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Committee introduces RS31857, sponsor says it would bar government mask mandates for infectious-disease transmission
Summary
The House State Affairs Committee introduced RS31857, a sponsor-drafted statement the committee will print for later consideration; the sponsor said it would prohibit government officials from imposing mask mandates to prevent virus transmission but would exempt healthcare and occupational safety masks.
A sponsor standing in for the author told the House State Affairs Committee that RS31857 would prohibit government officials from imposing a mask mandate "for the purpose of preventing the transmission of viruses and infectious diseases." The sponsor identified the measure as a refile of prior legislation that passed the House but failed in the Senate and said the proposal was intended to put guardrails on public-health mandates.
The sponsor said the RS includes explicit exemptions for healthcare and occupational safety: healthcare workers may still be required to wear masks where medically appropriate, and workers who need respirators or masks for dust and other workplace hazards (for example, welders or concrete workers) would not be affected.
Several committee members asked questions about whether the RS differed from the prior version; the sponsor said it appeared "almost exactly the same" as the bill introduced in a previous session. Representative Aquilis asked that medical and public-health professionals be invited to testify when the RS returns so the committee can hear their perspective before drafting further language.
Representative Palmer moved to introduce RS31857 for printing. The committee approved the motion by voice vote; the clerk recorded the motion carried and the RS will be printed for consideration in a future hearing.
