AUSTIN (CN) — The Texas Supreme Court on Thursday temporarily blocked Bexar County and its seat, San Antonio, from enforcing an order that required staff and students in San Antonio public schools to wear masks.
The measure, which was announced online and not accompanied by a written ruling, comes as the Texas high court considers an appeal filed by Gov. Greg Abbott in a lawsuit that was brought by San Antonio and Bexar County on Aug. 10.
The two governments sought a declaration that Abbott’s executive order GA-38, which declared that cities and counties may not issue mask mandates or require vaccines, was outside the governor’s authority and violated the Texas Constitution’s suspension clause and separation of powers clause.
The tug of war between state officials and counties including Bexar and Dallas County has resulted in a tangle of contradictory rulings and orders. The lower court in Bexar County ruled in favor of the school mask mandate, and Dallas’ district judge upheld a wider-reaching order that required masks in businesses, county buildings, schools and universities.
When Texas’ Fourth Court of Appeals, seated in San Antonio, denied Gov. Abbott’s petition for a writ of mandamus on Aug. 19.
“The circumstances of this case are unique and, quite frankly, unprecedented,” wrote a three-judge panel in a per curiam opinion for the Fourth Court of Appeals. “Accordingly, we exercise our inherent authority under Rule 29.3, to maintain the status quo and preserve the parties’ rights until the disposition of this accelerated appeal.”
The state wasted no time in bringing the issue to the Texas Supreme Court, and disagreed entirely with the appellate court’s rationale.
“The statewide prohibition on mask mandates has been in effect since May. The temporary injunction — and reinstatement of the injunction — alter, rather than restore, that status quo,” the state argued in its petition for mandamus, which was signed by Solicitor General Judd Stone.
Further, “a series of laws permitting local mask mandates would ‘prevent, hinder, or delay necessary action in coping with a disaster’ because the governor may consider a variety of factors — not just preventing transmission of Covid-19 — in forming a statewide response to a disaster,” Judd wrote, quoting language from Texas’ Disaster Act.
GA-38 is the same executive order Texas officials cited when, on Aug. 19, the state sued the San Antonio Independent School District after its superintendent issued a letter to staff requiring all school employees to become fully vaccinated against Covid-19 by Oct. 15.
After the Food and Drug Administration approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on Monday, Aug. 23, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton abandoned the suit.
On Aug. 17, a school district in northeast Texas bucked the governor’s ban on mask mandates when it amended its dress code to require students to wear face coverings.
Though the Texas Supreme Court has not yet ruled on the governor’s petition, Paxton issued a celebratory press release following the high court’s Thursday ruling.
“The Texas Supreme Court has sided with the law, and the decision to enforce mask mandates lies with the governor’s legislatively-granted authority,” Paxton wrote. “Mask mandates across our state are illegal, and judges must abide by the law. Further non-compliance will result in more lawsuits.”
Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales also responded to the news Thursday.
“While I am personally disappointed in the order handed down today by the Texas Supreme Court, I will continue to do all that I can to fight for the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of Bexar County,” said Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales in a statement Thursday. “We are continuing to work with the City of San Antonio to determine the next steps in light of the order issued today.”
In a follow-up statement issued Thursday, Gonzales announced that area schools will follow guidance regarding mask mandates issued by the Texas Education Agency, which stated on Aug. 19 that “mask provisions of GA-38 are not being enforced as the result of ongoing litigation.”
“At this time, my office will defer to this guidance issued by TEA, and no prosecutions of school district officials within my jurisdiction as Bexar County District Attorney will occur as a result of those issuing mask mandates,” Gonzales said.
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg expressed his frustration with state leadership in his own statement.
“I support continuing the mask requirement for city employees and facilities. I also hope and expect school districts will stay the course and continue with their mask requirements,” Niernberg wrote. “Confusion is the enemy of emergency response, and the governor is excelling at it. Mask up. Get vaccinated. Protect yourself and those around you. It’s as simple as that.”
Gov. Abbott, who announced Aug. 17 that he had tested positive for Covid-19, is receiving antibody therapy in the governor’s mansion in Austin, Texas.
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