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Texas Supreme Court sides with Gov. Abbott, temporarily blocking mask mandates

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in June. (Eric Gay/AP)

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s ban on mask mandates will be allowed to stand, at least temporarily, the Texas Supreme Court announced Sunday.

The stay marks the latest development in the battle between local governments and the state over pandemic-related restrictions, and it comes as the state’s covid-19 hospitalizations have increased 400 percent over the past month.

The all-Republican court temporarily blocked mask mandates in two counties until their cases can be heard, affirming Abbott’s executive order that prohibited government entities from issuing mask mandates.

As the delta variant of the coronavirus surges, several school districts and some Texas counties have defied the Republican governor’s order. The cases the court considered were those of Bexar County, home to San Antonio, and Dallas County.

What you need to know about the highly contagious delta variant

The counties were trying to impose mask requirements in schools, which will not be permitted now, at least until the courts review the matter further.

Bexar County will maintain its mask mandate despite the ruling, the city of San Antonio said in a statement Sunday.

The statement said the ruling “has little practical effect” because a trial court will hear the counties’ case on Monday.

The Dallas Independent School District announced late Sunday that it will also continue requiring masks for students and staff despite the Supreme Court’s order, the Dallas Morning News reported.

“Until there’s an official order of the court that applies to the Dallas Independent School District, we will continue to have the mask mandate,” Superintendent Michael Hinojosa told the publication.

After appeals courts sided with the counties on Friday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) tweeted: “We have taken this mask mandate to the Texas Supreme Court. The rule of law will decide.”

Paxton’s office argued that the Texas Disaster Act of 1975 “definitively makes the governor the ‘commander in chief’ of the State’s response to a disaster,” meaning local entities could not defy his orders.

Mounting lawsuits, federal government challenge DeSantis, Abbott bans on mask mandates

On Friday, U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona sent Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) letters raising concerns about their executive actions prohibiting school districts from “voluntarily adopting science-based strategies for preventing the spread of Covid-19 that are aligned with the guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.”

“The ban doesn’t prohibit using masks,” Abbott tweeted Sunday evening. “Anyone who wants to wear a mask can do so, including in schools.”

Texas Rep. Chris Turner (D) responded on Twitter, telling the governor, “It’s not too late to do the right thing,” and asking him to rescind the order that “ties the hands of local leaders.”

Judge Clay Jenkins, who issued the Dallas County mask mandate, tweeted Sunday that the court “narrowly ruled,” saying: “We won’t stop working with parents, doctors, schools, business + others to protect you.”

Read more:

Masks in schools: Explaining the debate over face coverings in classrooms

Texas Gov. Abbott seeks out-of-state help against covid-19

How to stay safe as coronavirus cases from the delta variant are on the rise

Coronavirus: What you need to know

End of the public health emergency: The Biden administration ended the public health emergency for the coronavirus pandemic on May 11, just days after WHO said it would no longer classify the coronavirus pandemic as a public health emergency. Here’s what the end of the covid public health emergency means for you.

Tracking covid cases, deaths: Covid-19 was the fourth leading cause of death in the United States last year with covid deaths dropping 47 percent between 2021 and 2022. See the latest covid numbers in the U.S. and across the world.

The latest on coronavirus boosters: The FDA cleared the way for people who are at least 65 or immune-compromised to receive a second updated booster shot for the coronavirus. Here’s who should get the second covid booster and when.

New covid variant: A new coronavirus subvariant, XBB. 1.16, has been designated as a “variant under monitoring” by the World Health Organization. The latest omicron offshoot is particularly prevalent in India. Here’s what you need to know about Arcturus.

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