Politics

Governor Of Pennsylvania Says No To Reopening Restaurants At Full Capacity

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Jake Dima Contributor
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Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf shot down a bill that would have relaxed restrictions on restaurants, Fox News reported.

The bill was forwarded by the state’s majority-Republican legislature in late September and would’ve given restaurateurs the discretion to increase their dining capacity, according to Fox News.

The Pennsylvania GOP did not seek to eliminate social distancing or barrier requirements, but they did intend to do away with a requirement that forced patrons to purchase a meal if they wanted an alcoholic beverage, Fox reported.

“This bill jeopardizes public health and safety as it permits to eating establishments, including restaurants, bars, clubs and banquet halls, to operate, at 100% capacity, without having to follow any mitigation guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or the Commonwealth,” Wolf wrote to the House.

“By eliminating these critical protections, in addition to removing certain limits related to bar service and purchasing of alcoholic beverages, this bill increases the likelihood of COVID-19 outbreaks,” the Democrat continued in the statement.

Wolf also said that the bill was unconstitutional, as it sought to allegedly “take away executive authority during the existing COVID-19 disaster emergency,” he wrote.

The U.S. has around 8,110,000 coronavirus cases with approximately 219,000 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins sick map. Pennsylvania ranks eighth for COVID-19 deaths in America with around 8,400, the map showed. (RELATED: New Jersey Gym Owners Arrested After Defying COVID Order)

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