TEXAS — Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order Tuesday prohibiting local governments from mandating masks.  

For the past year, Amanda Phillips has kept her six-year-old Osiris learning from home. 

But after she got vaccinated last month, she decided she felt comfortable letting him finish first grade on campus. 

“It’s felt very secure and very safe. I've never seen any kid or parent or teacher without their mask on at school and that was a big reason why I was comfortable with letting him come in person again," said Phillips. 

School districts will be allowed to keep their mask policies in place until June 4, which has some parents concerned.

In a statement accompanying the order, Abbott said "Texans, not government, should decide their best health practices, which is why masks will not be mandated by public school districts or government entities. We can continue to mitigate COVID-19 while defending Texans' liberty to choose whether or not they mask up."

Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins says he worries that won’t be enough. 

“The government's order deviates from the CDC recommendation that people who are unvaccinated wear a mask indoors," said Jenkins. "When leaders deviate from science in a pandemic, they do poorly. And when we follow science we do well. So I'm disappointed, but unfortunately not really surprised.”

Travis County Judge Andy Brown released a statement responding to the order saying,"Governor Abbott once again put party politics above public health. Today, Dr. Fauci said that kids 11 years old and younger won’t be eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine until early 2022. By prohibiting school districts from taking common-sense steps to keep kids safe, the Governor has put our most vulnerable, young children, at risk. GA-35 is irresponsible at best and dangerous at worst. By prohibiting local communities from having basic mask requirements in place, he has put at risk our public servants and essential workers, folks who have put the health and safety of themselves and their families on the line throughout the pandemic. I will continue to work with our county attorneys and other local leaders to see what tools we may have available to continue to keep our community safe.”​

With school districts unable to enforce mask wearing next fall, Phillips is concerned about her son’s safety. 

“There's a high potential that when he goes back to school, that he won't have a vaccination," said Phillips. "And no vaccination and no masks, COVID is still going to be with us for sure, that feels like a disaster waiting to happen.”​

And with no set date for kids 11 and younger to get the COVID-19 vaccine, Phillips says she wishes the governor had left the authority to implement mask mandates up to local authorities. 

“I think that this is a gross misuse of his power. I think that personal, personal responsibility, which he has said over and over and over again, should start with Governor Abbott, and his personal responsibility to the people of Texas," said Phillips.