On Friday, Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis announced he would bar local school districts in an executive order from requiring masks "very soon."
The governor's expected executive order comes in light of the Broward County school board passing a mask mandate due to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) new recommendation that all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to K-12 schools wear a mask while indoors. The new school year starts in a month.
"Very soon I'll be signing an executive order which directs the Florida Department of Education and Department of Health to issue emergency rules protecting the rights of parents to make this decision about wearing masks for their children," DeSantis said, according to Axios.
Shortly after the governor's statement, the Florida Education Association took to Twitter and responded in an open letter:
"No matter if we live in urban South Florida, in the rural Panhandle or somewhere in-between, we all want our children to be healthy and safe," the FEA's statement read.
"Unfortunately, through his words and actions, Gov. DeSantis has made clear he does not respect the freedom of locally elected officials to do what they feel is best for their communities."
DeSantis' announcement to bar mask-wearing in schools comes on the heels of Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott issuing his executive order on Thursday barring mask mandates.
"Today's executive order will provide clarity and uniformity in the Lone Star State's continued fight against COVID-19," Abbott stated. "The new executive order emphasizes that the path forward relies on personal responsibility rather than government mandates."
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