On Friday, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro retracted a proposed health regulation that would have let officials enter homes without warrants. The move followed thousands of public appeals against the rule, which the Daily Signal reported was formally known as Regulation #10-242.
State lawmakers and citizens flooded the governor’s office with complaints about the potential overreach. Pennsylvania House Republicans wrote on X that their members raised serious concerns after receiving over 6,000 appeals from the public. The department of health officially withdrew the proposed changes in response to this pressure.
The rule had sought to amend state code to allow health officials to enter apartments, schools, or other locations as necessary. This proposal came despite the fact that Pennsylvania voters rejected similar measures twice in recent years. Voters had already approved a constitutional amendment in 2021 to limit such executive authority after the pandemic.
The Commonwealth Foundation stated that “Pennsylvanians do not support governing by decree.” They argued the regulations would reinstate powers voters explicitly removed. According to reports, the foundation’s chief operating officer, the governor seeks to grant his own agency fresh powers.
Many residents fear this rule brings back the strict lockdowns of the recent past. State Rep. Russ Diamond told Fox News Digital that this is absolutely COVID 2.0 but even worse. He noted the governor is trying to skirt the constitutional provision voters passed to take that power away.
The foundation cautioned that this rule strikes at the very core of our citizen freedoms. They stated this action sets a dangerous precedent for any citizen who believes the government must answer to its people. The proposed regulation lacked adequate cost analysis and raised serious constitutional concerns regarding warrants and parental consent.
More than 9,000 comments from citizens and organizations challenged the rule before it was pulled. Another 16 legislative comments came from 110 lawmakers who opposed the changes. Martin stated residents are voicing opposition to avoid repeating the egregious and illegal executive overreach seen during the COVID-19 lockdown era.
