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Abbott last month issued an executive order that combined several of its previous Covid-19 ordinances, which included language that no government entity, including school districts, could require masks to be worn.
“Governor Abbott has decided on a course of action that bans face-covering warrants statewide. Whatever his motives or the dangerous nature of such a decision, it is within his authority. legislatively delegated to decide whether to impose the face covering or refuse to do so, ”Jenkins wrote in the document.
“But the governor also tried to prohibit local elected officials from making a different decision, in response to local conditions, to protect their own communities,” Jenkins said.
According to court documents, the Democratic County Judge writes that the law Abbott relied on in his executive order does not give him the power to make such an executive order.
In his counterclaim, Jenkins requests that the court grant him “a declaratory judgment recognizing his statutory authority to handle the local disaster caused by COVID, including his authority, if necessary, to mandate the face covering both in court of commissioners and also in public. “, read the documents.
“The enemy is not the other. The enemy is the virus, and we must all do our utmost to protect public health,” Jenkins said in a statement Monday.
“School districts and governments closest to the people should make decisions about how best to protect students and others,” Jenkins says.
CNN has contacted the governor’s office for comment.
The governor also did not comment to CNN on the Dallas Independent School District’s decision to temporarily require staff, students and visitors to wear masks on district property.
The Dallas School District has 230 schools, according to its website.
“Governor Abbott’s order does not limit the district’s rights as an employer and educational institution to establish reasonable and necessary safety regulations for its staff and students. Dallas ISD remains committed to the safety of our students and our staff, ”district officials said in a statement. .
Some district schools started last week, while others started on Monday. A majority of schools are expected to start next week, according to district schedules.
Texas and at least six other states – Arkansas, Arizona, Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Utah – ban districts from requiring masks in schools.
Last week, an Arkansas judge temporarily blocked enforcement of state law banning mask warrants in schools, in response to two lawsuits – one from a school district and the other parents – who want schools to be able to demand masks if they so choose.
With the injunction in place, school districts can now enforce mask requirements, while lawsuits continue.
In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis did not technically ban mask warrants, but issued an executive order that orders the Department of Education and the Department of Health to issue emergency rules that give parents the power to choose whether their children wear masks in class.
The order also threatens to withhold state funding if districts do not comply.
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