A judge declared illegal on Monday the federal obligation to wear a mask on public transport in the United States, a measure that has been the subject of a tough battle in the courts.
the magistrate Kathryn Kimball Mizelleof Tampa, Florida, ruled that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – the main federal health agency – had exceeded its authority in imposing the requirement, which applies to airplanes, trains, subways and buses, among others.
Democrat Joe Biden’s administration has come under increasing pressure in recent weeks to relax or rescind the measure.
A score of Republican-led states and several large airlines had called for an end to the mandatory use of masks on planes and other means of public transportation.
But last week, federal authorities decided to extend the mask requirement until at least May 3 due to a surge in cases.
Airlines and several Republican lawmakers called for an end to the mask mandate, issued by the CDC on February 3, 2021shortly after Biden took office.
Judge Mizelle, a nominee for former Republican President Donald Trump, ruled in a lawsuit filed in July 2021 by a conservative nonprofit organization called the Health Freedom Defense Fund and two individual plaintiffs.
Although the public has a “strong interest” in combating the spread of Covid, the judge said, the obligation to wear a mask “exceeded the statutory authority of the CDC” and that body “did not adequately explain its decisions.”
The White House finds the judge’s ruling “disappointing,” spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.
“The CDC continues to recommend wearing a mask in public transit,” he said.
The sentence could be appealed by the Department of Justice that, for the moment, has not made any comment on the matter.