Texas Comptroller’s Executive Order Enforces Prohibition of COVID-19 Vaccine Passports

During the COVID pandemic response, there was a big push by the World Health Organization (WHO) and governments, including in some U.S. states, to require people to carry a “Vaccine Passport” that would provide proof a person had gotten a COVID-19 shot as a condition for being able to travel between countries or appear in public spaces.  NVIC joined with other medical freedom groups and pushed back. ^{i ii}

Since then, NVIC has taken the lead in educating legislators and the public about the need to protect Texas residents from being subjected to COVID Vaccine Passports and vaccine mandates. On Oct. 21, 2026, Texas Comptroller Don Huffines announced an executive order that bars any business that demands proof of COVID-19 vaccination or recovery from its customers from receiving a Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts contract or grant. ⁱⁱⁱ

Private companies and businesses in the state would have a strong disincentive fordiscriminating against customers by requiring proof they had gotten a COVID shot as a condition of entering a store or restaurant or other business to access or receive services from a business operating in the state.

Executive Order Builds Upon Existing Protections

The Texas Comptroller’s executive order helps to enforce an existing law that prohibits Texas businesses from requiring customers to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination or post-transmission recovery as a condition of entering, accessing, or receiving services from a business and ensures that private companies and businesses in Texas will lose state business if they violate this law.

This executive order requires contractors and grantees receiving state funding and grants to certify compliance with the law throughout the full term of their agreements. It also requires acknowledgement that violations could result in the immediate termination of their agreement and loss of eligibility for state funding. The announcement stated that these requirements will be “standard terms” in future contracts and grants administered by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts and that the agency plans to incorporate these certifications in future solicitations and agreements going forward.

Texas law already makes noncompliant businesses ineligible for state-funded contracts and grants and directs the appropriate state agencies to ensure compliance with the prohibition on businesses requiring customers to provide COVID-19 vaccination or recovery documentation. The executive order adds a more explicit contractual enforcement mechanism within the Comptroller’s contracting and grant programs by requiring written certifications of compliance and incorporating immediate-termination authority into its agreements.

Huffines stated in his October 21, 2026 announcement of the executive order that Texans should not be forced to choose between their medical freedom and their ability to participate in public life, emphasizing that government “has no authority to demand medical papers from Texans just so they can access basic services” and that doing so “is an outrageous invasion of privacy.”

Huffines said the executive order is “one more step in an ongoing effort to give Texans back the freedoms that were taken from them, and there is more to come.” 

Under the executive order, every business receiving Comptroller-administered contracts and grants must certify in writing that they:

• Comply with Section 161.0085 of the Texas Health and Safety Code^iv, for the full term of the agreement.
• Do not require customers to provide any documentation certifying COVID-19 vaccination or post-transmission recovery to enter, gain access to, or receive service from the business.
• Acknowledge that requiring such documentation makes the business ineligible for a state-funded contract or grant.

NVIC’s Advocacy Helped Establish Protections Against COVID-19 Vaccine Passports

This executive order would not have been possible without the protections established by the passage of Texas 2021 SB 968 which the NVIC Advocacy Team supported to help enact in the 2021 legislative session.

Not only did NVIC’s Director of Advocacy, Dawn Richardson, testify in support of the bill before the House State Affairs Committee, NVIC Advocacy portal subscribers followed NVIC’s Action Alerts and recommended action portal updates to educate lawmakers about why this bill was necessary. ^v

SB 968 established the following protections: 

• SB 968 prohibits all government entities in Texas from issuing a vaccine passport, vaccine pass, or other standardized documentation to certify an individual’s COVID-19 vaccination status or from publishing or sharing a person’s COVID-19 vaccine record or similar health information for a purpose other than health care.
• SB 968 prohibits Texas businesses from requiring customers to provide any proof of COVID-19 vaccination or post-transmission recovery as a condition to enter, gain access to, or receive service from the business. It also provides that a business who fails to comply with this prohibition is not eligible to receive a grant or enter into a contract payable with state funds.
• SB 968 also requires each appropriate state agency to ensure that businesses in Texas comply with the law, which allows agencies to require compliance as a condition for a license, permit, or other state authorization necessary for to conduct business in Texas.
• These provisions became effective on June 16, 2021. ^vi

Upon signing SB 968, Texas Governor Greg Abbott stated, "Texans should have the freedom to go where they want without any limits, restrictions, or requirements." ^vii

Laws Should Include Protections Against All Vaccine Mandates and Vaccine Status Discrimination

COVID-19 vaccine mandate protections like the passage of SB 968 and recently issued executive order in Texas are important first steps. However, since all vaccines are pharmaceutical products that carry a risk of injury and death that can be greater for some people, NVIC supports legal protections against required use of Vaccine Passports for all vaccines, not just the COVID shot. Vaccine status discrimination subverts the informed consent principle, which allows an individual to voluntarily decide whether or not to use a vaccine for themselves or their minor child without being denied the ability to participate in society. Laws, which, prevent government entities or private businesses from requiring use of a pharmaceutical as a condition of employment, receiving medical care, getting a school education, or participating in society protect medical freedom. 

In the upcoming legislative session, NVIC will be working to educate lawmakers in every state to pass bills that protect informed consent rights.  Your participation through grassroots advocacy is critical to the success of making additional changes in vaccine policy and law. The NVIC Advocacy Portal can help you advocate for these changes. You can register for free and log in to check for updates and action items on bills that need your support or opposition.

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