Travel Mask Mandate Struck Down: What It Means In NJ

NEW JERSEY — Garden State residents are no longer required to wear face masks to protect against COVID-19 on most planes, trains and buses.

A federal judge struck down the federal travel mask mandate Monday, with Gov. Phil Murphy announcing a face mask mandate lift on NJ Transit and South Jersey Transportation Authority, effective immediately.

"Individuals may wear a mask based on personal preference, informed by personal level of risk," Murphy wrote.

In a 59-page decision, Florida federal Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle struck down the travel mask mandate that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention both exceeded its legal authority and failed to go through proper channels to put the rule in place.

As a result, the CDC late Monday said its order requiring masks on public transportation “is no longer in effect” and the agency will not enforce it. However, the CDC said it “continues to recommend that people wear masks in indoor public transportation settings at this time.”

Overnight, the scene at New Jersey and others across the country changed dramatically. Effective Tuesday, the Transportation Security Administration was no longer requiring masks on planes or in the nation’s airports. One by one, most of the nation’s major airlines dropped mask requirements, making the face coverings optional for employees and passengers. Read more: These Airlines Drop COVID Mask Mandates, Leave It Up To Passengers

Face coverings are optional at Newark Liberty International and Teterboro airports. However, per New York guidance, face masks are still required at New York airports and trains, including the interstate PATH trains.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority in New York City said Monday it would keep its mask mandate in place on the bus, subway and rail systems it oversees, The New York Times reported.

On Monday, 901 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in the state. New Jersey's seven-day case average is 1,691, up nearly 20 percent from last week and 161 percent from one month prior.

Murphy told News12 last week that he still expects a COVID-19 case increase from last weekend's holiday celebrations.

The TSA said in its statement that the CDC continues to recommend face coverings to protect against the coronavirus. Amtrak issued a stronger statement, saying that although they are no longer required of passengers and employees, “masks are welcome and remain an important preventive measure against COVID-19.”

The Florida decision also affects ride-hailing companies. Uber no longer requires masks as of Tuesday and Lyft soon followed suit, saying masks are now optional for riders and drivers.

Still, some state and local transit agencies could keep their mask requirements. Last week, the CDC had extended the now-suspended mask rule to study the worrisome BA.2. subvariant of the coronavirus, which is responsible for most of the COVID-19 cases around the country.

The case before Mizelle, appointed to the federal bench by now-former President Donald Trump in November 2020 after he lost the presidential election, was filed in July 2021 by two plaintiffs and the Health Freedom Defense Fund.

“The court concludes that the mask mandate exceeds the CDC's statutory authority and violates the procedures required for agency rulemaking under the APA,” the judge wrote.

It’s unclear if the Biden administration will appeal the decision. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters Monday that Mizelle’s decision was “disappointing,” and the administration’s response is still under review and the “Department of Justice would make any determination about litigation.”