Two days after issuing its opinion in the first case, a split en banc Commonwealth Court ruled that a second class-action suit over the redirection of tobacco settlement funds away from the defunct adultBasic health insurance program may proceed against Governor Tom Corbett, Budget Secretary Charles Zogby and the state Treasury Department.
In a 34-page opinion in Sears v. Corbett issued June 27, a 5-2 majority decided to sustain in part and overrule in part preliminary objections filed by Corbett, Zogby and the General Assembly, allowing the plaintiffs to proceed with their claim seeking to have the state Treasury Department return to allocating tobacco settlement money to the adultBasic program as well as their claims seeking declaratory and mandamus relief, alleging that the legislation amending the Tobacco Settlement Act constituted a violation of Article III, Sections 3 and 6 of the Pennsylvania Constitution.
