Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin (D-Woodbridge) pulled a bill allowing Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration to continue issuing directives and orders related to the pandemic after New Jersey’s public health emergency declaration expires Thursday.
“After Speaking with legislative colleagues, advocates and other interested parties I have decided to postpone today’s vote on A-5777 in order to refine it so that it is the fairest and most responsible bill possible,” he said. “I am committed to ending the public health emergency. This is extremely important legislation that we must get right.”
The bill, which would keep 15 of the governor’s executive orders in place until Jan. 1, 2022, and allow him to alter them, faced heavy criticism from Republicans who said the bill would essentially keep the status quo in place.
It was set to face heavy opposition from GOP lawmakers during Thursday’s Assembly session, but feelings that the bill did not go far enough to reign in Murphy’s executive power extended to Democratic Caucuses, a senior legislative source told the New Jersey Globe.
The measure emerged out of a deal between Murphy, Coughlin and Senate President Steve Sweeney that would see the state’s public health emergency expire next month.
That’ll only happen if a bill providing the administration with powers to handle the pandemic outside without an emergency declaration reaches the governor’s desk by mid-June.
The measure would have kept in place executive orders creating moratoriums on evictions and utility shutoffs, as well as those allowing restaurants to create outdoor dining spaces and imposing social distancing and hygiene requirements on businesses, among others.
It would have allowed Murphy to alter or suspend those orders until the start of 2022 and would let him continue making rules on vaccine distribution, virus testing, health care staff allocation, data collection and coordination with local health departments.
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February 23, 2021 -
