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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03 - Supporting Local Schools as they Return to Normal and Parental Choice in Deciding Whether Children Should be Masked or Vaccinated at School - Amended ResolutionAugust 24, 2021 Item No. 3 RESOLUTION NO. 2021-69 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF NEWPORT BEACH, CALIFORNIA, SUPPORTING LOCAL SCHOOLS AS THEY RETURN TO NORMAL AND PARENTAL CHOICE IN DECIDING WHETHER CHILDREN SHOULD BE MASKED OR VACCINATED AT SCHOOL WHEREAS, the World Health Organization ("WHO") and UNICEF both state that children five years and younger should not be required to wear masks, and advise that decisions whether to impose a mask requirement upon children ages 6-11 should be made based on several factors, including the impact of mask wearing on a child's psychosocial development; WHEREAS, the WHO also recommends against children wearing masks during exercise or play, as masks can be harmful because they compromise a child's ability to breathe; WHEREAS, repeated mask wearing over long periods of time can be harmful; WHEREAS, children are less likely to get symptomatic COVID-19 than adults; WHEREAS, the ability to see, appreciate and communicate through facial expressions is crucial to a child's social development, mental health, and physical well- being; WHEREAS, the majority of adults and children over 12 years of age, including those at high risk of adverse outcomes from COVID-19, have had ample opportunity to get vaccinated; WHEREAS, the State of California - not our local Newport Mesa Unified School District Board of Education - has implemented universal masking requirements in K-12 school settings ratherthan allowing parents -to deG!de whei,T— masksar be,g yaGGinate-d is in their nhil d's hest intereatthroughout the state, without regard for an local ocal conditions such as case rate, vaccination rate, hospitalization rates, or site-specific improvements such as ventilation upgrades; apd WHEREAS, the State of California's blanket mandate is contrary to the City of Newport Beach's adopted Legislative Platform, which states as its first Guiding Principle that: "The City supports the protection or expansion of local, decision-making authority and its ability to provide public services;" and WHEREAS, on June 22, 2021, pursuant to Resolution 2021-62, the City of Newport Beach terminated its proclamation of emergency adopted in response to COVID- 19, finding that the conditions of extreme peril no longer existed. Resolution No. 2021-69 Page 2 of 3 NOW, THEREFORE, the City Council of the City of Newport Beach resolves as follows: Section 1: The City Council hereby supports decisions concerning the overall health and wellbeing of students be made at the local level rather than a state-wide mandate addressing approximately six million public school children so that the Newport Mesa Unified School District Board can itself decide whether to allow+rg children to attend school without masks or being vaccinated if their parents decide that wearing masks or being vaccinated is not in their child's best interest. Section 2: The City Council commits to supporting local schools as they return to normal, including advocating for local ss#e^'�t-parents that oppose the State of California's state -mandates to the detriment of local decision makers vassines. Section 3: The recitals provided in this resolution are true and correct and are incorporated into the operative part of this resolution. Section 4: If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this resolution is, for any reason, held to be invalid or unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the validity or constitutionality of the remaining portions of this resolution. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this resolution, and each section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase hereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid or unconstitutional. Section 5: The City Council finds the adoption of this resolution is not subject to the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") pursuant to Sections 15060(c)(2) (the activity will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment) and 15060(c)(3) (the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378) of the CEQA Guidelines, California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Division 6, Chapter 3, because it has no potential for resulting in physical change to the environment, directly or indirectly. Resolution No. 2021-69 Page 3of3 Section 6: This resolution shall take effect immediately upon its adoption by the City Council, and the City Clerk shall certify the vote adopting the resolution. ADOPTED this 24th day of August, 2021. Brad Avery Mayor ATTEST: Leilani I. Brown City Clerk APPROVED AS TO FORM: CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE Aaron C. Harp City Attorney