Last week, Governor Lamont renewed through September 30, 2021 the state’s public health and civil preparedness emergency declarations, which were thereafter approved by the General Assembly.

On July 19, 2021, Governor Lamont issued Executive Order No. 13.  Among other things, Executive Order 13 states that “a small number of unexpired COVID-19 Orders … remain critical to the protection of public health and safety and the maintenance of civil preparedness and will remain critical to ensuring an efficient and effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including but not limited to the … continued provision of needed healthcare and childcare in a safe and effective manner to residents throughout the state.”

In light of these considerations, Governor Lamont extended a handful of Executive Orders through September 30, 2021, including but not limited to:

  • Executive Order 9, Section 1 (which authorizes the Commissioners of Early Childhood and Education to issue binding guidance, rules, or orders for the operation of schools or childcare settings that each deems necessary to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic), and
  • Executive Order 12A (which requires masks regardless of vaccination status in certain settings where the risk of COVID-19 transmission is higher or where the population within such settings faces a greater risk of severe health effects from COVID-19 and requires the Commissioner of Public Health to issue rules for the wearing of masks in such settings).

Executive Order 13 further provides that “[a]ny unexpired order, rule, regulation, directive or guidance issued by any official, agency, department, municipality, or entity pursuant to an unexpired COVID-19 Order, which by its own terms provides that it shall remain in place for the duration of the public health and civil preparedness emergency, shall remain in effect through September 30, 2021, unless earlier modified or terminated by the issuing authority or a subsequent executive order or by the expiration of its enabling executive order.”  Any COVID-19-related order not explicitly extended or modified by Executive Order 13, however, expired on July 20, 2021.

In light of Executive Order 13, school districts are advised to closely monitor guidance issued by the Commissioners of Education and Public Health, as such guidance continues to be binding on school districts as they prepare to reopen in the Fall of 2021, at least until September 30, 2021 and unless otherwise modified.