Texas sues six school districts over mask warrants

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For the first time in the Texas Mask Wars, Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing six school districts that defied Governor Greg Abbott’s ban on local masking orders.

Paxton sued the Elgin, Galveston, Richardson, Round Rock, Sherman and Spring school districts on Friday for forcing students, teachers, school employees and visitors to cover their faces on their premises, which he called an “illegal political maneuver”.

“If districts choose to spend their money on legal fees, they should do so with the knowledge that my office is ready and willing to litigate these cases,” Paxton said in a statement. “I have full confidence that the courts will side with the law – not acts of political defiance.”

Dozens of school districts across the state have challenged Abbott and issued mask warrants. As of Friday night, it wasn’t immediately clear why Paxton picked the six districts he pursued.

The governor’s decree prohibits local authorities from forcing people to wear masks. Until this week, Abbott and Paxton were on the defense as several school districts, towns and counties in major metropolitan areas across the state pursued the order – or ignored it outright.

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Some 85 school districts and six counties have instituted some sort of mask mandate in defiance of Abbott’s ban – citing the need to protect schoolchildren too young to get vaccinated amid the spread of the highly contagious delta variant of COVID-19.

The legal push-and-pull between the state’s Republican leadership and local officials has led to a patchwork of mask-wearing rules across the state as judges uphold, revoke and reinstate the various requirements, creating confusion for Texans as to whether they or their children should wear a mask.

Abbott had called on Texas lawmakers to send him a bill that would permanently prevent school officials from requiring students, teachers and other school employees to wear face coverings. But the prospect never gained momentum in the Legislature.

Abbott and Paxton have for weeks threatened local governments and public schools that have passed cover-up rules with lawsuits – a threat Paxton followed through on this week.

Officials from the Round Rock Independent School District did not comment on the lawsuit, but said in a statement that the mask requirement was helping their schools stay open.

“We are working closely with our two local health authorities in Williamson and Travis counties, who are advising us that masks remain an essential tool in stemming the spread of COVID-19 in our classrooms,” officials said by Round Rock ISD.

Spring Independent School District officials have yet to see Paxton’s trial, they said in a statement Friday – and only learned about it through a press release from the attorney general’s office.

“Spring ISD will let the legal process unfold and allow the courts to decide the merits of the case,” officials said.

Richardson Independent School District officials declined to comment, citing the ongoing litigation.

A spokesperson for the Sherman School District said in a statement that school officials were aware of the lawsuit, but received no further information.

“The district has focused and will continue to focus on promoting a safe and healthy learning environment for our students and staff, including keeping its schools open and accessible for teaching as well as extracurricular activities. “said the spokesperson. noted.

Other school districts did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

In at least one lawsuit filed Thursday night, Paxton has asked a Galveston County judge to temporarily suspend the Galveston Independent School District’s mask warrant – arguing that Abbott has the power to override emergency orders local.

Abbott’s order “has the force and effect of state law and must be followed, regardless of whether local authorities agree with it,” Paxton wrote in the lawsuit.

However, neither Abbott nor Paxton have the power to enforce the governor’s ban on their own, they argued in court documents.

Additionally, the Texas Education Agency does not require schools to comply with Abbott’s ban. So far, the move has led the Biden administration to keep Texas out of a federal investigation into a group of states that have barred school districts from requiring masks.

Allyson Waller contributed to this story.

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