Eight states, all with Republican governors, have prohibited school districts from requiring staff and students to wear masks during the 2021-2022 school year.
The prohibitions have generated a great deal of controversy, including a letter from President Joe Biden’s Department of Education on Wednesday warning school districts without mask mandates could forfeit federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
None of the state prohibitions against mask mandates prevent children from wearing masks, as they can still wear them voluntarily in school.
SCIENCE BEHIND MASKING IN SCHOOLS UNDER DEBATE
Below are the eight states that have prohibited mask mandates in schools and the controversies surrounding them.
Arizona: During the summer, the Arizona Legislature included a provision in the budget that prevents school districts from imposing a mask mandate. Gov. Doug Ducey signed the budget into law on June 30.
Because policy components in Arizona state budgets don’t go into effect for 90 days, the mask mandate prohibition won’t be in force until Sept 29. At least 10 school districts currently require students to wear masks. Ducey has created a $163 million school grant program out of federal virus relief funds and is threatening to withhold related grants from schools that enforce mask mandates.
Florida: On July 30, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive order preventing school boards from imposing mask mandates. On Wednesday, three school boards — Miami-Dade, Palm Beach, and Hillsborough — defied the governor and voted to require masks for students and staff.
They join Broward and Alachua counties, where officials voted to require masks in schools earlier in August. The Florida Board of Education voted Tuesday to punish Broward and Alachua counties for imposing mask mandates. School board members in those counties will begin losing their monthly pay as early as next week.
Iowa: In May, Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a bill that prevents public schools from requiring students and staff to wear masks. No school districts in Iowa have defied the law so far.
Oklahoma: In late May, Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a bill preventing public schools and universities from imposing mask or vaccine mandates. In mid-August, the Oklahoma State Medical Association and a group of parents filed suit in court against the law.
On Thursday, the Hulbert School District became the first to defy the law when its school board voted to require staff and students to wear masks.
South Carolina: Like Arizona, South Carolina passed a prohibition on school mask mandates as part of its state budget, which Gov. Henry McMaster signed in late June. It went into effect on July 1.
Democrats in the state Legislature and Education Superintendent Molly Spearman have been calling for a special legislative session to repeal it. Thus far, schools districts in Charleston and Colleton counties have decided to impose mask mandates anyway, implementing them last week.
McMaster has not yet responded.
Tennessee: On Tuesday, Tennessee became the latest state to prevent school districts from requiring masks. Gov. Bill Lee issued an executive order requiring school districts to permit parents to exempt their children from mask mandates. Both the Memphis and Nashville school districts have said their mask mandates will remain in place.
Lt. Gov. Randy McNally has said the state Legislature should not allow those school districts to defy the executive order.
Texas: Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order in May prohibiting state government entities, including school districts, from instituting mask mandates. School districts in Travis, Austin, Houston, and Forth Worth either defied the ban or announced plans to do so.
Officials in Dallas, Bexar, and other counties filed suit and won temporary injunctions against Abbott’s executive order. On Thursday, the Texas Supreme Court denied Abbott’s request to block those injunctions. Due to the court’s ruling and subsequent legal challenges, the Texas Education Agency announced that, for now, it would not enforce Abbott’s executive order.
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Utah: In late May, Gov. Spencer Cox signed a bill that prevents school districts from imposing mask mandates this school year. However, some officials are testing possible loopholes in the law that may permit temporary mask mandates.
Grand County School District in Southern Utah is testing a 30-day mask mandate. Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall announced on Friday she will issue a mask mandate for her city’s schools under her emergency authority. Mendenhall said she does not believe the state law against mask mandates applies to a mayor’s emergency powers.
