Judge Freezes Virginia Gov. Youngkin’s Order Restricting School Mask Mandates

Topline

A Virginia judge on Friday temporarily blocked Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) from requiring school districts with mask mandates to offer opt-outs to parents, an early court loss for Youngkin, who joined a wave of Republican governors seeking to bar local mask mandates.

Key Facts

Arlington County Judge Louise DiMatteo issued a temporary restraining order, putting Youngkin’s two-week-old executive order on hold while a lawsuit from several of Virginia’s largest school systems works its way through the state court system.

DiMatteo argued Youngkin doesn’t have the legal authority to override masking policies set by local school boards, especially since the state legislature instructed school districts to set policies in line with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Covid-19 guidelines, which encourage schools to require universal mask-wearing.

Youngkin’s executive order said parents can opt students out of their school district’s mask mandate for any reason: It argued universal mask-wearing policies are “ineffective and impractical,” and could impede students’ learning and damage their mental health.

What To Watch For

Youngkin plans to appeal DiMatteo’s decision, spokesperson Macaulay Porter told Forbes. “The governor will never stop fighting for parents’ ability to choose what is best for their children,” Porter said in a statement.

Tangent

Schools in northern Virginia’s Loudoun County have defied Youngkin’s order and continued to require masks, leading a group of parents to sue the school board. Youngkin’s administration asked to join that lawsuit earlier this week.

Key Background

Youngkin took office three weeks ago, after running for governor on a platform centered partly on criticism of Virginia schools’ Covid-19 protocols. Several other Republican-led states have sought to ban school mask mandates over the last six months, including Florida, Texas and Arizona. Officials like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) say masks can be disruptive and parents should have the power to opt their children out, but some parents argue universal mask-wearing is crucial to preventing Covid-19 outbreaks. State-level bans on mask mandates have faced lawsuits and defiance from some school districts, and the U.S. Department of Education opened civil rights probes last year into several states that prevent schools from requiring masks, warning the policies could impede access to education for children whose health conditions put them at an elevated risk from the coronavirus.