Idaho’s ban on mask rules is rescinded

BOISE, Idaho — Idaho Gov. Brad Little on Friday issued an executive order repealing a 24-hour-old mask-mandate prohibition put in place while he was out of the state by the lieutenant governor, describing her actions as a tyrannical abuse of power and an “irresponsible, self-serving political stunt.”

The Republican governor up to now had been reserved in his comments about Republican Lt. Gov. Janice Mcgeachin, a far-right proponent who has worked to oppose Little’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Mcgeachin last week announced her run for governor, challenging the first-term incumbent Little.

Her executive order Thursday banning mask mandates in schools and public buildings is widely seen as part of that campaign. And she is already using her nullified executive order in fundraising efforts.

Little has never issued a statewide mask mandate, though he has worn a mask and encouraged others to do so to slow the spread of the virus.

Some Idaho counties, cities and schools have issued their own mask mandates but many have been lifted as more Idaho residents have been vaccinated. Two counties and 10 cities still have them in place, as do multiple schools.

About 590,000 of Idaho’s 1.8 million residents have been vaccinated. State officials have reported that the virus has killed more than 2,000 people in the state and sickened some 190,000.

“I have opposed a statewide mask mandate all along because I don’t think top-down mandates change behavior the way personal choice does,” Little said in a statement about his repeal of Mcgeachin’s order.

Little added: “But, as your Governor, when it came to masks, I also didn’t undermine separately elected officials who, under Idaho law, are given authorities to take measures they believe will protect the health and safety of the people they serve.”

Little was attending the Republican Governors Association conference in Nashville, Tennessee, and returned late Thursday.

While he was out of state, the lieutenant governor is the acting governor and has the power to issue executive orders under Idaho’s Constitution. It’s not clear when or if an Idaho lieutenant governor has ever before used the authority while a governor was out of state.

Mcgeachin issued her order that took effect shortly after at 11 a.m. Thursday and didn’t notify Little of her intentions.