The Assembly Minority Conference today offered a measure to end New York’s mask mandate in schools, however the Majority Conference rejected the proposal. State Health Department Commissioner Dr. Mary Bassett said last week that the administration has no metric, timetable or estimate as to when the state’s mask mandate for schools may come to an end.

“We are no longer in a state of emergency. Nearby states are ending their school mask mandates, but the state Health Department can’t even come up with a timetable? What are we waiting for,” said Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay. “New York parents and students have had enough of the confusion and inconsistency. Not only are these mandates going away in other states, New York’s school mandate was struck down in court for being unconstitutional. If the Hochul Administration isn’t willing to act, the Legislature needs to step in. It’s time to return our kids and our classrooms to a normal way of life.”

The amendment (A.8101, Tague) presented today by Assembly Minority Conference would prohibit state agencies from implementing regulations that require individuals under the age of 18, who are not exhibiting COVID symptoms, to wear a mask in a public place or while participating in any recreational or organized sporting activity. The Majority refused to consider the legislation. 

Last week, the governors of New Jersey, Connecticut and Delaware all announced that their school mask mandates would sunset in late February or March. However, during testimony given during a Joint Legislative Budget Hearing, Dr. Bassett failed to provide any clarity on when New York might follow suit. When asked for details on when school children might be free of mask requirements, she replied, “We’re watching the numbers and don’t have a date for you.”

On Jan. 24, State Supreme Court Judge Thomas Rademaker in Nassau County ruled the school mask mandate was unconstitutional and that Gov. Hochul did not have the authority to implement such a requirement because New York’s state of emergency has ended. The state appealed the decision and the school mandate has remained in place.