NJ May End Health Emergency, But Gov. Murphy Could Retain Power

NEW JERSEY - With great fanfare last week, Governor Phil Murphy announced that he was working with the legislature to end the public health emergency that spawned so many executive orders throughout the pandemic. This week, state lawmakers presented the plan and the Garden State got a look at what would be changing. In truth, not much.

Many executive orders would be codified by law, allowing the Murphy administration to retain many of their powers, including controlling social distancing and masking rules.

On Friday, Murphy signed Executive Order No. 240, which extends that public health emergency for another 30-day period, ending in mid-June. Read more: NJ Extends COVID Public Health Emergency – But This Could Be It

The emergency declaration means the state will continue to have the authority to order new shutdowns and take similar extraordinary acts if the virus resurges, as it has done in other states.

The Murphy administration says it is working closely with Sweeney and Coughlin on legislation that will allow the public health emergency to expire, but ensures that "we have the necessary tools and flexibility to continue the fight against the pandemic, including the vaccination efforts that are our highest priority.

"By working together, we are confident that we can move to the next phase of our recovery effort," he said.

Rules In Effect Until 2022

The Assembly Appropriations Committee asked to leave in place more than a dozen emergency measures. These include:

• Orders related to vaccines
• Orders compelling daily hospital data reporting
• Orders issued by the head of a state agency
• Orders related to face coverings
• Orders related to evictions
• Orders related to utility shutoffs
• Orders to support outdoor dining
• Orders for legal immunity for health care workers and facilities

“This marks real progress as we work to emerge from the worst public health crisis of our lifetime,” said Senate President Steve Sweeney. “It’s the beginning of the end of a crisis that has tragically claimed the lives of an unimaginable number of New Jerseyans and impacted the lives and livelihoods of nearly everyone.

"The worst is behind us, and now is the time to move forward to restore the quality of life for the people of New Jersey. The Governor has done a good job managing the emergency and the Legislature worked hard throughout the shutdown to help those who suffered the consequences of the pandemic," he added. "We will work in partnership with the Governor and the Assembly to overcome the many challenges ahead. The new normal won’t be normal for some time. We have to make the best use of our resources, our abilities and our determination to address the needs of our citizens.”

Republican Senator Steve Oroho, representing District 24, said that the legislation ends the public health emergency "in name only."

“Frankly, this legislation has to be some kind of joke,” said Oroho. “It ends the public health emergency in name only while allowing Governor Murphy to perpetuate until 2022 executive orders and unnecessary restrictions that should no longer be valid once the public health emergency has ended. Democrats shouldn’t try to fool people with this sleight of hand. We should end this nonsense immediately and rescind all of the overbearing executive orders as we’ve demanded for months.”

As of Thursday, no Senate version has been introduced. Both chambers must pass legislation to send it to Murphy to be signed.

Senator Jim Holzapfel and Assemblymen Greg McGuckin and John Catalano, R-Ocean, said they're sponsoring legislation (S-2482) and a constitutional amendment (SCR-117) to strip the governor of emergency powers after 14 days unless an extension is approved by the Legislature.

“As we have seen with Murphy’s refusal to follow other states and CDC guidelines for mask-wearing, his arbitrary directives often defy both science and common sense,” said Holzapfel. “As restaurants, schools and everyday New Jerseyans struggle to get back to ‘business as usual,’ state government should be doing the same. It is time to rein in the Governor and restore power to the elected representatives in the Senate and Assembly, as intended by the state constitution.”

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