The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs held a hearing on May 22, 2024, about ways to reform the National Emergencies Act (NEA), a law that gives the president nearly unchecked discretion to declare a national emergency and renew it indefinitely. Once a national emergency is declared, the president possesses broad authorities that can too easily be abused.
Goitein’s testimony urges Congress to amend the NEA to ensure that the president’s powers during a national emergency are subject to meaningful checks against abuse and overreach. Specifically, Goitein recommends amending the NEA to require presidential emergency declarations to terminate after 30 days unless approved by Congress, and to require congressional approval for subsequent renewals of the declaration. Goitein’s testimony also encourages Congress to reform specific emergency authorities that are particularly vulnerable to abuse, including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and Insurrection Act, and provides specific recommendations for such reforms. Moreover, to enable congressional oversight of “presidential emergency action documents”—emergency plans that may rely on dubious claims of inherent constitutional authority—Goitein recommends that Congress require the president to disclose these documents to relevant congressional committees. These reforms build on the Brennan Center’s research on the legal framework for national emergencies, as well as subsequent work on specific emergency authorities.
Video of Goitein’s testimony before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs is available here. Download Goitein’s written testimony here or view it below.
Goitein has testified in Congress several times on the National Emergencies Act and emergency powers. Her testimony from a hearing before the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management is available here. She also testified before the House Judiciary Committee on May 17, 2022 (written testimony available here) and on February 28, 2019 (written testimony available here).
