Newly elected Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin could turn to the courts or restrict state education funds to achieve compliance from school districts defying his executive order allowing parents to opt out of school mask mandates for their children.
Less than two days into his term, Youngkin vowed to use the full extent of his authority to ensure that all schools were compliant with his day-one executive order that would allow parents to opt out of school mask mandates.
WATCH: YOUNGKIN SAYS WE WON’T TEACH OUR CHILDREN TO VIEW EVERYTHING THROUGH A ‘LENS OF RACE’
Hours after the governor signed the executive order, several major Virginia school districts, including Fairfax County Public Schools, Arlington Public Schools, and Prince William County Public Schools announced there would be no change to their mandates. Youngkin, in comments to WTOP on Sunday, was clear he would push back.
“It is clear under law that parents have a fundamental right to make decisions for their children’s upbringing, their education, and their care, and so we are providing parents an opt-out, providing them the ability to make the right decision for their child with regards to their child’s well-being,” Youngkin said. “We are going to use all the authority that I have to consider all options to protect that right.”
In a statement to the Washington Examiner, Youngkin spokeswoman Macaulay Porter said, “The governor will consider all options available and all tools at his disposal to ensure parents can make decisions about their children’s upbringing, education, and care.”
Robert Eitel, the president and co-founder of the Defense of Freedom Institute and a former Department of Education official, told the Washington Examiner that Virginia was experiencing a “clash of gubernatorial power and local control over school districts,” adding that school districts are relying on a state law that requires school districts to follow CDC guidelines in order to maintain in-person instruction as the justification for defying the executive order.
But because the executive order simply requires schools to allow parents the option of sending their children to school without wearing a mask, Eitel said school districts that do not allow for an opt-out will likely be sued by parents with the support of Youngkin and state Attorney General Jason Miyares.
Youngkin could also direct the Virginia Department of Education to withhold state funding from such districts, likely setting up even more litigation, Eitel said. Fox News’s John Roberts reported Monday that Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears said the governor was considering that option.
Virginia Lt. Gov. @WinsomeSears says @GlennYoungkin may withold state education money from school districts that defy his Executive Order making masking optional. So far, Fairfax, Arlington and Richmond have said their mask mandates will stay in place.
— John Roberts (@johnrobertsFox) January 17, 2022
The clash between state and local governments in Virginia could put the new governor’s administration in the federal government’s crosshairs. The Biden administration previously pushed back against states such as Florida and Arizona that have banned school mask mandates.
A clue to the Biden administration’s plan could be found in the Twitter feed of White House press secretary Jen Psaki, who identified herself as an Arlington public schools parent and thanked the district for its mask policy in a shot at Youngkin.
Hi there. Arlington county parent here (don’t believe you are @GlennYoungkin but correct me if I am wrong). Thank you to @APSVirginia for standing up for our kids, teachers and administrators and their safety in the midst of a transmissible variant. https://t.co/6UeNIYoZCU
— Jen Psaki (@jrpsaki) January 17, 2022
“That tweet was done, you know, intentionally and with forethought,” Eitel said. “And the question is, what are the next moves that the Biden administration will make on this issue?”
Eitel pointed to how the administration has sought to pressure state officials in Arizona by threatening to withhold COVID-19 relief funds after the state implemented a ban on school mask mandates as a possible preview of the federal government’s response to Youngkin’s executive order.
“They [could] hold up American Rescue Plan funds because of the [executive order] and sort of leverage that pressure against the governor to get him to revise the EO to allow these local school districts to continue with their universal mask mandates,” Eitel said. “The other possibility is they can do like they did in Florida, which is … seek to deny the use of federal education funds generally.”
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The Department of Education approved Florida’s allocation of federal COVID-19 relief funds under the American Rescue Plan earlier this month.
