RALEIGH, N.C. — Editor's Note: Video features students returning to classrooms with mask optional mandates.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper has vetoed legislation that would allow K-12 students to opt-out of indoor mask-wearing mandates set by local school boards, with their parents' permission.
The bill was approved last week by the Republican-controlled General Assembly with some Democratic support, but it's unclear if an override attempt is ahead. The Democratic governor has encouraged boards of education to end broad mask requirements at school, as COVID-19 transmission rates fall. He said Thursday he prefers sticking to a 2021 law that left mask-mandate decisions with local school boards.
The overwhelming majority of school districts have passed mask-optional policies now.