We've had a lot of questions from people wondering why some businesses are still requiring masks if the statewide mask mandate is over, and we've created a Legal FAQ on the subject to help address this question. Private businesses still have the right to require masks for customers and employees, but most state and local government entities can no longer do so.

Several recent executive orders permit businesses and other private establishments to continue to require masks as a matter of business policy for customers and employees. Governor Abbott's Executive Order No. GA-34 says that businesses and other establishments may require employees or customers to wear masks:

Nothing in this executive order precludes businesses or other establishments from requiring employees or customers to follow additional hygiene measures, including the wearing of a face covering.

Executive Order GA-34 also states that a person who refuses to leave a business for failing to comply with the businesses' mask policy can be removed by law enforcement at the business or property owners' request for violating trespassing laws:

[...] a legally authorized official may act to enforce trespassing laws and remove violators at the request of a business establishment or other property owner.

See our Legal FAQ for more details on this subject: Can a business require me to wear a mask? I thought the mask mandate was over. We also have more information on the Mask Laws page of our COVID-19 & Texas Law guide.