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Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Aug. 10 stated that she and other county leaders authorized County Attorney Christian D. Menefee to take legal action in response to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's executive order barring jurisdictions from implementing mask mandates.
Abbott issued GA-38 preventing local Texas governments from requiring masks despite a resurgence in COVID-19 cases.
"It’s the job of local officials to protect our students, our vulnerable, our neighbors," Menefee said in a post to his Twitter account on Aug. 10. "But @GovAbbott has banned us from doing so during a pandemic. Tonight Commissioners Court authorized my office to take legal action against the governor’s overreach."
Hidalgo also took to social media to confirm the authorization of the lawsuit against Abbott.
"We just authorized the Harris County Attorney to file a lawsuit challenging GA-38, the order that prevents Texas local governments from requiring masks," Hidalgo said in a post to her Twitter account on Aug. 10. "First responders and school leaders are speaking out and standing up as Delta ravages our community. We have their back."
Hidalgo also reiterated the importance of safety.
"Protecting the community during an emergency is a duty, not an option for government leaders," Hidalgo was quoted as saying in an ABC13 article.
According to a report by ABC13, the governor asserts that requiring people with immunity to don masks again would be "inappropriate." The station also reported that the goal of the lawsuit was to bring down the number of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations due to it. Both of those have seen an increase recently in Texas.
Abbott lifted the statewide Texas mask mandate in March. Local jurisdictions in Texas were banned from mandating masks in May. The independent school districts of both Austin and Dallas are also going against Abbott's ban on mask mandates with Houston ISD expected to join them.