PHOENIX – An Arizona Superior Court judge ruled that a law banning face mask mandates in schools violates the state constitution and can't go into effect this week as scheduled.

The mask mandate ban and other limits on COVID-19 mitigation efforts were passed as part of the state budget in June and had been scheduled to go into effect on Wednesday.

"That law has been declared unconstitutional; it won't go into effect," Roopali Desai, attorney for the plaintiffs in the case, told KTAR News 92.3 FM.

A lawsuit filed last month by a coalition of educators and allies challenged new laws prohibiting public school districts from imposing mask requirements, colleges from requiring vaccinations for students, and communities from establishing vaccine passports for entry into large events, businesses and other places.