A Texas school district found a loophole in Gov. Greg Abbott’s (R) executive order banning mask mandates by making masks a part of its dress code.
Last month Abbott issued an executive order banning mask mandates saying at the time, Texans “have the individual right and responsibility to decide for themselves and their children whether they will wear masks, open their businesses, and engage in leisure activities.”
He also threatened to take legal actions against any local government entities and school districts who defy his mandate. A number of school districts have defied the order so far and implemented mask mandates for students and staff.
Abbott’s order was recently upheld by the state Supreme Court after he challenged a public health order from Dallas County judge Clay Jenkins that saw all but one of the county’s 14 public schools announcing they will implement a mask mandate, according to NBC News
But the Paris Independent School District found a way to circumvent Abbott’s mask mandate ban. District officials have amended its dress code to include masks.
“For health reasons, masks are required for all employees and students to mitigate flu, cold, pandemic, and any other communicable diseases,” the new dress code reads, according to The Paris News.
The motion to change the dress code passed on a 5-1 vote after more than an hour long emergency meeting of the Board of Trustees on Tuesday, days before the new school year begins. The change is not permanent and will be revisited each month at the Board of Trustees meeting.
“The Texas Governor does not have the authority to usurp the Board of Trustees’ exclusive power and duty to govern and oversee the management of the public schools of the district. Nothing in the Governor’s Executive Order 38 states he has suspended Chapter 11 of the Texas Education Code, and therefore the Board has elected to amend its dress code consistent with its statutory authority,” the district stated in a press release.
