Will California crack down on schools skipping mask mandates? They’re on their own, so far
At Roseville Joint Union High School District, defying the state’s K-12 mask mandate is now stated policy. Schools there will not enforce face coverings in class.
Hours away, in Tuolumne County, the tiny Soulsbyville Elementary School Board voted to do the same and ignore the state’s mandate on masking and, for good measure, any K-12 vaccine requirement that may come down the pike. El Dorado Union High School District also changed its mask enforcement to one that in its words, educates, not excludes.
Each of the districts poked the Golden Bear just as California health officials gave schools a two-week reprieve on any decision on mask mandates. State health officials will come back with a decision Feb. 28; enough time, they said, for communities and school districts to talk over any changes and add safeguards.
But what about the breakaway districts and the consequences they may face?
“This is a good question and we are not entirely sure on what the consequences will be at this point given the mask policy from California Department of Public Health is likely going to change soon,” John Becker, superintendent of Roseville Joint Union High School District, told The Bee on Wednesday via email.
Indeed, it remains unclear what repercussions rural and suburban California school districts like those in Placer and Tuolumne counties may face for defying the state’s school masking mandates.
California Health and Human Services Secretary Dr. Mark Ghaly seemed to sidestep the issue Monday. State requirements on classroom masks apply to Roseville, the health secretary said, adding “I think that will be an important point to make not just here but for other efforts that we’ve used throughout this pandemic and we may need to use down the road as well.”
But legal warnings to districts regarding similar dictates on COVID-19 vaccines may provide a clue.
The Bee continues to reach out to legal experts and joint powers authorities — the agencies that insure school districts — but Soulsbyville’s insurance provider, the Tuolumne Joint Powers Authority, said it would no longer cover COVID-19-related claims after the district in December passed a resolution stating that it would not enforce a vaccine mandate, the Sonora Union Democrat reported.
The district later reversed the resolution.
Other legal experts and insurance providers who spoke last week with the education news site EdSource on K-12 vaccine mandates said school boards that ignore state mandates are placing state funding and insurance coverage in jeopardy.
The El Dorado district’s leaders conceded as much in its letter this week to parents on its decision not to enforce masking rules.
The message from its liability carriers, officials said: You’ve been warned.
“Our school liability carriers all warn us that if we take explicit action to defy State guidance we will be held liable and accountable for any such decision,” the letter read, saying also that the district will “continue to do our best to comply with the law.”
This story was originally published February 17, 2022 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Will California crack down on schools skipping mask mandates? They’re on their own, so far."
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