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Judge announces plans to block the termination of Title 42, CBS reports

Title 42 is the COVID-era border restriction that has allowed the US to quickly expel migrants.

HOUSTON — A federal judge in Louisiana is planning to block the termination of Title 42.

CBS is reporting that the judge plans to grant a motion for a temporary restraining order.

The Biden administration announced plans to end Title 42, a pandemic-era health order used by federal immigration officials to expel migrants, including asylum-seekers, at the U.S.-Mexico border, on May 23.

Gov. Greg Abbott has spoken out against the decision.

On Monday, a GOP Congressional delegation led by Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy was in Eagle Pass calling attention to the border crisis.

"If Title 42 is lifted, it will be much worse," McCarthy said. "It will be uncontrollable then."

Title 42, which was enacted in March 2020 by the Trump administration, has been used 1.7 million times to expel migrants. Many of them have been removed multiple times after making repeated attempts to enter the U.S.

The CDC has the authority to enact orders like Title 42 under the 1944 Public Health Service Act, which gives federal officials the authority to stop the entry of people and products into the U.S. to limit the spread of communicable diseases. Part of the reason the agency is planning to lift the order soon is that COVID-19 cases have been decreasing and vaccinations have become widely available.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration on Friday to halt the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from lifting Title 42.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials said they expect immigration authorities to have up to 18,000 encounters a day with immigrants at the border once Title 42 removals stop. The current average is about 6,000 encounters a day.

"It's unbelievable," said Rep. Diana Harshbarger. "The rest of the country needs to wake up and see what's happening here."

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