Schools toss Gov. Inslee's mask mandate

KETTLE FALLS — The School Board here voted Monday night to buck Gov. Jay Inslee’s school-mask mandate.

The board was the first to reject the governor’s continued efforts to force students, state employees and others to wear masks.

The move in Kettle Falls prompted a similar move in Richland on Tuesday.

The Richland School District is among the largest in Eastern Washington.

The decisions in those schools come as many Eastern Washington schools, businesses and offices have already shed masks.