DENTON, Texas — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, an opponent of mask and vaccine mandates, on Thursday sent a letter to the City of Denton demanding it rescind its mandate requiring city workers to wear masks in common areas.

“This is not a new policy; this is not a new order. The City of Denton is openly defying the Governor after the Texas Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld his authority in this matter,” Paxton wrote in a news release announcing the letter. “No one is above the law, and the City of Denton needs to take down its mask mandate. It’s illegal. Meanwhile, we continue to ask the Texas Supreme Court for assistance in ordering rogue local governments and school districts to follow the law banning mask mandates.” 

The letter claims the mandate was put in place in violation of Gov. Greg Abbott’s executive order prohibiting them. Paxton gave the city until noon on Feb. 22 to rescind the policy or face “further legal action.”

Spectrum News 1 reached out to the City of Denton concerning the letter and received the following statement:

“The City was made aware of the Attorney General’s letter and press release in the last hour. The City is reviewing the information at this time.”

Earlier this week, Paxton, along with U.S. Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, sued the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention over its order mandating masks be worn at U.S. airports and on commercial airplanes.