Malibu Mask Ordinance Fails

MALIBU, CA — An urgency ordinance that would have issued $50 fines to anyone not wearing a mask in Malibu failed at the Monday night City Council meeting.

Though the council voted 3-2 in favor of the ordinance, it required at least four votes for it to go into effect immediately. Mayor Mikke Pierson and Councilmembers Karen Farrer and Jefferson Wagner voted in favor of the ordinance, while Councilmember Rick Mullen and Mayor Pro Tem Skylar Peak voted against it.

With those votes, the ordinance could have been passed on first reading as a non-urgency ordinance. It would have then returned for a final reading on Sept. 29, and taken effect 30 days later. The council was given the option to let the ordinance pass as a non-urgency ordinance, but Mayor Pierson said he was willing to let it go for now and bring it back should circumstances change.

The ordinance closely followed the state and county health orders, though it differed in that it allows for citations and also bans bandanas, and masks with any valves or openings.

Mayor Mikke Pierson said that he received numerous requests from residents and the Sheriff's department captain and lieutenant captain to follow the lead of nearby cities in instituting a requirement. "When a lot of citizens bring it up, I think it's fair to bring it forward," he said.

Pierson said he felt the city was late in passing the ordinance, and the pandemic, which has affected 101 known people and killed three in Malibu, is not over. "To me this isn't really about us, it's about other people," he said. "I would err on the side of caution - I'm all for getting the economy going again and slowing this thing down any way we can is worth it...I want to get to a point where we don't have to wear a mask."

Councilmember Jefferson Wagner called the proposal a "common-sense kind of a reachout" and said the city would need to "cordially introduce ourselves to some kind of compliance that meets the health standards and health codes of other countries that have proven that proper face mask applications do work."

"We don't know who has a compromised immune system when you're walking through the parking lot, we don't know who may be compromised when you're filling up the tank of gas at the gas station," he said. "In those circumstances, when you're in proximity to other people, you should be wearing a mask, and it should be the proper type of mask."

Wagner said that he agreed with others who called the ordinance an overreach, but he felt an overreach is necessary until more is known.

Councilmember Karen Farrer said she's concerned about asymptomatic carriers and an upcoming flu season, and like Pierson would rather "err on the side of caution."

Councilmember Rick Mullen said that he feels that an ordinance would be unnecessary because the public is already wearing masks in public, and is more inclined to "educate the public."

"You go to the grocery store, and everyone's wearing masks where they're supposed to," he said. "I think have to inform people about what the risks they take are, and those people in appropriate risk categories should be exercising more stringent risk management."

Mayor Skylar Peak said he's comfortable with the county ordinance, and that he's seen enough compliance with it that an ordinance is not necessary.

During public comment, Malibu resident and council candidate Bruce Silverstein said he's in favor of face covering and social distancing, but feels that the ordinance "goes overboard." Silverstein also questioned the wording of the ordinance, asking what exactly "in public" means.

Malibu resident Hamish Patterson also called the ordinance "overreach" and a "hassle ordinance." Patterson said he thinks compliance is fine, and the ordinance would place an undue burden on local law enforcement, and would "agitate people who are already agitated." He said he feels the city should be trying to keep people healthy.

"This isn't about caring, this is about controlling," he said.