A Bucks County business was chained and padlocked this week after failing to comply with the governor’s order to close all “non-life-sustaining businesses.”
The fitness business, which was not named, ignored warnings from Bucks County Consumer Protection Department officials and multiple citations by police. Two customers who patronized the business after warning notices were placed on the doors were cited, according to county officials.
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The owners of the business, county officials said, vowed to remain open despite the state’s COVID-19 mitigation measures.
Officials from county health department eventually went to the business to place chains and padlocks on the doors to ensure the business remained closed.
While Bucks County Consumer Protection has received numerous complaints and questions about Wolf’s closure order and potential sanctions, the vast majority of businesses have complied, officials said. Local police told LevittownNow.com last week that most residents and businesses were following the orders.
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“Almost all of the business owners in Bucks County have done the right thing and complied with the governor’s order in this difficult time,” said Consumer Protection Director Mike Bannon. “It has been made obvious to all of us that, in order to beat this virus, everyone needs to comply. Not only is the fact that it is unfair to other hardworking business owners that this business remained open, it was a flat-out health hazard. Although we all would have liked this issue to be resolved amicably, public safety must come first.”
A number of the complaints county officials have looked into were found to be legally open under the governor’s order or have received a waiver from the state.
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Bannon said that some businesses that were operating in violation of the governor’s order voluntarily closed after being contacted.
There have been no successful challenges to the governor’s closure order. When a gun rights group filed a civil rights lawsuit about the closure of gun shops, Wolf revised his list of exempt businesses to include gun shops.
The county said the “penalties for not complying can include forfeiture of the ability of the business to receive disaster relief, termination of state loans or grant funding, suspension or revocation of licensure, or prosecution resulting in fines and/or jail time.”
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People with questions about Wolf’s order or about a business that may not be complying can call the county’s Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-800-942-2669, or email consumerprotection@buckscounty.org.
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