Lewiston and Auburn police chiefs said late Friday that they’re optimistic about the public following Gov. Janet Mills’ new public face covering executive order without increased issues.

The head of Maine’s retailer association said he, too, was hoping that “citizens will get the message now.”

But the new order mandating face coverings to enter any business or public space left a lot of questions, chief among them, what if people still don’t mask up?

“I have a lot of empathy for business owners who are hearing this mandate on Friday, trying to determine, on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year, who in their store is going to enforce it, what’s that going to look like and what’s going to be the impact to their business?” Shanna Cox, president of the Lewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, said. “Every business owner is thinking that right now.”

Curtis Picard, president and CEO of the Retail Association of Maine, said he believed retailers would welcome the clarity around medical exemptions, a reason some have used to not wear masks.

Friday’s order put an end to that, subjecting customers to a potential trespassing charge if they insist upon entering a store without one.

“Thankfully, the governor was willing to be the most strident, I think, that I’ve ever heard her on this issue, that there really aren’t medical exemptions,” he said. “My hope is (the) population out there that still has an issue with facial coverings will hopefully hear this and recognize this isn’t the store’s doing. We’re just trying as hard as we can to stay in business and get through the holiday season in one piece and that’s no easy task right now.”

How a business enforces that will likely depend on the size of the store and its staff, Picard said.

“I think part of our frustration is, when retailers have reached out to law enforcement in the past, they said, ‘Look, we’re not going to respond to this, this isn’t our issue,'” he said. “Now, I think the governor’s made it clear that law enforcement does have to respond and play a role in this.”

Auburn Police Chief Jason Moen said calls for assistance have been “few and far in between.” He didn’t anticipate an increase with the new order.

“We will continue to assist businesses who may have someone who refuses to leave the premises when asked to wear a mask,” he said. “Most people are very cooperative.”

Lewiston Police Chief Brian O’Malley didn’t believe his department had received any complaints to date.

“A store can now refuse service to an individual not wearing a mask and if the Police Department is contacted we would reiterate that as well,” he said. “If the individual continues to defy the mask requirement they could be escorted from the store. Any type of criminal charge such as criminal trespass would be a last resort and I am confident that our community will adhere to voluntary compliance of this new executive order.”

Hannaford spokeswoman Ericka Dodge said all of its Maine stores will have associates greeting customers at the door and offering free masks to anyone not wearing one.

“Any customer choosing not to wear a mask will be asked to leave,” she said. “We continue to ask our customers to help ensure the safety of one another, our associates and our community by wearing masks while shopping.”

Messages left for Shaw’s and Walmart were not returned.

Cox said she heard of some businesses having success with leaving masks and sanitizers by the front door and politely reminding people, “We’ve provided one for you, please put it on.”

“It’s welcome that there’s further action that could stop the spread of the virus,” she said. “From the beginning of this pandemic, the administration has done everything they could not to put enforcement on the business owners because it puts business owners and operators in a very precarious position.”

Frontline staff such as bank tellers and retail associates are “not the highest paid employees and their pay certainly doesn’t compensate them for dealing with aggravated customers,” Cox said.

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