The Florida Department of Education has said it has withheld funds from two school districts that made masks mandatory in classrooms this fall, according to Reuters.

"Commissioner of Education Richard Corcoran announced that the Florida Department of Education has withheld the monthly school board member salaries in Alachua and Broward County, as directed by the State Board of Education," the department said in a statement.

Florida is one of several states where Republican governors have sought to prevent local governments and school districts from mandating masks.

In this file photo, people protest against the school mask mandate, enacted to help slow the spread of COVID-19, outside a Hillsborough County School Board meeting in Tampa, Florida. — Reuters/File
In this file photo, people protest against the school mask mandate, enacted to help slow the spread of COVID-19, outside a Hillsborough County School Board meeting in Tampa, Florida. — Reuters/File

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