The attorney general of Virginia has declared that public universities in the state can not prevent students from attending if they fail to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.

In a statement released on Friday by Virginia’s Attorney General Jason Miyares, he ruled that publicly-funded universities could not require students to receive a COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of admission. This decision was delivered at the request of Virginia’s new governor Glenn Youngkin as he moves to carry out a campaign promise to roll back public restriction.

Virginia's public universities "may only exercise such powers as the General Assembly has expressly conferred or necessarily implied". Under Virginia law, vaccinations against other diseases like diphtheria or tetanus are expressly allowed but no such carve out was ever passed for COVID-19.

“The General Assembly, and the General Assembly only, has the power to mandate the COVID-19 vaccine as an enrollment or in-person attendance requirement,” said Miyares in a statement reported by the Washington Post.

Miyares’ decision underlines the ongoing quest by Republican-led states to limit COVID-19 vaccination mandates or other requirements like mandatory masking. Youngkin, who started his term this month, ran on a promise to end vaccine mandates across the state and resist efforts by the federal government to require them either.

On Jan. 15, Youngkin issued an executive order that banned vaccine mandates and requirements for sharing one’s vaccination status. It included a section that ordered Virginia officials to work on making access to vaccinations, boosters and KN-95 masks easier for state employees, but no restrictions would be permitted.

Soon after Youngkin’s order came down, several universities including the University of Virginia and George Mason University announced an end to their vaccination mandates. It was not immediately clear if the schools or other groups would sue over the decision.

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