Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Court on Wednesday threw out an order from Pennsylvania Department of Health Acting Secretary Alison Beam, ruling she didn’t have the authority to require masks be worn inside K-12 schools in the state.

The state, however, almost immediately announced it would be appealing the decision, triggering a stay of the court’s ruling and keeping the order in effect while the process plays out.

The court deemed the mandate void by a 4-1 ruling, stating Beam failed to follow a formal process and adopted the regulations without an existing disaster emergency from the governor.

In her opinion, Judge Christine Fizzano Cannon wrote that the state’s disease control law does not give health secretaries “the blanket authority to create new rules and regulations out of whole cloth, provided they are related in some way to the control of disease or can otherwise be characterized as disease control measures.”

Pennsylvania Department of Education officials told district leaders that due to the appeal, schools should continue to observe the school masking order throughout the duration of the court’s proceedings.

“The Secretary of Health’s authority is clearly outlined in existing law,” the governor’s office, Pa. Department of Health and Pa. Department of Education said in a joint statement. “The Department of Health has directed counsel to file an appeal (Wednesday). Filing of the appeal will immediately stay the Commonwealth Court’s decision. School masking is a necessary public health measure to keep children safe and provide them with as much in-person learning in school as possible.”

Before that statement was released, Lehighton Area School District Superintendent Jonathan Cleaver said the district would continue following its approved health and safety plan, which as of Wednesday called for it to follow the state order.

“We do have a board meeting planned for Monday and we will have that on the agenda for discussion,” Cleaver said. “But at this point, that health and safety plan is still in effect. There are a lot of things that are still up in the air with the appeal. So right now, we’re kind of in a wait-and-see mode.”

Gov. Tom Wolf announced Monday that the state mandate on masks inside school buildings, which has been in place since early September, is likely to be lifted on Jan. 17.

During Tuesday night’s Lehighton school board meeting, several attendees asked the board not to wait that long to make masks optional.

“Let’s at least get these kids at their desks unmasked,” Walter Zlomsowitch, who won a board seat in the general election and will begin his term next month, said. “The kids are done. Let them hear clearly what their teachers are telling them.”

April Walker questioned the effectiveness of masks and also called for a change to the district’s health and safety plan.

“If one plus one does not add up to two, something is wrong,” Walker said. “Study after study shows the ineffectiveness of the masks. Why are we in every other aspect of life able to be masquerading around without one except for maybe in health care facilities? I think we better be asking ourselves if the government officials truly have our children’s best interests at heart when they act so hypocritically.”

The Commonwealth Court’s decision included a statement that the judges had “no opinion regarding the science or efficacy of mask-wearing or the politics underlying the considerable controversy the subject continues to engender.”

Though the legal process has yet to play out, local districts are looking ahead to when the masking decision returns to school boards.

Jim Thorpe Area School District deemed masks optional for students, staff and visitors before the Department of Health mandate.

Superintendent John Rushefski said that will be the district’s policy unless school board members decide to go a different route. The board’s regularly scheduled meeting was set for Wednesday night.

“Our plan going into Sept. 7 was parental choice, so I imagine we’ll pick up where we left off,” he said.

Panther Valley School District had a temporary mask requirement in place when the Department of Health mandate came about, but it has expired. Superintendent David McAndrew Jr. said his administration is still discussing next steps following the court’s decision.

Pleasant Valley School District will continue to follow the Department of Health order for mandatory face coverings in schools, the district said. All students, staff and visitors to Pleasant Valley School District will be required to wear a face covering in school buildings.

Northern Lehigh posted that no changes have been made to the NLSD Health and Safety Plan. The face covering order remains in effect until further notice.