The court denied Abbott’s motion for emergency relief from the temporary restraining order, filed Aug. 13, against executive order GA-38, which barred local governments from issuing mask mandates.
The order was filed following a lawsuit on behalf of three Texas school districts.
Six days later, the Supreme Court denied a motion filed by Attorney General Ken Paxton on Abbott’s behalf that would have overturned the temporary restraining order.
“Local officials and school districts across the State will cite the TROs to ignore the Governor’s pandemic response, imposing mandates that GA-38 forbids,” Paxton’s petition to the court reads. “Texas’s effort to carry out an orderly, cohesive, and uniform response to the COVID-19 pandemic will have shattered.”
Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee said the court cited a rule that requires cases to go through the appellate court system, unless a strong reason is provided for why the Supreme Court would need to step in first.
“The Texas Supreme Court could have issued a stay in our case, but they chose not to," Menefee said. “I don’t know what it means long term, but it could mean the court is taking a strong look at if the Governor is overstepping his reach with the Disaster Act.”
The Disaster Act is part of the legal justification which Abbott has cited in issuing GA-38.
In the case of Dallas and San Antonio ISDs, the state applied similar mask mandates through the appellate process. When the cases reached the Supreme Court, the court sided with Abbott.
The difference with the current temporary restraining orders, filed on behalf of Harris County and several other districts, is that the state government took the case straight to the Supreme Court, Menefee said.
“The Texas Supreme Court could have issued a stay in our case, but they chose not to,” Menefee said. “I don’t know what it means long term, but it could mean the court is taking a strong look at if the Governor is overstepping his reach with the Disaster Act.”
Regarding mask mandates in schools, Menefee said it is still unclear exactly where the issue stands, and it continues to move through the court via various lawsuits. But, he added the ruling gives schools more security in moving forward with mask policies.
“If you are a school district in Harris County, you are in the clear,” Menefee said. “If you are another school district, you could probably look at this, as your mask mandates are probably OK under this.”
