On Monday, Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin’s executive order that gives parents the right to have their children opt out of mask mandates at school took effect. However, several school districts in northern Virginia defied the order, arguing that it contradicts state law that says schools must follow CDC guidelines as much as possible.
But Democratic state senator Chap Petersen of Fairfax County says that the school district must announce an end date of the mask mandates or the state legislature must act to end them. Luke Rosiak reports at the Daily Wire:
The standoff may not need the courts to be resolved. On Monday, Chap Peterson, a moderate Democrat who joined with Republicans to force school re-opening last year, said in an email to the Fairfax County Parents Association that Fairfax’s school board “must define an ‘off ramp’ for mandatory masking. That means plainly stated metrics as well as a final deadline (e.g. Valentine’s Day). They should announce that immediately. The forced masking policy is going to end very soon, i.e. in a few weeks. Otherwise, the General Assembly will again step in. IT IS NOT AN ACCEPTABLE LONG-TERM SOLUTION.”
Republicans control the state house, while the Democrats control the state senate 21-19, meaning that any bill backed by Republicans and Peterson can be passed into law, with the Senate tie being broken by Lt. Gov. Winsom Sears, a Republican.