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AUSTIN (KXAN) – Months after an executive order banning face masks for government agencies, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a new ordinance strengthening the current policy that bans those same bodies from requiring COVID-19 vaccinations.
The rule prevents any government agency from issuing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate, even for a vaccine like Pfizer’s that is no longer used in an emergency and has been fully approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
As part of the order:
- State authorities and local political departments cannot issue or enforce orders or guidelines that require vaccinations
- Public or private entities that receive government funding cannot require customers or clients to provide COVID-19 vaccination status or proof of vaccination. Entry cannot be refused on this basis.
“I think … the governor is transgressing power,” said Ken Zarifis, president of Education Austin, the teachers’ union for the Austin Independent School District.
He and many other members of the group supported a vaccination mandate.
“Positive cases, revelations, just happen everywhere,” he said. “If we make a mistake, we have to make mistakes on the safety side.”
That is why Zarifis opted for virtual learning for his seven-year-old.
“Vaccine requirements and exemptions have been set by lawmakers in the past, and their involvement is especially important in avoiding a patchwork of vaccine mandates across Texas,” Abbott said in a press release on Wednesday.
In June Abbott issued another executive order that bans Texas companies (including private individuals) from soliciting or requesting “vaccination records” from customers. Companies could lose licenses and permits if they defy the rule.
Governor Greg Abbott: Texas companies are now prohibited from asking for proof of vaccination
How far can the governor’s orders go?
“This is the question of the hour,” said David Coale, Appointment Specialist and Partner at Lynn, Pinker, Hurst & Schwegmann in Dallas.
Coale said the Texas Disaster Act was written for immediate emergencies, but the pandemic has now been raging for about a year and a half.
“And so there are these regulations that have been around for a very long time, which have been around for a very long time, and we are testing their limits , ” he explained.
Coale said one of the legal cases over mask mandates in schools is expected to be heard in the state Supreme Court later this week or early next week.
Then he said hopefully that this court would give us some insight into the governor’s powers during a disaster.
Although there are some legal similarities between a mask and a vaccine mandate, Coale said a vaccine battle might turn out differently in court, saying the governor’s argument of individual autonomy might carry more weight.
“Vaccination is different, it is medical treatment that you receive, something is put into your body. We are more respectful of individual autonomy there, ”he said.
Still, he believes school districts like San Antonio will use the same argument.
Following FDA approval, Texas school districts could soon impose vaccination requirements on employees
“‘Well, good for you, you have far-reaching power, but we also have power as a state entity that is separate from yours and that you can’t just take away,” “Coale said.
San Antonio ISD announced to KXAN that it will meet the vaccination deadline for staff.
“We firmly believe that the safest way as a school district is to get all employees vaccinated against COVID-19. We are moving forward with our request to have all employees vaccinated by October 15, unless they have a medical or religious exception. “
San Antonio ISD
Abbott has routinely made national headlines lately as Texas school districts battle to introduce masking for students and staff – while the state continues to announce the second highest number of new COVID-19 cases. Texas is currently seeing an average of 16,521 new cases per day.
Coale said it remains to be seen whether the mask process will carry over to the vaccine process; He said there was a lot of overlap but also some different problems.
The governor said he could overturn his order if lawmakers decide whether state and local governments can mandate vaccines and what exemptions should apply. He put it on the agenda for the special session.
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