The vast majority of Kentucky school boards voted in favor of maintaining masks requirements in schools, according to the Kentucky School Boards Association.
Out of the state's 171 public school districts, 165, or 96 percent, announced that mask requirements will be enforced.
As of 8 a.m Friday, 96 percent of Kentucky's 171 school districts have announced they will continue to require all students, staff and visitors to wear masks now that SB1 is in effect eliminating the statewide mask mandate in Kentucky public schools. pic.twitter.com/anuS3uFtBt
— KSBA (@ksbanews) September 17, 2021
Kentucky's school mask mandate expires Friday under recently-enacted legislation, which was passed earlier this month during a special legislative session.
Senate Bill 1, which became law Sept. 9, reversed the Kentucky Board of Education’s mask requirement for public schools, instead leaving the decision on mask mandates up to individual districts. The bill also bars the state from implementing mask mandates in schools until June 2023.
The GOP-controlled legislature voted to pass the bill earlier this month before Gov. Andy Beshear (D) vetoed the aspects that prevented mask mandates. However, the veto was quickly overridden after a vote from the legislature. The part of the bill that eliminates the statewide mask mandate took effect Friday, according to the Kentucky School Board Association's website.
This comes as the governor reported 5,133 new COVID-19 cases and 45 new deaths in the state on Friday.
He also said that 24 children are in the hospital with the coronavirus.