Arizona's School Mask Mandate Ban was declared unconstitutional just before it took effect
Zoomen this image toggle caption Ross D. Franklin/AP Ross D. Franklin/AP
A judge in Arizona ruled that a ban against public school mask mandates as well as other laws that were inserted into the state budget by Republican legislators was unconstitutional.
This ruling allows public school officials across Arizona to prohibit the wearing of masks by students, staff, and visitors on their campuses. On Wednesday, the law that would ban such authority was set to go into effect.
Other policies that were adopted as part the budget were also canceled, including a ban against vaccine requirements for public universities and community colleges, local governments, and anti-fraud ballot measures. There is also a ban from teaching critical race theory to public schools.
Maricopa County Superior Judge Katherine Cooper stated that all of it is illegal and unenforceable.
She wrote that "the issue here isn't what the Legislature decided, but how it decided to do it."
Cooper used two rules from the Arizona Constitution as support for her ruling. One states that a bill cannot address more than one subject at a given time. Cooper stated that the subject of the budget is to address how taxpayer dollars are spent. A third constitutional requirement is that bills be given titles that accurately reflect the contents of the bill.
Cooper wrote that Republican state legislators violated at most one of four budget bills. In one case, Cooper also wrote that both.
Cooper described the one case as "an array of provisions that are not related or connected to each other nor to an identifiable budget procedure'." "
The 55-page Senate Bill contained policies that stripped the Democratic Secretary of State of the power to defend or deny Arizona's election law. It also included a broad preemption for local COVID-19 mitigation requirements to private businesses. A special committee was created to receive reports from the widely-criticized GOP-led review of 2020 elections in Maricopa County. There were also time limits on the governor declaring a public health emergency.
Cooper wrote, "The bill is classic logrolling, a medley special interests cobbled together in order to force a vote or all."
She rejected the arguments of the state's attorney who claimed that the legislature has broad authority over how policies are interpreted in a bill's title and what is considered the "single topic" that a bill can address.
Republican Gov. Doug Ducey described the decision as "an example of judicial excess."
CJ Karamargin, a spokesperson for Arizona's state government, stated that "Arizona's three-branch system of government works. It's the duty and power of only the legislative branch organize itself and make laws." "Unfortunately, today’s decision is due to a rogue Judge interfering in the authority and processes for another branch of government."
Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich stated in a statement that he will appeal the decision.
Cooper addressed the claims of overreach in her ruling. She noted that she didn’t address the policies Republicans wanted to enact but rather whether lawmakers followed constitutional mandates when writing or voting on those laws, an issue she wrote.
Kathy Hoffman, a Democrat and state school superintendent, praised Cooper's ruling as a welcome sign of change in Arizona's legislative process. Arizona Republican legislators often leverage their votes to pass the budget in return for something. Cooper ruled that substantive policy changes have no business being included in the budget.
Hoffman called the Republican standard operating procedure "an attack on the democratic process" and asked the state to reverse the ruling.
Hoffman stated that while some may want to challenge today’s ruling, school communities have grown tired of being political pawns involved in dangerous attempts to subvert democracy.
Ducey may now be unable to dissuade Arizona public school leaders and administrators from making students and staff wear masks.
He announced grants in August to increase per-pupil funding for public and charter schools. However, only schools that allow masks to be removed and maintain classrooms for in-person learning were eligible. Ducey also offers vouchers for private school tuition to families who wish to opt out from school mask mandates. These programs are funded through federal COVID-19 relief funds.
