Gov. Phil Murphy has signed legislation and an executive order ending the COVID-19 public health emergency that has been in place since March 9, 2020.

Under the legislation, the majority of executive orders issued pursuant to the public health emergency will expire 30 days from today.

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The legislation allows for the termination of the public health emergency while also allowing the administration to retain the tools necessary to manage the ongoing threat posed by the coronavirus pandemic.

"Today's lifting of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency is a clear and decisive step on the path toward normalcy," said Murphy. "The past 15 months have been a challenge, and I thank every New Jerseyan who stayed home, masked up, took precautions to keep this virus in check, and got vaccinated for allowing us to get to this point. I also thank the Senate President and the Speaker for working with us to responsibly end the Public Health Emergency and meet the challenges ahead."

The legislation keeps 14 executive orders in place until Jan. 1, 2022, though they can be modified or rescinded prior to the date by Murphy.

The executive order that allowed Gov. Murphy to block evictions from homes and apartments is staying, as well as orders that block shutoffs of gas, water, or electricity by those who don't pay.

Health care facilities will still have to report data on COVID-19 patients to the Health Department, and the governor would have the power to reinstate mask mandates -- but only if COVID hospitalizations or rate of transmission go up.

The governor signed the bill and new executive order behind closed doors Friday before touring a vaccination site inside D'Jais bar in Belmar.