SC teachers group calls on McMaster to declare emergency and require masks in schools

A group of South Carolina teachers is calling on Gov. Henry McMaster to suspend the temporary state law that prevents schools from requiring masks in the classroom.

The Palmetto State Teachers Association issued a news release Monday saying “the overwhelming majority of our members” support allowing local school districts to decide whether they want to require masks in classrooms.

A proviso, a one-year law attached to the state budget, prevents K-12 schools from requiring masks be worn in classrooms. The proviso contradicts advice from health agencies, such as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recommend requiring masks in classrooms.

“In hoping for a return to normal, the legislature has tried to prohibit key mitigation strategies for this school year, most notably the ability of local school districts to implement mask requirements,” the letter said. “To be clear, no one wants to teach or learn in a mask, but it is also true no one wants to shift to distance learning.”

While the letter called on all state and local officials to act, it noted the governor has the “greatest capacity to act immediately.”

McMaster spokesman Brian Symmes said the governor does not have the power to suspend the proviso, and does not support doing so.

“As he has said repeatedly over the last year and a half, the governor does not have the constitutional authority to suspend state law,” Symmes said in an email. “Nevertheless, Gov. McMaster’s position remains unchanged — a parent has the ultimate expertise when it comes to the health and safety of their families, and it should be a parent’s decision alone that determines whether their child wears a face mask at school.”

The K-12 association warned if state officials did not take action to remove barriers to mask mandates, local officials would act, even if it meant local districts losing state funding. There is already some evidence of local resistance to the proviso. The City of Columbia passed an ordinance requiring masks be worn at day cares and elementary and middle schools in the city limits. On Monday evening, Richland County Council will consider an emergency ordinance that would require masks at day cares and private and public schools that teach students between the ages of 2 and 14.

S.C. Attorney General Alan Wilson pushed back on Columbia’s mask ordinance, saying it was against the law. However, a potential loss of state funding may not be enough to stop local officials from implementing mask rules.

“If the governor and legislature will not take immediate action, local school districts should take bold and decisive action to employ any and all mitigation measures they believe are needed in their community, regardless of any potential financial costs,” according to the letter. “At this moment, the cost of inaction for student health and development is infinitely greater.”

The teachers association wasn’t the only one to speak up. The South Carolina School Boards Association issued a press release Monday calling for the General Assembly to either suspend the proviso blocking mask mandates or to allow school districts more control over masking policies.

“For us, it’s not about whether or not masks are required in schools, or if virtual learning should be an option at this time. It is, however, about who is best positioned to monitor and modify safety protocol and make the best decisions to keeps students and employees safe – your local school board,” Scott Price, the school board’s executive director, said in a news release.

The American Association of University Professors at the University of South Carolina published a letter Saturday that called for McMaster to allow USC to implement a mask mandate.

“We are not asking for a return to lockdowns, virtual learning or statewide mandates, but rather that leadership be given the ability to proactively mitigate circumstances at their institutions that could result in an outbreak,” the AAUP letter said.

This story was originally published August 16, 2021 at 11:39 AM.