stay objective when we look at it". on march 10, 2021, texas lifted its mask mandate and capacity restrictions, in a move that was considered premature by critics and other politicians following its announcement. the lifting of the mandate also included a prohibition on enforcing mask mandates; on the day the orders took effect, the texas attorney general threatened to sue the city of austin, texas for intending to continue its mask mandate. the number of new cases and hospitalizations in texas had already begun to decline in the weeks following the announcement, with an unt health science center professor believing that residents continuing to follow health guidance, as well as vaccination progress and immunity, may have also been factors. at the start of the new school year in august 2021, political conflicts over mask mandates in schools intensified in florida and texas, whose governors had both issued executive orders explicitly prohibiting schools and school boards from implementing mask mandates. these orders were issued despite recommendations by the cdc that masks be worn in schools due to the threat of delta variant, as no vaccine was approved for children under 12 at that time. governor desantis warned that the state would withhold funding from schools and school boards that chose to mandate masks, and also threatened to withhold the wages from school officials responsible for implementing mask mandates. a number of districts in both states announced that they would defy the orders and still mandate masks. secretary of education miguel cardona sent letters to governor abbott and governor desantis, expressing concern that their decisions to prohibit voluntary compliance with cdc recommendations "may infringe upon a school district's authority to adopt policies to protect students and educators as they develop their safe return to in-person instruction plans required by federal law." legal challenges against school mask mandates in texas had gone both ways, which led to confusion over their legality. paris independent school district attempted to bypass the texas executive order by declaring its mask mandate to officially be an amendment to the dress code for students and faculty. on august 19, the supreme court of texas temporarily denied a request by governor abbott to block a lower court ruling that had upheld school mask mandates. when a louisville, kentucky, man sought to attend a public jefferson county board of education (jcbe) meeting at a jefferson county public schools (jcps) building during the covid-19 pandemic in kentucky in august 2022, officers asked him to put on a mask, and the man refused. alternatively the man was offered a face shield, or a covid-19 test, or the opportunity to request a waiver, all of which the man also refused; accordingly, he was not granted entry into the building. attorney general daniel cameron claimed the district had violated kentucky's "open meetings act." jcbe argues that at the time, masks were required to enter the building, not the meeting itself, as part of the board's july 2022 health guidance plan, which requires that when community spread of the covid-19 pandemic in kentucky is ranked "high" in jefferson county (which it was at the time), masks must be worn to enter jcps property. the man had previously filed unsuccessful claims against the board alleged that among other things it had violated the nuremburg code by "participating in human experimentation, and "sexually exploited minors." in january 2023 the board appealed cameron's decision in jefferson county circuit court. summary of orders and recommendations issued by states no state-wide mandate. no local mandates exist. no state-wide mandate. local mandates may still exist. a former state-wide mandate has since expired. no local mandates exist. a former state-wide mandate has since expired. local mandates may still exist. state mask mandate notes start date end date alabama july 16, 2020 april 9, 2021 alabama's mask mandate expired. the cities of birmingham (as of april 28, 2021) and montgomery (as of june 17, 2021, public gatherings of 25 people or more) had ordinances mandating wearing of masks in public spaces. however, those orders expired in may 2021. alaska n/a n/a alaska never had a statewide mask mandate. arizona n/a n/a arizona never had a statewide mask mandate. until june 17, 2020, individual counties and municipalities were prohibited from imposing health orders stricter than those of the state itself, effectively blocking local mandates. on june 17, 2020, amidst a major spike in new cases, governor doug ducey announced that he would allow them to enact mandatory masking orders. however, on march 25, 2021, permission granted to local jurisdictions to mandate masks was revoked. arkansas july 20, 2020 march 30, 2021 arkansas' mask mandate expired. on july 19, 2020, governor asa hutchinson called for national leaders to set an example by wearing masks. california june 18, 2020 march 1, 2022