In recent months, the House January 6 committee has obtained evidence that advisors to former President Trump encouraged him to invoke emergency powers to obstruct or overturn the 2020 election. Those revelations strengthened a bipartisan consensus that the laws governing national emergencies are ripe for reform. On May 17, 2022, Elizabeth Goitein urged the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties to reform the National Emergencies Act and restore congressional checks against executive overreach.
See video of Goitein’s testimony here. Her written testimony is also available below.
The Brennan Center has catalogued the powers available during a national emergency and their uses over time. For more information, see our guide to emergency powers and our running list of declared national emergencies.
Testimony on Reforming Emergency Powers before the House Committee on the Judiciary by The Brennan Center for Justice on Scribd
