Opinion: PA Gov’s liability protections veto leaves industries “in the cold”

Recently, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf (D), vetoed legislation that would protect businesses from COVID related liability lawsuits. The veto has placed PA businesses at risk according to an op-ed that ran in Lancaster Online by Gene Barr, president and CEO of the PA Chamber of Business and Industry.

“As the PA Chamber stressed for months in fighting to get this bill enacted, providing for temporary liability reforms isn’t a partisan issue — and businesses that do not take the public’s health into account should be prosecuted to every extent of the law,” Barr wrote. “These types of protections are broadly supported — and we had hoped that the breadth of organizations and industries supporting this issue would have impressed upon the governor how closely linked it is to their ability to withstand this pandemic era. Unfortunately, this wasn’t enough to sway Gov. Wolf.”

A recent poll from the Institute for Legal Reform found that 79% of Americans from across the political spectrum support liability protections for businesses that are operating in good faith by following state and federal health and safety guidelines.