President Joe Biden is shown in a file photo from Nov. 12, 2021, in the Oval Office of the White House.|| Official White House photo by Adam Schultz
By Ryan Randazzo || The Arizona Republic
President Joe Biden on Monday signed into law legislation from Rep. Paul Gosar officially ending the COVID-19 emergency declaration.
The move effectively terminates the emergency powers granted to the president under the National Emergencies Act. President Donald Trump initially declared the national emergency March 13, 2020.
“With the president signing my bill, the emergency powers enacted to address the COVID-19 emergency have been terminated,” Gosar, R-Ariz., said in a written statement to The Arizona Republic. “It is my view, shared by Congress, and now the president, that emergencies should be in place only as long as there is an ongoing emergency. The pandemic is over and has been. This repeal is a great step forward towards economic and social recovery. Working with my colleagues and (House) Speaker (Kevin) McCarthy was instrumental.”
During a March 30 briefing after the Senate vote, Biden’s press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the president would sign the measure, adding that the president wanted an “orderly” end to the public health and national emergency declarations.
“The bill that just passed would only lift the national emergency, which doesn’t impact Title 42 or COVID authorities, like for testing and for treatments,” Jean-Pierre said.
