Ohio, others sue to end fed mask mandate | News, Sports, Jobs

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Twenty-one states with Republican attorneys general, including Ohio, sued Tuesday to halt the federal government’s requirement that people wear masks on planes, trains, ferries and other public transportation amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The lawsuit, announced by Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis and Attorney General Ashley Moody and filed in federal court in Tampa, Florida, contends the mask mandate exceeds the authority of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The mandate in its current form may be in effect only a few weeks more. The CDC recently extended it until April 18 while also indicating it is weighing scaling back the rules for a more targeted approach.

Still, Florida and the other states are pressing on with the lawsuit, which comes amid a partisan divide over the response to the COVID-19 pandemic and issues of government control versus individual rights.

“It is well past time to get rid of this unnecessary mandate and get back to normal life,” said DeSantis, a Republican who persistently has challenged federal mask mandates including those involving cruise lines, schools, private businesses and other entities.

The Western Reserve Transit Authority is aware of the lawsuit, said Dean Harris, executive director, who said he was “kind of surprised” by the suit and expects the mandate to expire on its own before the legal action runs its course.

WRTA services Mahoning County and has a handful of fixed bus routes in Trumbull County.

Harris said it would be nice if the mandate ended because WRTA passengers are getting frustrated by the continued mask requirement. At the same time, he said masks have been helpful in protecting drivers from getting sick and therefore allowing WRTA to continue to provide service.

The CDC rule, effective Feb. 1, 2021, requires “the wearing of masks by people on public transportation conveyances or on the premises of transportation hubs,” according to the agency website. The rule has been relaxed somewhat, to end requirements for certain buses but recently was extended until at least April 18 for domestic and international travel in general.

Harris said WRTA is not planning to implement its own mask rule when the mandate is lifted as infection rates in the Mahoning Valley are low.

Moody, a Republican and former Tampa judge, said in a news release the travel mask mandates “are frustrating travelers and causing chaos on public transportation.”

That appeared to be a reference to a spate of well-publicized confrontations between flight attendants and passengers over the mask requirement on commercial aircraft. It’s not clear if these incidents are isolated or widespread, and if masks are the only issue. Some clearly are alcohol-related or a mental health problem.

Also, perhaps underscoring the partisan divide on masks, both DeSantis and Moody mentioned Democratic President Joe Biden several times in their statements against the travel mandate.

The Atlanta-based CDC did not respond to a phone call and email requesting comment on the lawsuit.

The lawsuit seeks to halt immediately the CDC travel mask rule and asks for costs and attorneys’ fees. There have been similar lawsuits filed in individual states before this latest one.

Besides Florida and Ohio, the states filing the new travel mask lawsuit as of Tuesday are Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia.