# Wolf v. Scarnati **Pennsylvania Supreme Court, 1 July 2020.** The court held that a **concurrent resolution** of the General Assembly purporting to terminate Governor Tom Wolf's COVID-19 disaster emergency declaration had to be **presented to the governor** for approval or veto, and was therefore ineffective without it. The reasoning tracked [[INS v. Chadha]] without being bound by it: *Chadha* construes the presentment clause of the federal Constitution and does not apply to the states, but Pennsylvania's own constitution was read to require the same thing. The practical result was identical to the federal one — a legislative check that on paper needed a simple majority in fact needed the two-thirds required to override a veto. The sequel is what makes the case structurally important. The legislature did not litigate further or pass another resolution. It put two constitutional amendments on the **18 May 2021** primary ballot; both passed with roughly 52 percent. One capped a disaster emergency declaration at **21 days**, replacing a 90-day term extendable without limit. The other authorized the General Assembly to extend or terminate a declaration by a resolution **the governor cannot veto**. In June 2021 the legislature used the new power and ended the declaration. **Eleven months from adverse ruling to structural repair** — a path with no federal equivalent, since the federal *Chadha* problem could only be undone by amending the U.S. Constitution. ## See also - [[State Emergency Powers Crosswalk]] · [[INS v. Chadha]] · [[Emergency Powers Crosswalk]] · [[Emergency Powers]]