New Jersey lawmaker suing Murphy over public health information
(The Center Square) – A New Jersey lawmaker is suing Gov. Phil Murphy, alleging the governor refuses to provide the public health information that serves as the foundation for executive orders.
Assemblyman Erik Peterson, R-Hunterdon, said he is filing the lawsuit on behalf of closed businesses, unemployed workers and New Jersey families.
“The governor is not above the law and the law requires him and his administration to provide information to the requesting public even when that information may be embarrassing or lead to questions of legality of the decisions made,” Peterson said in a statement. “Phil Murphy is wielding an enormous amount of power over the lives of every New Jersesyan, which requires that he be transparent and honest of how and why he is issuing his vast edicts which intrude upon our constitutional rights.”
“My message to the governor is simple, ‘Phil, come clean and voluntarily release all the information which you have based on your decisions over the last year so that people can decide for themselves whether the decisions were right and just under the circumstances otherwise I will continue to bring legal action after legal action to force you to understand that the people are ultimately in charge not you,’” Peterson added.
Peterson is a member of the Assembly Health Committee. Last April, Peterson announced his plan to introduce the “Healthy Citizens and Healthy Business Act,” which would allow businesses to reopen.
Murphy last week signed an executive order increasing the number of people allowed to attend religious services and sporting events in the Garden State.
Separately, state Senate Republicans plan to hold virtual hearings probing the Murphy administration’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The hearings will explore the governor’s executive orders and review veterans homes, nursing homes and long-term care facilities where about 8,000 residents and staff members have died from COVID-19.
The first hearing is scheduled to take place March 5. A spokesperson for Murphy did not immediately respond to a request from The Center Square for comment on the lawsuit.
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