Within the past 5 years, the rate at which Presidents have declared National Emergencies has significantly increased. Since the passing of the National Emergency Act in 1976, an act which established the procedures for declaring a National Emergency, there have been 89 declarations of a National Emergency in the United States (Brennan Center for Justice). Between 1976 and 1999, a period of 23 years, there were a total of 28 declarations of a National Emergency, between 2000 and 2019, a period of 19 years, there were a total of 35 declarations of a National Emergency, and between 2020 and 2025, a period of under 5 years, there were a total of 26 declarations of a National Emergency. There have been 10 declarations of a National Emergency in 2025 alone, as of August, with a potential 11th in the form of a “National Housing Emergency” being alluded to as of September 4th, 2025 (Time).
The first official Declaration of a National Emergency occurred under the Wilson administration on February 5th, 1917, through Proclamation 1354. This Proclamation addressed the ”insufficiency of maritime tonnage” in relation to the shipping of manufacturing goods in the leadup to U.S. entry into the First World War (The American Presidency Project). Since this first declaration, presidents have used their power to declare a National Emergency for reasons ranging from prohibitions on other nations to dealing with epidemics or pandemics. President Carter declared a National Emergency on November 14, 1979, through Executive Order 12170, which called for the seizing of the properties of Iran, interests in properties of Iran, and the controlled entities of the Central Bank of Iran (Office of Foreign Assets Control). President Trump declared a National Emergency on March 13th, 2020, through Proclamation 9994, which called for the waiving of certain healthcare requirements in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic(Federal Register).
Despite the 89 declarations of a National Emergency since 1976, there is no official definition of what constitutes a “National Emergency” within the National Emergency Act of 1976. However, according to a legal sidebar done in response to President Trump proclaiming a National Emergency to procure funding for a physical barrier at the southern border, the Supreme Court has held that, “A fundamental canon of statutory construction is that, unless otherwise defined, words will be interpreted as taking their ordinary, contemporary, common meaning.” (Congress 1). This implies that the definition of “National Emergency” that the President should adhere to would be, “a sudden unforeseen set of circumstances posing a danger to the nation to an extent that requires prompt action to avert disaster.” (Congress). However, this same legal sidebar also states that, “a court may conclude that the absence of a definition and deference to the President’s constitutional powers evidence an intent to leave the definition to the President’s discretion.” (Congress 1).
Due to the lack of a concrete definition in law, the President can declare a National Emergency for almost any reason that they deem an emergency. However, this is not the same case with state governments. According to the 2024 Florida Statutes (including 2025 Special Session C), an emergency is defined as, “any occurrence, or threat thereof, whether natural, technological, or manmade, in war or in peace, which results or may result in substantial injury or harm to the population or substantial damage to or loss of property.” (Florida Senate). Furthermore, according to Title XVII Chapter 252.36, section 2, a state of emergency, “must be declared by executive order or proclamation of the Governor if she or he finds an emergency has occurred or that the occurrence or the threat thereof is imminent” (Online Sunshine), along with other guidelines such as a maximum of 60 days for a state of emergency unless the Governor renews it, specifying which provisions are being renewed.
When it comes to state governments (and Puerto Rico) declaring an emergency, the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of 1988, “authorizes the Federal Government to respond to disasters and emergencies in order to provide State and local governments assistance to save lives and protect public health, safety, and property.” (FEMA). To qualify for federal assistance, the governor must request a presidential declaration of a disaster and demonstrate that they are incapable of solving the emergency themselves through the production of a damage assessment and a state hazard mitigation plan (FEMA). When a presidential declaration of emergency is made, the state government is entitled to federal funding for infrastructure, housing assistance, and projects that reduce the risk of emergency in the future. While this act has been primarily used for natural disasters such as Hurricane Katrina in 2005, it has also been used to deal with terrorist attacks (9/11 and the Oklahoma City Bombing) as well as civil unrest after the death of George Floyd (Congress 2).
In section 17 of the Puerto Rican constitution, the governor is granted emergency powers, “In cases of invasion, rebellion, epidemic, or any other event that causes a state of emergency” (Constitución del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico). The “Puerto Rico Procedures for Emergency Situations or Events Act” defines an emergency as, “any serious abnormality such as a hurricane, tidal wave, earthquake, volcanic eruption, drought, fire, explosion, or any other kind of catastrophe, or any serious disruption of the public law and order, or an attack by enemy forces through sabotage or through the use of bombs, artillery or explosives of any nature, or by atomic, radiological, chemical, or bacteriological means, or by any other means that the enemy may use in any part of the territory of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, that merits the mobilization and extraordinary use of human and economic resources to remedy, avoid, prevent or diminish the severity or magnitude of the damages caused or that could be caused. Likewise, the term ‘emergency’ covers any event or grave problems of deterioration in the physical infrastructure for the rendering of essential services to the people, or that endangers the life, public health, or safety of the population or of a sensitive ecosystem.” (Puerto Rico Procedures for Emergency Situations or Events Act). Between the federal definition of an emergency (none defined explicitly in legislation) and the Florida definition of an emergency, the Puerto Rican definition is the most in depth, distinctly outlining a wide number of scenarios which could be considered an emergency.
A recent example of Puerto Rico receiving federal aid due to a national emergency can be seen in the “National Energy Emergency” declared by the Trump Administration in January of 2025. Following this declaration, the Department of Energy announced new emergency actions to deal with the power grid issue in Puerto Rico, which includes dispatching generator units and performing vegetation management activities to deal with overgrowth that presents risks to the energy grid (U.S. Department of Energy). This demonstrates how national emergencies can be used to address more local issues, providing funding and/or assistance to state governments (or in this case, Puerto Rico) in the event of an emergency.
Bibliography:
Brennan Center for Justice: https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/declarednational-emergencies-under-national-emergencies-act
Time: https://time.com/7313848/trump-bessent-national-housing-emergency-declarationaffordability-crisis-explainer/
The American Presidency Project: https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/proclamation1354-emergency-water-transportation-the-united-states
Office of Foreign Assets Control: https://ofac.treasury.gov/media/6316/download?inline
Federal Register: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/03/18/2020-05794/declaringa-national-emergency-concerning-the-novel-coronavirus-disease-covid-19-outbreak
Congress 1: https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/LSB10267
Florida Senate: https://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2024/252.34
Online Sunshine:
https://www.leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&Search_String=&URL=0200-0299/0252/Sections/0252.36.html
FEMA: https://www.fema.gov/disaster/howdeclared#:~:text=The%20President%20can%20declare%20an,if%20this%20amount%20is%20exceeded
Congress 2: https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/R46665
Constitución del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico:
https://bvirtualogp.pr.gov/ogp/Bvirtual/leyesreferencia/PDF/Derechos%20Civiles/CONST/CON
ST.pdf
Puerto Rico Procedures for Emergency Situations or Events Act:
https://bvirtualogp.pr.gov/ogp/Bvirtual/leyesreferencia/PDF/2-ingles/76-2000.pdf
U.S. Department of Energy: https://www.energy.gov/articles/energy-department-announcesemergency-actions-provide-overdue-relief-puerto-rico-power