Legislation to exempt certain public school districts from a state law that prohibits mask mandates was filed in the Arkansas House and Senate on Wednesday.
House Bill 1003 by Rep. Julie Mayberry, R-Hensley, applies to school buildings, school buses or other congregate educational settings within public school districts where children under 12 may be present during times dedicated for academic purposes if the district has a 14-day coronavirus infection rate of at least 50 new known infections per 10,000 district residents based on data from the state Department of Health of the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement.
The local school board must also vote to approve the mandate. For charter schools, the mandate can be imposed if they meet those conditions.
The General Assembly is currently meeting in a special session called by Gov. Asa Hutchinson for the purpose of amending Act 1002 of 2021 to allow local school districts flexibility in requiring face coverings.
The bill has been assigned to the House Committee on Public Health, Welfare and Labor, which is scheduled to meet at 1 p.m.
A separate bill, Senate Bill 2 by Sen. Alan Clark, R-Lonsdale, allows local school boards to establish policies concerning quarantine requirements and mask mandates but permits parents or guardians to transfer out of their assigned public school district based on that policy.
Read Thursday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for the full story.