Amid intense protests from those against mandatory vaccinations, the New Jersey Senate postponed the final vote on a bill that would no longer allow religious exemptions to vaccine requirements for students in both public and private schools and colleges, the New York Times reports.
The bill passed the state Assembly in a 45-25 vote, with six abstentions on Dec. 16. The legislation then moved to the state Senate, where it was expected to pass by a small margin. But lawmakers realized they did not have enough votes to pass the bill and decided to postpone the vote, according to the Times.
A cheer erupted from the Senate chamber gallery among those opposing the bill.
"They can cheer all they want. We're not walking away from it," Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney told the Times. "It's just remarkable how people are looking at this and not trusting the science on it at all. They're trusting the internet."
Lawmakers can choose to revive the bill before Jan. 13, when the legislative session ends.
The attempt to pass stricter laws governing vaccine requirements comes amid a massive measles outbreak in the U.S. As of Dec. 5, there have been 1,276 individual cases of measles confirmed in 31 states. In New Jersey, there have been 19 confirmed measles cases as of Nov. 8.
Had the law passed, New Jersey would have joined the five states — New York, California, Maine, Mississippi and West Virginia — that prohibit religious vaccine exemptions.
Thousands of vaccine requirement opponents came out to protest the bill, including Agudath Israel of America, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish umbrella organization. Opponents claim bodily autonomy, personal choice and religious conviction as reasons for their opposition to the bill.