer.

There will be a drive-thru dinner from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday at the Hauser Jr. Sr. High School campus on State Road 9. The dinner will be a freewill donation with baked potatoes and BBQ on the menu.

There is also an ongoing online auction to help the family. Winning items can be picked up Saturday at the drive-thru dinner site.

To participate, you should enter the school off of Hauser Drive and follow the volunteers through the drive thru to pick up your meal. You can choose to  take your meal home or dine in our campus parking lot. The Ridge will be performing some of Sarah’s favorite worship music.

You can get more information at studentsfundofhope,org.

Bartholomew County authorities are considering a mandate to require face masks in public places throughout the community. Columbus city leaders and county leaders met Tuesday afternoon with local law enforcement to discuss the details of such a mandate.

Masks or other facial coverings are seen as one of the primary ways to stem the COVID-19 pandemic.

Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop said that there are a variety of mask orders that have gone into effect around the state and one of the primary differences is how many exceptions they allow.

Lienhoop said the goal locally would be to encourage and educate the public on the importance of wearing masks, rather than being punitive.

After weekend visits to other Indiana communities, Lienhoop said he believes that heavy enforcement efforts will not be needed.

Dr. Brian Niedbalski, the county health officer, is ultimately the authority that would issue such an order. He said he believes a mask mandate would be a help to the health of the community as it sees a slight uptick in positive test results.

Niedbalski said that a mandate will be required to get the amount of mask usage to as close to 100 percent as possible.

He said says that having a mandate would help back up those businesses already making the independent decisions to require masks.

Niedbalski said that a decision could be announced later today.

Bartholomew County has had 641 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 45 deaths, according to the most recent update from the Indiana State Department of Health. The most recent death in Bartholomew or surrounding counties was was July 6th, in Jennings County.

Statewide, there have been 57,916 total confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Indiana, an increase of 734 cases since Monday’s update. There have been 2,652 deaths in Indiana as of Tuesday afternoon’s update, an increase of 20 since Sunday.

Columbus City Council will be considering a rate hike for the city drinking water system, and a $24.4 million dollar waterworks bond issue for Columbus City Utilities to make improvements to the system.

If approved, this would be the first drinking water rake hike since 1992. It would reduce the number of tiers of water customers from the current five, to three tiers. Customers currently pay $1.66 per 1,000 gallons for the first 10,000 gallons of water. The next tiers currently are at 40,000 gallons, 250 thousand, 700 thousand and a million gallons of water a month.

The new rates would phase in over three years, with the lowest end paying $2.54 per 1,000 gallons starting August of 2021, $2.97 in August of 2023 and $3.16 in 2024. The three new tiers would be  less than 15,000 gallons a month,  285,000 gallons a month and 300,000 gallons a month.

Prices would also increase for the monthly meter charge depending on the size of the meter, private hydrants, fire protection and automatic sprinkler systems. The changes would also include a system development charge billed to customers connecting to the water system.

Utilities officials say that the average home using 4,000 gallons a month of water would see the water portion of the bill increase from $9.82 a month to $17.97 a month after all the increases are phased in.

The council will meet at 6 p.m. tonight at Columbus City Hall.

Bartholomew Consolidated Schools staff will continue working to develop the plan to reopen school in a few weeks, although that does not necessarily mean school will actually open to in-classroom learning on Aug. 6th.

The school board voted 5-2 to continue the process, with school board members Julie Bilz and James Persinger voting against the proposal.

Superintendent Dr. Jim Roberts pointed out one new element of the plan is a requirement that students and staff be masked through out the school day. Previous versions of the plan strongly recommended the use of masks but this version would require them whenever social distancing can not be maintained.

Current plans would essentially give parents three choices on returning to school in the classroom, returning temporarily through distance learning, or returning full-time via distance learning.

Roberts stressed that the board decision would not mean a definite in-classroom start on Aug. 6th, as conditions will continue to be monitored for safety and COVID-19 trends before those decisions are made.

10 community members signed up to address the school board and to express their concerns.

Dr. Rachel Kerschner, a pediatrician at CRH and a parent, supported a return to in-class teaching.

Ruben Guthrie, a substitute teacher, said he is not comfortable risking his life for $70 a day.

Michelle Carr, a substitute teacher herself, said her daughter found it harder to learn online and her son will find it hard to meet his academic goals online. But for her family it is a matter of safety

You can learn more about the planning process on the school district website at bcscschools.org.

The employment picture is improving in Bartholomew County. According to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, the county’s unemployment rate has fallen below the state and national average. The June figures show Bartholomew County with 10.2 percent unemployment, compared to May’s 12.7 percent and the state and national average of 11.2 percent.

According to figures released today, the Columbus Metropolitan Area’s total non-farm payroll for June grew to 49,500, compared to May’s 48,400, a 2.27 percent increase. However last year at this time, the community had 53,100 non-farm payroll jobs, a drop of 6.78 percent year-over-year.

The highest unemployment rate in surrounding counties in June was Shelby County with 12.3 percent and the lowest was Johnson County with 9.3 percent.