Abbott bans mask mandate

Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday issued an executive order banning local governments and schools from requiring masks.

Local governments were ordered to abolish their mask mandates by May 21, and schools must do so by June 4, according to the executive order.

In a press release, Abbot stated, “ "The Lone Star state continues to defeat COVID-19 through the use of widelyavailable vaccines, antibody therapeutic drugs, and safe practices utilized by Texans in our communities," Abbott said in a press release. "Texans, not government, should decide their best health practices, which is why masks will not be mandated by public school districts or government entities.

“We can continue to mitigate COVID-19 while defending Texans’ liberty to choose whether or not they mask up.”

Local governments and officials can only keep mask orders in place until Friday or face a fine of up to $1,000. Exempt from the order are state-supported living centers, government-owned or operated hospitals, Texas Department of Criminal Justice facilities, Texas Juvenile Justice Department facilities, and county and municipal jails.

School districts can keep their current guidelines until June 4. At that point, Abbott’s order requires that the Texas Education Agency revise its current guidance to reflect that “no student, teacher, parent, or other staff member or visitor may be required to wear a face covering.”

Nearly 12 million Texans have received at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine and 41.7% of the state’s 16-and-older population is fully vaccinated.

Last week, federal regulators gave emergency authorization to allow those as young as 12 to receive the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines are still limited for those 18 and older.

While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently made sweeping changes to its recommendations for those who are vaccinated, the agency clarified that schools should keep the same social distancing and mask requirements at least through the 2020-21 school year, until its guidance could be reconsidered.