Virginia judge sides with 7 school boards, including Hampton, over Youngkin’s mask order

An Arlington County Circuit Court judge issued a temporary injunction Friday, suspending Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s executive order that sought to end schools’ mandates on wearing masks.

Youngkin issued the order Jan. 15, his first day in office, allowing parents to choose whether their children wear masks to school. Several school boards in the commonwealth defied the order, and roughly one week later, seven filed suit claiming the order violates state law and that Youngkin infringed on the school boards’ authority as stated in the Virginia Constitution. Hampton’s school board is one of the plaintiffs.

In a motion filed last week, the boards asked the court to issue a temporary injunction to restore the “status quo” for the remaining school year.

“The single issue before the Court is whether the Governor, via his emergency powers, can override the decision of local school boards delegated to them under SB 1303,” Judge Louise DiMatteo wrote in a memorandum opinion. “On this pivotal point, the Court concludes that the Governor cannot.”

DiMatteo’s opinion also says that under SB 1303, school boards and the Virginia Department of Education hold the authority to update COVID-19 protocol. The law, which has been cited numerous times to maintain universal masking in schools, requires schools to remain open five days a week following federal guidance in mitigation strategies to the highest extent. It expires in August.

The opinion explained Youngkin cannot make school boards “ignore the General Assembly’s deference to (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) guidance” and exert his power over school boards to determine what those mitigation strategies should be.

Youngkin’s office expects to appeal the decision, Macaulay Porter, the governor’s press secretary said in a Twitter post.

“It’s about parents knowing what’s best for their child’s health, (and) opting-out should there be a mask mandate.”

Sierra Jenkins, 229-462-8896, sierra.jenkins@virginiamedia.com