On Tuesday, January 25, 2022, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision in The Arc of Iowa, et al. v. Reynolds, et al., regarding the preliminary injunction previously issued by the federal District Court against enforcement of Iowa Code § 280.31. This statute generally prohibits schools from requiring facial coverings for employees, students, or visitors unless otherwise required by law. The Eighth Circuit held that the preliminary injunction as originally issued was too broad in scope, vacating it “to the extent it applies to those schools and districts that Plaintiffs do not attend” and remanding it to the District Court to be narrowly tailored to remedy the specific harms shown by the Plaintiffs and to allow masking requirements necessary to accommodate students as required by federal disability law.
Each school district has its own unique and individual circumstances pertaining to any current mask requirements. Please contact your legal counsel for further discussions as to how this opinion affects your district. We will continue to monitor developments in this matter and provide updates as warranted.
