New York state education officials are telling schools to keep enforcing Gov. Kathy Hochul's indoor mask mandate even after a Long Island judge struck down the requirement on Monday.
The Education Department says the state plans to appeal Monday's ruling, a step that could keep the rule in place at least until its planned expiration on February 1.
'While these legal steps occur, it is NYSED's position that schools should continue to follow the mask rule,' said department spokesperson Emily DeSantis.
Judge Thomas Rademaker struck down the state's mask mandate a week before it was due to expire, ruling that the governor doesn't have the authority to impose it without approval from the State Legislature.
In March, lawmakers ruled that New York was no longer under a state of emergency, limiting the governor's and the health commissioner's powers - but Gov. Hochul still re-introduced the mandate in December 2021.
Judge Rademaker said that legislators' decision to declare New York no longer in a state of emergency means the new measures forcing residents to wear masks in all indoor spaces, which carry fines of up to $1,000 for those who do not comply, are unenforceable and are now void.
It is unclear how many businesses, if any, have been fined for failing to enforce the mask mandate. Gov. Hochul's office and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, which enforces the fines, did not immediately respond to questions from DailyMail.com.
The New York State Education Department is advising schools to keep following Gov. Kathy Hochul's re-introduced indoor mask mandate. Above, students at White Plains High School in April 2021
A Long Island judge ruled on Monday that Hochul's law was 'void and unenforceable.' Above, students leave the New Explorations into Science, Technology and Math (NEST+m) school in the Lower East Side neighborhood of Manhattan on December 21
Governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, vowed to fight back, saying in a statement, 'We strongly disagree with this ruling, and we are pursuing every option to reverse this immediately'
Not all state school districts are going along with the Education Department's guidance.
'While it is certain this decision will face legal challenges, until otherwise litigated, mask wearing will be optional for students and staff in the Massapequa Schools beginning Tuesday,' the Massapequa School District, in the New York City suburbs of Long Island, said on its website.
The New York City Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment from DailyMail.com.
Gov. Hochul's mandate 'is a law that was promulgated and enacted unlawfully by an executive branch state agency, and therefore void and unenforceable,' the Judge Rademaker said Monday.
It was latest setback for executive branch officials at state and federal levels after much legal wrangling over the issue of mask mandates in different states.
Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul said she disagreed with the ruling, and Attorney General Letitia James tweeted Tuesday that her office would challenge it.
'We're appealing last night's decision that struck down the mask mandate in New York. We will continue to do everything in our power to protect New Yorkers from #COVID19,' James, a Democrat, tweeted.
Earlier this month, the US Supreme Court also blocked President Joe Biden's vaccination-or-testing mandate for large businesses.