CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — In the wake of Gov. Greg Abbott's executive order banning mask mandates in public buildings, KRIS 6 asked Corpus Christi City government officials their opinion about the mask issue, especially for schools.
We asked: "If the governor's orders were not in place, would you be in favor of or against a mask mandate for schools and in public buildings?
Out of eight council members and the mayor, we only heard back from five of them.
Here's what they said:
District 3's Roland Barrera said he would be in favor of a mask mandate.
"If someone makes the choice not to get the vaccine, the best form of prevention is a mask," he said.
District 4's Greg Smith said he would support a mask mandate only for city buildings in Corpus Christi. But when it comes to schools, he would want that to be left to each district to decide.
At-Large councilman Mike Pusley echoed that.
"It should be left up to individual school districts to make a decision on how they should handle masks," he said.
He did not comment on other public buildings in general.
District 2's Ben Molina didn't say either way. He just said he believes its a decision that should be left to the local governing body of the organization.
District 5's Gil Hernandez said he would not be in favor of a mask mandate.
Mayor Paulette Guajardo, Michael Hunter, John Martinez and Billy Lerma did not reply.