Members of Congress are urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to reverse a federal judge’s decision striking down an anti-pregnancy-discrimination law passed under a proxy voting system used during the COVID-19 lockdowns, arguing that the ruling could threaten pandemic-era statutes.
U.S. District Judge James Hendrix, of the Northern District of Texas, blocked enforcement of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act in February, saying Congress passed the law without a quorum since most House of Representatives members were not physically present. Therefore, the law’s enactment violated the Quorum Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
