On June 30, 2020, the Brevard County Commission held a well-attended and highly contested special hearing to deliberate and vote on implementation of a county-wide mask mandate considering recent Covid-19 developments.
The meeting was opened by the initiator of the mask proposal, Chairman Bryan Lober. Chairman Lober presented a compelling argument in favor of the mask mandate, including statements of support from Health First President/CEO Steven Johnson and David Williams, Chief Medical Officer at MedFast Urgent Care. Both Johnson and Williams reiterated the necessity of following CDC virus prevention best practices; going so far as to declare that they have implemented mandatory mask polices at their respective health facilities for both clinical and non-clinical staff.
Many of those who attended in opposition to the mask mandate were not afraid to voice their displeasure with the proposal. As members of the community approached the microphone to sound off, in 2 minutes of less – cut from the standard 3 minute allotment, due to time constraints and the number of people in attendance – a few things became clear and patterns began to emerge.
Many of those in opposition consisted primarily of small business owners and proponents of limited government interference, with representation by the Libertarian Party of Brevard and the Florida Freedom Keepers. Over arcing themes against the proposal included perceived infringement on constitutional rights; the ineffectiveness of non-medical masks/face coverings; issues with individual discomfort and HIPAA protections as well as the impact on small businesses. Some speakers even went so far as to claim that the proposal is a slippery slope towards totalitarianism.
On the other side of the issue, proponents of the measure cited: the effectiveness of not just masks, but all CDC guidelines; the increase in COVID cases, not just in Brevard, but throughout the state and country; and the idea that masks are meant to protect others not the individual wearer, with arguments culminating with the notion that “temporary mild discomfort” is a small price to pay for public health.
One surprise voice in support of the proposal was Sanjay Patel. Patel has often be a staunch opponent of proposals put forth by Chairman Lober in the past. However, today, Mr. Patel started off in rather comical fashion, joking “[No] hell has not frozen over, I am in agreement with Chairman Lober.” To which Chairman Lober later quipped “We do agree on something, maybe in 18 months we’ll agree again.” Mr. Patel continued on to say “I stand here in support of a mandatory mask order for Brevard County, for public health and safety reasons”, citing the increasing case stats as “going up 5 fold in just two weeks.” He emphasized that “many countries and states that have successfully lowered their cases and flattened their curves have also used the same measures which include requiring masks.” Patel ended his time by pleading, “We need our elected official to listen to the medical experts and the scientists and mandate a mask order here in Brevard County, to protect the health and safety of every resident in our community. Please do the right thing to protect the lives of our residents”.
At the conclusion of public comments, Chairman Lober was asked to clarify additional issues that had emerged during the public discussion; including: requirements and/or exceptions for children and those who have verifiable health issues as well as the penalty for those who refused to comply. While Lober said concessions for these issues would be made, it was clear that such details had not yet been fleshed out prior to the hearing.
While all the attendees were a good representation of issues on both sides of the proposal, when it was time to vote, the opposition was clearly the more dominant voice.
In the end, the Commission returned a majority vote in opposition to the proposal and it was rejected.
The Commission was, however, able to return a majority agreement (with only Tobia dissenting) on a public declaration to small businesses, encouraging them to post their own established mask guidelines either physically or online to give the community the ability and freedom to decide which businesses adhere to their chosen mask preferences. The Commission indicated that an optional template for such a posting is forthcoming.
Following the mask mandate agenda item, the Board heard comments from Commission Manager Frank Abbate regarding the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding. In March 2020, the U.S. Department of Treasury dispensed 2.47 billion dollars distributed directly to 12 Florida counties, including Brevard. After hearing details on the current remaining budget and expenditures, the Board voted to 1) allocate an additional $4 million to the Food Stability Program, 2) authorize Mr. Abbate to execute an agreement with the Children’s Hunger Project for up to $754,446, and 3) authorize Abbate to execute any other agreement/contracts in support of the Food Stability Program.
In all, the attendance at the over 5 hour meeting, was a strong showing of the care, commitment and passion of the Brevard Community.
