Eastern States Multi-state Council

The Eastern States Multi-state Council is an interstate compact between seven northeastern states in the United States to coordinate the rollback of economic restrictions implemented by the state governments in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[1]

Agreement

The council was announced on April 13, 2020. The initial announcement included the states of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware, with Massachusetts being added by the end of the day.^[2] The seven states collectively represent approximately 45 million Americans, or almost 15% of the US population.^[2] On the same day, a similar coalition of western states was announced as the Western States Pact.^[2] A third midwestern coalition, the Midwest Governors Regional Pact, was announced on April 16, 2020.^[3]

The Eastern States Multi-state Council is composed of a health expert, an economic development expert and a respective chief of staff from each state.^[4] according to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, the council is tasked to "work together to develop a fully integrated regional framework to gradually lift the states' stay at home orders while minimizing the risk of increased spread of the virus."^[5]

Parties

  Eastern States Multi-state Council

  Midwest Governors Regional Pact

  Western States Pact

State	Governor
New York	Kathy Hochul
New Jersey	Phil Murphy
Pennsylvania	Josh Shapiro
Massachusetts	Maura Healy
Rhode Island	Dan McKee
Connecticut	Ned Lamont
Delaware	John Carney
Sources:[6]

Reactions

Shortly after the Eastern states multi-state council and the Western States Pact announced their own joint plans on April 13, 2020, U.S. president Donald Trump asserted his "total authority" over the states' decisions about when to lift the shutdowns implemented in response to the pandemic.^[7] After criticism from both Democratic and Republican members of Congress, Trump clarified on April 14 that he would be "authorizing each individual governor of each individual state to implement a reopening" of their economy. However, Cornell Law School professor Kathleen Bergin said, "Trump has no authority...These are matters for states to decide under...the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution."^[8]

See also

• Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
• U.S. state and local government responses to the COVID-19 pandemic
• Western States Pact
• Midwest Governors Regional Pact

References

1. "Governor Lamont, Governor Cuomo, Governor Murphy, Governor Raimondo, Governor Wolf, Governor Carney Announce Multi-State Council to Get People Back to Work and Restore the Economy". The Office of Governor Ned Lamont. April 13, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
2. Lahut, Jake (April 13, 2020). "New York Gov. Cuomo unveils multistate coalition to reopen economy after coronavirus". Business Insider. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
3. Kristina Sgueglia and Caroline Kelly (April 16, 2020). "7 Midwestern governors announce their states will coordinate on reopening". CNN. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
4. "7 Governors in Northeast Announce Appointees for Multi-State Council to Restore Economy". NBC Connecticut. April 19, 2020. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
5. Segers, Grace; O'Keefe, Ed; Navarro, Aaron (April 15, 2020). "States move forward with coordinating coronavirus response after Trump backs down". CBS News. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
6. Reston, Maeve; Sgueglia, Kristina; Mossburg, Cheri (April 13, 2020). "Governors on East and West coasts form pacts to decide when to reopen economies". CNN. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
7. White, Jeremy B. (April 13, 2020). "Trump claims 'total authority' over state decisions". Politico. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
8. Wise, Alana (April 14, 2020). "Trump Falsely Claimed 'Total' Authority Over States — Now He's Backpedaling". NPR. Retrieved April 27, 2020.