The move comes after the Republican-controlled House and Senate voted to limit Wolf’s disaster emergency powers, a decision apparently ratified by 54% of Pennsylvania voters who approved a state constitutional amendment that would allow a simple majority of lawmakers to terminate a disaster at any time. The voters also approved a proposal that limits a disaster declaration to 21 days, down from 90, and transfers the power to extend an emergency declaration to the legislature.
Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board immediately responded by announcing that Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s emergency declaration that allowed bars and restaurants to sell cocktails-to-go and provide outdoor seating are no longer in effec
“For more than 13 months during the COVID-19 pandemic, Gov. Wolf has exerted nearly unlimited power to suspend state statutes, spend money without the authorization of the legislature, and close schools and businesses as he saw fit,” Senate President Pro Tempore Jake Corman (R., Centre) told reporters last month.
Republican lawmakers were particularly angered by Wolf’s decisions to temporarily close businesses deemed nonessential and stagger the economy’s reopening to slow the spread of COVID-19. There hasn’t been any indication the Republicans will act swiftly to allow restoration of cocktails-to-go.