DALLAS — The Texas Education Agency told districts Thursday that the governor's ban on face mask mandates "is not being enforced," according to the updated guidance.
School districts and Gov. Greg Abbott are still in the middle of lawsuits over whether districts should be allowed to require face masks. Back in May, Abbott issued an executive order that prohibited many government entities, including schools, from implementing mask mandates.
A Travis County judge temporarily blocked Abbott’s order last week, granting a temporary restraining order to parents in Central Texas.
Many larger districts are resisting Abbott's order and requiring masks anyways as the new school year gets underway.
The new guidance says, "Please note, mask provisions of GA-38 are not being enforced as the result of ongoing litigation. Further guidance will be made available after the court issues are resolved."
Previous guidance from the TEA said that in accordance with Abbott's executive order, schools couldn't require students or staff to wear masks.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention says that if you are not fully vaccinated and aged 2 or older, you should wear a mask in indoor public places.
If you are fully vaccinated, to maximize protection from the Delta variant and prevent possibly spreading it to others, wear a mask indoors in public if you are in an area of substantial or high transmission.
COVID positive cases
On Thursday, the TEA said Commissioner Mike Morath discussed the updates with superintendents across the state.
The updated guidance, effective immediately, clarified that schools are required to notify teachers, staff and families if there is a positive COVID case identified among the cohort, whether in a classroom, extracurricular activity, or an after-school program.
The guidance also reiterated that students who are suspected of being actively sick with COVID or who have a positive test result must immediately notify parents if this is determined while on campus.
The student must also be excluded from attending school in-person and may receive remote instruction.
Students and staff who are close contact but are fully vaccinated may not need to follow the stay-at-home period, the TEA said, citing the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Previous guidance released on Aug. 5 said "given the data from 2020-21 showing very low COVID-19 transmission rates in a classroom setting and data demonstrating lower transmission rates among children than adults, school systems are not required to conduct COVID-19 contact tracing."