Arizona Supreme Court rejects Legislature's request to block ruling on mask mandate ban, other laws - The Arizona Republic

The Arizona Supreme Court on Wednesday denied a request from the Legislature to put an emergency hold on a judge's ruling that four budget-related bills are unconstitutional.

That means that, for now, the policies outlined in those bills do not have the force of law. Chief among them is a ban on school districts imposing mask mandates, meaning districts can continue to craft their own policies on how to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

It also means numerous other policies that Republican lawmakers tacked onto the budget are not in effect. These include various COVID-19 restrictions on universities, community colleges and local governments, as well election procedures, including a measure that attempted to strip some authority away from Democratic Secretary of State Katie Hobbs.

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The court's denial came quickly: The Legislature had filed a motion seeking to move the appeal to the Supreme Court earlier Wednesday morning. The order, written by Justice Ann Timmer, was issued before 10 a.m.

Timmer indicated the Supreme Court will take up the Legislature's request to bypass the Court of Appeals and transfer the appeal of Monday's lower-court ruling in a separate order.

This is a developing story. Check back with azcentral for updates.

Reach the reporter at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @maryjpitzl.

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source: https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2021/09/29/arizona-supreme-court-denies-request-lift-hold-mask-mandate-law/5918019001/

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