Manatee County Commission again rejects requiring residents to wear masks during COVID-19

Some Manatee County Commissioners on Wednesday surprised the public with an attempt to require residents to wear masks inside of local businesses amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Commissioners on Tuesday told the public they would likely support language to “recommend” that residents wear face coverings along the same lines as the June 20 recommendation from the Florida Surgeon General’s Office.

Instead, Wednesday’s meeting opened up with a motion from Commissioner Misty Servia to direct staff to create an ordinance that would require residents to wear a mask inside businesses where social distancing is not possible.

The motion was backed by commissioners Carol Whitmore and Reggie Bellamy, but failed to gain further traction.

“I went to work thinking we could trust the commissioners on what would be voted on,” said resident Michelle Martin. “Imagine my surprise in finding you trying to mandate masks. .... (Y)ou are being reactive instead of leading. No one even knows this was on the table. You don’t think this would be this empty if people knew?”

The debate came on the day the Florida Department of Health reported that another 119 Manatee County residents — the second-most on a single day so far — had tested positive for the novel coronavirus, bringing the total to 2,132 since the pandemic started. Statewide, there were 5,508 new cases record, a new daily record for Florida.

The commissioners, under a state of emergency, could have pushed the ordinance through immediately, but needed a super majority, or five of seven commissioners. They didn’t even have enough to pass Servia’s motion, which would have brought the ordinance back to a public hearing by late July.

Whitmore said it was a mistake not to adopt the ordinance.

“Let everybody party on and watch our numbers go up,” said Whitmore, who noted a local hospital went from three hospitalizations to 20 in just a matter of days. “So what do we do? So what is our Plan B? Nothing, right?”

Servia said the surgeon general’s recommendations the commission was expected to adopt were “too bureaucratic to me. It sounds very neutral and is not the strong message I was hoping for. Facts are that masks are helping to slow the spread of coronavirus. We are spiking. Spikes will lead to more hospitalizations and that will lead to more deaths.”

Servia said as elected officials, “We know better, so we do better. We have an obligation. For people who say you are removing my civil rights, I say you are infringing on everyone’s civil rights who don’t want to get sick.”

Whitmore said the mask debate has become, “political. Shame on everybody. This is a public health issue.”

Enforcement has been one of the biggest issues in the mask debate, but Servia’s motion would have put code enforcement in charge of the ordinance, with enforcement focused on businesses. The idea came shortly after Sheriff Rick Wells informed the commission that his deputies would not enforce such an ordinance.

Commissioner Vanessa Baugh has opposed any mandates whatsoever and made her feelings on the subject clear.

“I will not be voting for it and my business won’t enforce it, so fine me now,” Baugh said.

The commission ultimately voted down the motion and then voted to promotes the surgeon general’s recommendations that everyone “should” wear a mask.

Servia then motioned to present a resolution requiring masks when social distancing cannot be achieved, but without enforcement mechanisms. Servia said she believes most will follow the law supported by their local government.

Martin spoke again saying the motion should read, “This is not a well thought out motion.”

That resolution failed, as well, but Whitmore proposed further discussion on creating a resolution that is transparent beginning Friday. That motion died for a lack of a second.

The commission ultimately appeared to agree to draft language that would express support for businesses that choose to have customers wear masks.

This story was originally published June 24, 2020 at 10:59 AM.