Biden declares Equal Rights Amendment ratified as 28th Amendment symbolic action

In one of his final acts as president, Biden issues a formal statement declaring the Equal Rights Amendment ratified as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution, following Virginia's ratification in 2020 completing the required 38 states. The declaration is largely symbolic. The National Archives has said it will not certify the amendment because three states ratified after the 1982 deadline set by Congress, and the Justice Department under Biden had previously concluded the deadline was valid. Biden calls the ERA "the law of the land" and calls on Congress and states to affirm it. The declaration energizes women's rights advocates but has no formal legal effect.