TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida's State Board of Education on Friday ordered the school districts of Broward and Alachua counties to "follow the law" after both defied Gov. Ron DeSantis' school mask mandate ban.
In a statement in response, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said the Biden administration stands "with them and all educators who put student and staff health and education first."
Both school districts, along with others that have followed suit, are requiring a student to provide a doctor's note to opt out of wearing a mask in school. The board says it finds this to be a violation of the "rights of parents by denying them the option to make health care decisions for their children."
According to a press release, the Florida Department of Education has offered opportunities for "amicable resolution" to no avail.
“It is important to remember that this issue is about ensuring local school board members, elected politicians, follow the law. These public officials have sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of Florida. We cannot have government officials pick and choose what laws they want to follow,” Commissioner of Education Richard Corcoran said in a statement. “These are the initial consequences to their intentional refusal to follow state law and state rule to purposefully and willingly violate the rights of parents. This is simply unacceptable behavior.”
The action follows an emergency meeting held by the State Board of Education where members unanimously directed the commissioner to further investigate the conduct and acts of Broward and Alachua counties' superintendents and to take all legal steps to enforce the established rule.
That includes the ability to withhold funding, which appears will be the case if no action is taken by either county by next week.
According to the order, each school district has 48 hours to fall within compliance, if not, each school district will then have another 48 hours to provide Corcoran with the salaries of all its school board members.
If things get to that point, the Florida Department of Education says it will begin to withhold an amount equal to 1/12 the total annual compensation of the school board members who voted to impose the mask mandate on a monthly basis. This action will stop once the school district comes into compliance.
"The Order also prohibits each school district from reducing any other expenditures other than those related to compensation for school board members, and clearly states each district may not permit the reduction of funds that impact student services or teacher pay," a press release reads.
The battle over students wearing masks in the classroom began in late July when DeSantis signed an executive order preventing schools from issuing mask mandates for students — even President Joe Biden has gotten involved, with the White House telling him to "get out of the way" of school mask mandates.
Cardona in a statement said the federal government will assist with any financial penalty imposed by the state.
"Let me reiterate: we stand ready to assist any district facing repercussions for imposing CDC-recommended COVID-19 prevention strategies that will protect the health and safety of students, educators, and staff. To that end, we've also made clear to district leaders that any financial penalties imposed by the state can be addressed immediately using CARES, CRRSA, or American Rescue Plan funds," the statement reads, in part.
RELATED: Florida DOE passes emergency rule allowing children to transfer schools due to 'COVID-19 harassment'
Following DeSantis' order, the Florida Department of Health issued an emergency rule that says students may wear a mask in the classroom, but schools must allow parents the option to opt-out of any face-covering requirements for students.
The Florida Department of Education then met days before the new school year was set to begin and approved changes to both the student attendance policy and the Hope Scholarship. The latter now allows students to transfer schools if they experience "COVID-19 harassment" or discrimination from any schools' COVID-19 safety protocols or policies.
In the Tampa Bay area, Hillsborough County Schools recently implemented a 30-day mask mandate with a doctor's note requirement for those who wish to opt out. The State Board of Education has yet to take any action toward the school district.