As a result, the lower court ruling allowing school districts to require masks in their schools still stands.
Abbott wanted the Supreme Court to rule quickly, superseding a state court rule that says that unless there is a compelling reason to not do so, a petition for the court to order a government official to take an action must first go to the Texas Court of Appeals, which is the intermediate appellate court, before it can go to the Texas Supreme Court.
The governor argued that state officials did not have time to go through the regular appeals process, and that allowing local governments to set their own mandate rules would cause confusion.
Abbott can still appeal, but he must do so to the court of appeals, before he can go to the state supreme court.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
