West DSM News

The U.S. Department of Education launched an investigation on Iowa after the state issued a ban on mask mandates.

Ann Lebo, Iowa’s director of education, received a letter from the U.S. Education Department stating that the state’s law could be charged with discrimination against students with disabilities or pre-existing health conditions, KCCI reported.

Gov. Kim Reynolds (R-IA) signed the mask mandate ban bill into law in May, making it impossible for school districts and municipalities to enforce mask mandates, KCCI reported.

“@Edcivilrights sent letters to five states – Iowa, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, & Utah – outlining how their masking prohibitions prevent school districts from implementing health & safety policies to protect students from #COVID19," the U.S. Department of Education said in an Aug. 30 tweet.

Directors of education in Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Utah also received letters on the same matter, KWWL reported.

The letter was sent to the state by U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona arguing that the mask mandate ban compromises the COVID-related goals of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Reynolds issued a statement in response to the letter stating that the Biden administration is going after Republican governors to distract from other issues. 

“Iowa was able to reopen schools safely and responsibly over a year ago," Reynolds said in a statement, according to KCCI. "President Biden and his team know this, yet they’ve decided to pick a political fight with a handful of governors to distract from his own failures - Afghanistan, the border, inflation, and more. As I’ve said all along, I believe and trust in Iowans to make the best health decisions for themselves and their families. Iowa’s democratically elected legislature endorsed that view as well when they passed a law to support a parent’s right to decide what’s best for their own children. In Iowa, we will continue to support individual liberty over government mandates.”