Texas legislation would prohibit many COVID-19 restrictions, including vaccine mandates

AUSTIN — Many of the actions taken by authorities at nearly all levels of government in Texas to slow the spread of COVID-19 during the early phase of the pandemic would be forbidden by state law under a new package of legislation filed in the Senate.

The three bills by Brenham Republican Lois Kolkhorst would address Gov. Greg Abbott's call in his Feb. 16 State of the State address for emergency action by the Legislature to end COVID-related restrictions that caused a temporary but sharp downturn in the state and national economies in 2020.

“This series of bills will put an end, once and for all, to ineffective and crushing restrictions on our personal liberties that we saw during COVID-19,” Kolkhorst said in a statement. “One of the most important actions we take is to learn from our lessons and make sure we put safeguards in place for future generations. This legislation is aimed at preventing future repeats of these controversial public health measures, which did little to slow the spread of the virus and did serious damage to the economy and education systems.”

As the number of COVID-related cases, hospitalizations and deaths began to climb heading into spring and summer 2020, Abbott imposed several measures designed to staunch the spread of the highly contagious virus. Nursing home visits were halted, elective surgeries were shelved and nonessential businesses, include restaurants and bars, were shuttered.

More:Fact check: COVID-19 mRNA vaccines cannot cause the disease, don't have live virus

Also, a mask requirement was imposed for public gatherings where social distancing opportunities were limited in counties that had 20 or more reported COVID cases.

Many of the measures were resisted and political pushback followed. Texas was among the first states to roll back restrictions, and Abbott took aggressive steps to limit local authorities from imposing measures on their own.

What the COVID bills would do

According to Kolkhorst's office, Senate Bill 1024 would codify "protections established by Governor Abbott through his various executive orders in 2021, prohibiting employer COVID-19 mandates and governmental entities from requiring individuals to wear masks or mandate vaccinations."

SB 1025 would freeze the current vaccination schedule for schools and put the Legislature in charge of all changes to the future vaccination schedules.

More:Biden will end COVID-19 emergency declarations on May 11 after more than 3 years

"States often predicate their required school immunization schedules on federal guidance from the Centers for Disease Control," the senator's office's statement says. "If passed, SB 1025 will ensure the COVID-19 vaccine remains off the Texas Minimum State Vaccine Requirements for Students as a requirement for admission to elementary or secondary public schools, and institutions of higher education may not require students be vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of their enrollment or attendance."

SB 1026 would prohibit employers, governments, schools and colleges from requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination and would prevent "licensed facilities from prioritizing or discriminating against patients for treatment based on their COVID-19 vaccination status."

How likely is the COVID package to pass?

It's always dicey to predict the fate of any legislation early in the session, which this year began Jan. 10 and ends May 29. However, Kolkhorst chairs the Senate Health and Human Services Committee, which is likely to be tasked with vetting the legislation in the upper chamber. Committee chairs are typically able to guide their priority legislative initiatives through their own panels and make effective cases during floor debates.

Because Abbott has made the COVID package an emergency item, the measures can bypass many of the rules in the Texas Constitution designed to slow the flow of legislation.

Finally, both chambers have solid Republican majorities and the GOP writ large has been supportive of rolling back and restricting many COVID mandates.

John C. Moritz covers Texas government and politics for the USA Today Network in Austin. Contact him at jmoritz@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @JohnnieMo.

This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Legislation would prohibit many COVID-19 restrictions in Texas