On May 6, 2020, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed Executive Order 138, in which he extended the Public Health Emergency by 30 additional days, until June 5, due to the continuing need to protect the health, safety and welfare of New Jersians from COVID-19.  Executive Order 138 also states that all Executive Orders and actions taken by any Executive Branch departments and agencies (including Administrative Orders) that were adopted in whole or in part based on the current Public Health Emergency will remain in full force and effect.

Gov. Murphy originally declared both a State of Emergency and a Public Health Emergency on March 9, 2020, in Executive Order 103.  He has explained that the State of Emergency will stay in place indefinitely, but the Public Health Emergency automatically terminates after 30 days, absent an extension.  Executive Order 138 is the second such extension, with the first having been issued on April 7, 2020, in Executive Order 119.