Gov. Wolf Vetoes Bill To Reopen Businesses Closed By Coronavirus

HARRISBURG, PA — Citing dire public health consequences, Gov. Wolf vetoed a bill Monday that would reopen Pennsylvania businesses and lift certain restrictions put in place to mitigate the spread of coronavirus.

Last week, Senate Bill 613 passed 29-21 in the state Senate, with unanimous Republican support, and 107-95 in the state legislature, where only two Republicans opposed it. It passed despite the grave warnings of the state's top health officials that lifting restrictions would cost lives.

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"This is not an easy decision, but it is the right course for Pennsylvania," Gov. Wolf wrote Monday in his official veto notice to the state Senate. "Reopening tens of thousands of businesses too early will only increase the spread of the virus, place more lives at risk, increase the death tolls, and extend the length of the economic hardships created by the pandemic."

The bill will now require support from two-thirds of lawmakers in both the House and Senate in order to overturn the veto, which is an all but impossible scenario given the staunch opposition the bill faces from state Democrats.

The Wolf administration, meanwhile, has announced its own reopening plans. They're set to resume construction projects and lift stay-at-home orders in certain counties beginning on May 8.

As the state legislature passed the bill last week, organizers were putting together what would become a massive demonstration in front of the Capitol Complex in Harrisburg Monday. Thousands of people, many without masks, gathered in close quarters on the sidewalks for blocks, with many flouting social distancing guidelines as they called for the economy to be reopened.

>>Watch Live: PA Protest Against Coronavirus Shutdowns

Gov. Wolf added that a "measured and staggered approach" to reopening the economy was the only safe and responsible method, and that this would have to wait until the virus had significantly declined and new safety measures were implemented for businesses.

All nonessential business were ordered closed by the governor March 16. The bill would have allowed certain businesses to reopen, provided they follow the health advisories laid out for businesses by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

Opponents of the plan argued that CDC standards were meant to be followed as a guideline, and that loopholes could easily be found if it was implemented as law.

"There are very few industries outside of retail that wouldn't be able to make an argument that they could open under this legislation," Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine wrote in a letter that was sent on April 15 to the Senate.

The state issued a framework with six key standards late last week that outlines in further detail their reopening plan.

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