US states with mask ban in schools face federal civil rights probe

The Education Department on Monday opened civil rights investigations into five Republican-led states that have banned or limited mask requirements in schools, saying the policies could amount to discrimination against students with disabilities or health conditions.

The department's Office for Civil Rights announced the investigations in letters to education chiefs in Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Utah.

Those states have issued varying prohibitions on mask requirements, which the office says could prevent some students from safely attending school.

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona accused the states of “putting politics over the health and education of the students they took an oath to serve.”

“The department will fight to protect every student's right to access in-person learning safely,” Cardona said in a statement.

It marks a sharp escalation in the Biden administration's battle with Republican states that say mask-wearing should be a personal choice.

President Joe Biden last week asked Cardona to explore possible legal action, prompting the department to examine whether the policies could amount to civil rights violations.

The states under investigation have adopted a range of policies that outlaw or curb mask mandates.

A state law in Iowa forbids school boards from mandating mask wearing.

In Tennessee, school mask mandates are permitted, but a recent executive order from Governor Bill Lee allows families to opt-out of them.

Those policies conflict with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recommends universal mask wearing for students and teachers in the classroom.

The CDC issued the guidance in light of the rapid spread of the highly contagious delta variant of COVID-19.

In announcing the investigations, the department said it will examine whether the policies violate a federal law protecting students with disabilities.

Under that law, students with disabilities must be given access to a “free appropriate public education” alongside their peers without disabilities.

But states that outlaw mask mandates could be preventing schools from taking necessary steps to protect students with disabilities or medical conditions, the department said.

In its letters, the department said it's concerned that the states “may be preventing schools from making individualised assessments about mask use so that students with disabilities can attend school and participate in school activities in person.”

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