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Austin continues mask mandate amid lawsuit
Texas AG Ken Paxton has sued the City of Austin and Travis County. But Austin isn't budging on it's mask mandate.
AUSTIN, Texas - The 34th Street Cafe has been open for 25 years. Things were going smoothly until the pandemic hit.
"At the beginning, everybody was just thrown into this," said owner Eddie Bernal.
Bernal was forced to make expensive changes like buying gallons of hand sanitizer, enforcing social distancing rules, and even buying an air purifier system.
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Masks will continue to be required within the City of Austin
The governor's office has yet to respond to requests for comment on the local order.
"We couldn’t have done it without the employees, they are the soldiers, they are on the frontline," he said.
If you walk into his business, everyone needs to be wearing masks. "I certainly don't like what's going on out there with the attorney general suing the city of Austin," he said.
The attorney general is suing the city of Austin and Travis County for still having a mask mandate after Gov. Greg Abbott lifted the statewide mandate Wednesday.
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Texas AG sues Austin, Travis County over mask mandate
The Texas AG’s office has officially filed suit in district court to ask for a temporary restraining order on the local mask rule until a hearing is held.
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"All we are trying to do is follow the orders of our health authority, which is something that frankly, counties across Texas do," said Travis County Judge Andy Brown on Thursday.
Friday, a district judge denied the state's request for an immediate temporary injunction, meaning Austin’s mask mandate still stands at least until Mar. 26, when the injunction hearing is scheduled.
"It's not a political decision. It's just common sense if we want to keep our employees safe until we get vaccinated and our customers also," said Bernal, regarding masks.
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State, local leaders battle over mask mandate
On Tuesday, city and county leaders agreed to continue to allow an existing health department mandate to stand, regardless of updated ordinances by the governor.
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It's never been a political thing for Bernal, he said he just wants what is best for his employees and customers. In fact, he got his shot Friday. "I went and got my vaccine at UT and it was really emotional. I want all my employees to get vaccinated," said Bernal.
Regardless of what happens in court, he will continue to require masks, until enough of the population is inoculated. "It’s just a lot of static, we need to focus on getting people vaccinated, keeping people safe," he said.
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