PRLA Restaurant & Lodging Matters Summer 2021

20 • PENNSYLVANIA RESTAURANT & LODGING matters • Summer 2021 LEGISLATIVE CORNER STATE LOCAL FEDERAL State Items ELECTIONS On May 18, Pennsylvania voters passed the two constitutional amendments to limit the governor’s emergency powers. The first empowered the state legislature to extend or terminate an emergency declaration by resolution. The second addressed the governor’s emergency powers, including requiring legislative approval to continue beyond 21 days. Less than one month later, the Pennsylvania legislature put an end to the governor’s pandemic disaster emergency declaration. On June 15, the Wolf Administration certified the results of the May primary election, bringing a formal end to the disaster emergency declaration. With the declaration’s end, expanded outdoor premise and cocktails to-go also ended. Realizing that the end of the pandemic disaster declaration ended many important protections for individuals and businesses, the Senate passed HB 854 to extend those protections through September 30, 2021. Unfortunately for the restaurant industry, this bill did not include expanded outdoor premise or cocktails to-go. COCKTAILS TO-GO & EXPANDED OUTDOOR PREMISES Despite our best efforts and your extensive outreach, the Pa. Senate decided not to address PRLA’s liquor priorities of allowing outdoor seating to continue and cocktails to-go to be made permanent along with other important recovery initiatives contained in HB 1154. HB 1154 passed the House with overwhelming bipartisan support; however, the bill was amended in the Senate Law & Justice Committee to include an amendment that would have permitted canned cocktails to-go—something Gov. Wolf stated he would veto. The Senate passed the bill along partisan lines, sending it back to the House for concurrence. The House stripped the poison pill amendment from the bill and, again, overwhelmingly, passed the measure. Unfortunately, the Senate opted to not move the bill before adjourning for summer recess, leaving the industry hanging until it reconvenes in September. Sen. Scott Martin called on Senate leadership to immediately reconvene for session and concur on HB 1154, which would allow for the continuation of mixed drinks to-go and a streamlined process for outdoor seating. The bill also includes other important recovery initiatives for restaurants in Pennsylvania. The Senate is currently not scheduled to return to session until September 20, 2021. BUDGET The legislature did pass a $40.8 billion budget on time; however, it spent only about $1 billion of Pennsylvania’s allotted $7.3 billion in American Rescue Plan funds. The remaining $6+ billion in funds will be moved to the state’s Rainy Day Fund in anticipation of a potential recession. Of the $1 billion spent in the budget was applied to schools, transportation, and nursing homes. The legislature is now in recess until the middle of September. Two other items of note in the budget: • Statewide tourism promotion was “flat funded” at just over $4 million. This is accompanied by about another $4.5 million in tax revenue from closing the online travel company loophole. • The budget does contain a repeal of the increase in the salary threshold that was slated to take effect in October of this year, which means that the increase to $40,500 and any future increases will not happen, and the state will stay aligned with the federal standard. CORONAVIRUS Pennsylvania’s mask mandate for all unvaccinated people ended on June 28, though some entities will still require a mask and federal guidance may still require your unvaccinated employees to continue to wear masks. A state appeals court refused to overturn an order that closed a western Pa. restaurant for disobeying Gov. Wolf’s COVID-19 restrictions requiring its workers and customers to wear face masks. The Commonwealth Court panel’s decision in the case of The Crack’d Egg of Pittsburgh marked the defeat of yet another legal