The State Senate yesterday approved a proposed constitutional amendment to limit the emergency disaster declaration powers of a governor. Senate Bill 2 now goes before the House of Representatives, and if approved there, could be placed on the ballot for the voters to approve or deny in the Spring Primary.
Current state law permits the governor to declare an emergency disaster for ninety days, with no limit on extending it at his or her discretion. The amendment would limit the disaster declaration to 21 days unless the General Assembly approves an extension. In November, Governor Tom Wolf extended the current emergency disaster declaration for a third time, through the end of February.
Senator Joe Pittman said yesterday that Wolf made the proposed amendment necessary because of his unwillingness to work with the legislature. He said the governor has “unilaterally decided what businesses are life-sustaining and his orders have devastated our economy and killed jobs.”
Despite a requirement that constitutional amendments be approved by the legislature in two consecutive sessions and then be placed before the voters, Wolf said earlier this month that they take the power of the people away, a position that Senator Pittman responded to on Indiana In the Morning on WCCS.
In addition to the limit on emergency disaster declarations, Senate Bill 2 also clarifies that the legislature is not required to present a resolution to the governor before ending a disaster declaration, and it prohibits the denial of equal rights based on race or ethnicity, bringing the Pennsylvania Constitution in line with the Constitution of the United States.
