Speaker Nancy Pelosi has extended the proxy rule allowing House members to vote remotely until Dec. 31 due to coronavirus concerns, according to the Washington Examiner.
The initial vote to allow proxy voting was on May 15, intended to lower the risk of passing along the coronavirus.
It snapped a 231-year-old rule requiring House lawmakers to vote on legislation in the Capitol. The rule allows House members in the chamber to vote for up to 10 other lawmakers who designate them as their proxy.
But Pelosi used a loophole in the legislation to extend the proxy voting rule, something she's done four times.
Pelosi pointed to a letter from House Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving ''that a public health emergency due to the novel coronavirus is still in effect.''
Over a dozen lawmakers and 80 Capitol Hill staffers have been infected by coronavirus since the onset of the outbreak, the Washington Examiner reported.
House Republicans have criticized the rule because they claim Democrats abused the time they've spent taking vacations or spending time with family.