Fact check: Did the Sacramento City Council ‘resist’ Mayor Steinberg’s call for a mask order?
A mailer sent to Sacramento residents this month says Mayor Darrell Steinberg wanted to require residents to wear masks in early May, but that the City Council prevented him from doing so.
The mailer makes the case for why residents should vote for Measure A, which would make the mayor the most powerful position in the city.
The mailer reads: “In early May, the Mayor called for a mandatory requirement to wear masks in public places. The City Council resisted, so the City Manager could not act. Over a month later, the Governor issued a statewide order mandating masks be worn in public. Under Measure A, the Mayor would have emergency authority to protect the health and safety of the public. How many fewer infections would have occurred in Sacramento if Measure A had been in effect?”
So did the council resist? Technically, yes.
However, the issue never went to the City Council for a formal vote.
City Manager Howard Chan said he asked each council member for their thoughts on an ordinance requiring masks, at Steinberg’s request. There were not five members who said they would vote in favor – the number of votes needed for a proposal to pass, Chan said.
“There was not the support needed to bring this thing forward as an ordinance to go against what the county public health order was,” said Chan, who has not taken a position on the strong mayor measure. “We had a conversation and I told (Steinberg) there was no support.”
At the time, the county order did not require masks.
Chan, who is not bound by the Brown Act that regulates discussions by elected officials, has surveyed council members before in deciding whether items on other topics should be on the agenda, he said.
In this case, some council members say the mailing sends voters an inaccurate message.
“For (Steinberg) to say the council resisted is poppycock,” said Councilman Jeff Harris, a leader in the campaign opposing Measure A. “It’s absolutely unreal he would be put something like this in the mailer ... If he thought this was a path we should pursue, it’s incumbent on him to bring it for a discussion and a vote.”
Councilman Larry Carr, who also strongly opposes the measure, agreed.
“It’s deceptive,” Carr said. “In order for council to resist, it must come before the council and the council must vote on it.”
Councilwoman Angelique Ashby, who supports Measure A, said she agreed with the overarching message of the mailer.
“In cities where mayors had that authority, the mask requirements did happen sooner,” Ashby said.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced an order April 7 requiring residents to wear masks at most essential businesses. San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced a similar mask requirement the following week.
Steinberg wanted to do the same. On May 4, during a Facebook Live video, he called on county health officials to require masks when it loosened restrictions.
Sacramento residents were not required to wear masks until June 18, when Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a statewide mask order. Under existing state guidelines, residents are required to wear masks when coming into contact with people who are not members of their households.
