Judge Issues National Injunction on Title 42 Termination

Last week, a federal judge ordered that the Biden Administration maintain pandemic-related restrictions outlined in the Centers for Disease Control's (CDC) public health directive Title 42. In line with a decades-old public health statute, Title 42 grants Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents the authority to expel migrants without considering asylum claims. The policy was invoked at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to mitigate the spread of the disease.

CDC Director Rochelle Walensky stated last month that the policy is no longer relevant due to current public health conditions and the increased availability of vaccines and therapies designed to combat COVID-19. While previous attempts to stay the suspension cited the surge in border crossings and concern for an understaffed U.S. Border Patrol, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana has turned to the ongoing legal challenges as a foundation for the federal injunction.

Judge Robert Summerhays stated in a 47-page ruling that the policy will remain in place while two dozen states challenge the Biden Administration decision to lift the order. The Biden Administration cannot roll back the policy as the wider legal challenge plays out in court, according to Judge Summerhays.

“The Court agrees with the Plaintiff States that a nation-wide injunction is necessary for complete relief given the ability of immigrants crossing the border to move freely from one state to another,” the judge wrote. “The Plaintiff States have demonstrated harm that will result from the Termination Order and that, despite the impact of the order on the states, they were not able to protect their interest by participating in the notice-and-comment process.”

In response to the ruling, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre stated the Biden Administration stands by its decision to halt the policy and disagrees with the court's decision.

"The authority to set public health policy nationally should rest with the Centers for Disease Control, not with a single district court,'' Press Secretary Jean-Pierre said.

This decision delays the CDC's plans to lift Title 42 on Monday, May 23, 2022. While Press Secretary Jean-Pierre noted that the administration will remain in compliance with the injunction, the Justice Department has announced intentions to appeal the decision.