The California Supreme Court has denied a petition Wednesday filed by the Orange County Board of Education seeking to overturn a state mandate requiring students to wear masks indoors.
The petition, filed Aug. 10, was in response to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s emergency declaration handed down March 4, 2020.
“More than 18 months after the pandemic began, Californians are living in a seemingly perpetual quasi-state of emergency,” the petition read, “with ballparks full but mask mandates returning and millions of families waiting to see whether, and how, their children will be educated this school year.”
The board has no authority over mask rules in O.C.’s 28 public school districts. Its responsibilities are limited to budget approval and serving as an appellate body in review of student disciplinary actions and transfer requests.
This is the second time the O.C. board has filed a legal action against state responses to the pandemic. In 2020, the board sued Gov. Newsom seeking to reopen schools for in-person instruction at a time when distance learning was still in place. The court declined to hear that case in Sept. of last year.
Board member Beckie Gomez, who did not support the board’s majority in seeking a petition, told The Orange County Register Thursday she was “glad the Supreme Court denied it.”
“Everyone needs to take appropriate measures to ensure the safety of our students and protect those who can’t be vaccinated,” she said.