It's no longer a question of if Maryland schools will be able to lift mask mandates, but when.|| COVID-19 updates | Maryland's latest numbers | Get tested | Vaccine Info ||Masking will continue on school campuses and school buses, but relief could be on the way through the first of the year.The Maryland State Board of Education on Tuesday released the metrics that school districts will have to meet in order to lift face mask mandates.Top school administrators across Maryland are taking a very close look at a masking regulation approved Tuesday by the Maryland State Board of Education, one that will hinge on the number of COVID-19 vaccinations and transmission rates by jurisdiction.There was a passionate plea from state school Superintendent Mohammed Choudhury to board members to sign off on an emergency masking regulation that puts limits on school districts on when they could lift mask mandates."I want to keep schools open at the end of the day, and that's very important to me. Vote your conscience. For me, selfishly, it's about keeping schools open," Choudhury said.The regulation would require the vaccination rate in a county or the city to be at least 80%. That number would also apply to students and staff members in a particular school. It would then allow superintendents to lift face-covering mandates if the county has sustained 14 days of moderate or low transmission rates. All but one state board member voted in favor of the masking regulation in a 12-1 vote, saying one size does not fit all."I am for immunizations, but there are some people who are not. There are just some segments of our society who feel they've been harmed in the past and they're not really clear," said Warner Sumpter, a member of the Maryland State Board of Education.Kevin Bokoum, the student member of the Maryland State Board of Education, said he expects the masking proposal will have a snowball effect."I think they're going to react very positively. We see with the 80% vaccination for schools, it can create encouragement within schools and school communities to get vaccinated and spread to their parents," Bokoum said.The vote followed hours of public comment. The superintendent said Massachusetts, which has a similar masking regulation in place, is showing favorable results."What we've seen so far for those who have pursued that vaccination route, there haven't been regrets around it," Choudhury said.The Maryland State Education Association agreed that a new masking regulation is worth a try."We're still in the middle of a pandemic, so I think it's reasonable to keep the mask mandate at least (for) past the holidays, and then see if we can get vaccination rates up, especially among our youngest students," MSEA President Cheryl Bost said.Next, the regulation approved now goes to the state General Assembly's Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive and Legislative Review for final approval. There's no word yet on how soon it will discuss the matter.