Gov. Tom Wolf recently recognized the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, but House State Government Committee Chairman Rep. Seth Grove (R-York) is questioning his sincerity following the governor’s veto of voting legislation that Grove said would have benefited those same disabled Pennsylvanians.
“When House Bill 1300 arrived on his desk, the governor was presented with an opportunity to help those of his constituents who face challenges every election day,” said Grove. “He passed on it for reasons that are mystifying and then doubled back a week ago to claim he now endorses voting reform. Why the change of heart?”
Grove authored the legislation, which would have given disabled Pennsylvanians the option of voting curbside. House Bill 1300 also contained a Disabled Voters Bill of Rights and would have paved the way for individuals with disabilities to vote via the internet, according to Grove.
“House Bill 1300 was the product of an exhaustive number of hearings and I’m proud of the work done by my staff and committee members,” said Grove. “Pennsylvanians overwhelmingly want election reform. Gov. Wolf now wants it and already had a vehicle laying on his desk. Does he truly want reform, or does he just want the credit for achieving it?”
Wolf vetoed House Bill 1300 because it “creates unconscionable, and in some cases unconstitutional, barriers to voting in Pennsylvania and rolls back many of the bipartisan improvements made in Act 77 of 2019.” He added that the legislation would “infringe on Pennsylvanians’ freedom to vote by imposing additional voter identification restrictions, limiting our mail-in voting system, which Pennsylvanians have widely embraced, and reducing the number of days to register to vote.”
