Senate Republican Leaders Comment on Senate Passage of Resolution to End Governor Wolf’s Business Shutdown Order

HARRISBURG – Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-25) and Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman (R-34) hailed Senate passage today of a resolution that would end Governor Wolf’s statewide shutdown, which they said is hurting families and doing irreparable harm to employers.

House Resolution 836 would end the executive order Wolf used to shut down businesses, which was issued on March 6 and renewed on June 3. Scarnati and Corman said the governor has used the emergency declaration to change and suspend state laws, spend state and federal taxpayer dollars without the approval of the General Assembly and prevent shuttered businesses from reopening with new safety measures in place.

Senators Scarnati and Corman offered the following statements on passage of House Resolution 836.



Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati (R-25) – “Ending the Wolf Administration’s emergency declaration is about listening to the hard-working men and women of Pennsylvania who sent us to Harrisburg to be their voice. A governor’s ability to declare an emergency declaration for months on end without checks in place is not in the best interest of any Pennsylvanian. Today’s passage of House Resolution 836 is a responsible approach to ensuring our Constitutional freedoms are protected, while continuing to responsibly address the impacts of COVID-19. The original disaster declaration gave us time to learn about the virus and how to fight it. With this information in hand, we can now safely and responsibly move forward and make informed decisions together without the need for a state of emergency.”

Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman (R-34) – “State law allows for the temporary suspension of civil liberties under dire circumstances – and this certainly was a dramatic time. The need to suspend civil liberties in the interest of public health and safety has clearly passed. The governor has suspended our ability to work and leave our homes and our ability to worship in churches. Never in our history have we ever controlled the movement of healthy people statewide. People need to have the freedom to return to normalcy and decide for themselves the level of engagement with society that they are comfortable doing. We have educated ourselves. The public has guidelines. Our employers have guidelines. It is time to allow people the freedom to decide for themselves – to control their actions and decisions.”