In a recent filing with the Supreme Court in Arizona v. Mayorkas, the Biden administration told the Court that “[a]bsent other relevant developments, the end of the public health emergency [PHE] will (among other consequences) terminate the Title 42 orders and moot this case.” The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is planning for the expiration of the PHE for COVID-19 “at the end of the day on May 11, 2023.”
A “Statement of Administration Policy” from the Executive Office of the President said that “the end of the public health emergency will end the Title 42 policy at the border. While the Administration has attempted to terminate the Title 42 policy and continues to support an orderly lifting of those restrictions, Title 42 remains in place because of orders issued by the Supreme Court and a district court in Louisiana.” The statement argued against ending the PHE earlier and against proposed legislation, such as H.R. 382, aimed at lifting Title 42 immediately. “The number of migrants crossing the border has been cut in half, approximately, since the Administration put in place a plan in early January to deter irregular migration from Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Haiti. The Administration supports an orderly, predictable wind-down of Title 42, with sufficient time to put alternative policies in place. But if H.R. 382 becomes law and the Title 42 restrictions end precipitously, Congress will effectively be requiring the Administration to allow thousands of migrants per day into the country immediately without the necessary policies in place,” the statement noted.
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