SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — With fears around rising cases of the Omicron variant and holiday travels coming, the Governor’s office has issued a mandatory indoor mask policy, regardless of vaccination status.
While COVID cases in the state have spiked 47% since Thanksgiving, average rates of hospitalizations and death have been relatively low.
In San Diego, new cases have remained about the same this winter.
While the order is in place until at least Jan. 15, enforcement is another story. California has enjoyed six months of no mask mandates for vaccinated people and attitudes about the virus vary widely in different corners of the state.
"This started about a year and a half ago," said Bill Wells, the Mayor of El Cajon. "When I directed our police department to make COVID enforcement the lowest priority, is that we basically didn't do any COVID enforcement."
Both Wells and Coronado Mayor Richard Bailey have both said publicly that they will not enforce the new mandates in their cities. Putting the decision to require masks inside on the individual business owner.
"I believe in freedom, I believe in people's ability to make their own decisions," said Wells. "So, when people want to wear masks, they should wear masks."
Some business owners in El Cajon like Carlos Castrejon who runs Studio Creek Fine Art, agree with the mayor.
"We want people to feel comfortable," said Castrejon. "We don't want to push people away, it's been difficult to bring people into the business."
While those who don’t mask up inside are technically in violation of the mandate, there is little the state can do to punish them without the help of local authorities.
In places like Carlos’s art shop, the best thing a customer can do if they’re feeling uncomfortable, is to ask and be considerate.
"If my client doesn't want to wear a mask? Am I to tell him to wear a mask? No." said Castrejon. "I'm no authority on their life,”
WATCH RELATED: 6 cases of Omicron variant confirmed in San Diego County (December 2021)