Gov. Tom Wolf announced that stay at home orders will remain in place through May 8, when he plans to allow construction and possibly other businesses to continue.

“Beginning May 8 we will allow for limited construction statewide with strict guidelines for social distancing. This will not be resuming operations as they were in February,” Wolf said.

Meanwhile, lawmakers are still frustrated at Wolf’s plan to have his administration decide which businesses can reopen, rather than using federal guidance.

“If the COVID-19 crisis has taught us anything, it has taught us we are all in this together and all levels of government need to be more collaborative in their approach to a global pandemic,” State Sen. John Yudichak (I-Luzerne/Carbon) said.

On Monday, Wolf said that some businesses could reopen May 8. He said “limited” construction will be allowed to resume statewide with social distancing guidelines in place.

Some of the state’s wine and spirits stores, 176 in all, reopened across the state on Monday for curbside sales.

Wolf said his administration will be monitoring those sales to see if more businesses could possibly reopen for curbside sales only. Jim Thorpe and Tamaqua stores are among those open for orders. Buyers can call from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Curbside pickups will be scheduled between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. within a few days of order placement. At pickup, customers will be required to present identification before the order is delivered.

The PLCB accepted just over 6,500 orders statewide Monday. Some stores had scheduled some pickups for Most, but most were scheduled for today and coming days, according to Shawn M. Kelly, press secretary.

Wolf spoke Monday as protesters gathered outside the Capitol calling for the reopening of the state’s economy. Acknowledging their right to protest, Wolf said he hoped they practiced social distancing.

“We want you to stay safe. We want to make sure we do everything we can to keep Pennsylvanians safe. That includes you,” he said.

Wolf said like the protesters he wants to end the restrictions as quickly as possible, but said it could be unsafe.

Wolf said until there is a vaccine or cure, social distancing will remain important.

It’s likely that different types of businesses will reopen at different times. The same goes for regions of the state. Areas where there have been fewer cases of the virus will reopen before hotspots.

Wolf said the state needs more widespread testing and availability of personal protective equipment before it can begin to reopen.

He said his administration is using May 8 as a deadline to build that testing capacity. The state still needs the reagent and test kits to complete more tests. Wolf said that other states have raised the same issues with the federal government and Vice President Mike Pence assured them they are working on it.

Legislators recently passed bills which will make it possible for car sales and notary services to reopen online regardless of the governor’s orders.

Last week, Wolf pledged to veto two other bills, which lawmakers passed which would have allowed businesses to open if they meet the CDC and Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency’s guidelines.

Yudichak said by vetoing the bill, Wolf has chosen a unilateral executive plan which lacks details and does not collaborate with elected representatives.

“We have talented men and women in all branches of state government, and it is necessary for us to work together to save both lives and livelihoods,” he said.

Unemployment system

The Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry debuted a new unemployment compensation system for self-employed and freelance workers Friday night. Wolf said the website went into use quicker than expected in order to help deal with the large number of people signing up for unemployment compensation for the first time.

“We’re doing everything we can to meet the demand and turn everything around as quickly and conveniently as possible,” Wolf said.