For more than a decade, Pennsylvania’s Republican Senate leadership has refused to act on House-passed legislation to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 an hour, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
Pennsylvania stands as the only state among its neighbors that has not raised its wage floor above the federal baseline. That gridlock is poised to shift following a shift in legislative control in Harrisburg.
On Tuesday night, Gov. Josh Shapiro addressed the political change, stating, Tonight, Pennsylvania, you declared that you could not be more ready for an end of this ruthless chaos and cruelty, and this rampant corruption that raises our costs and rattles our conscience.
Reflecting on the voter turnout, Orly Zeewy of Bryn Mawr wrote in a letter published by The Philadelphia Inquirer, We, the people, have reminded this administration that our democracy is not built around the whims of a would-be dictator. It is still a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.
With the Pennsylvania Democratic Party securing a government trifecta in Harrisburg, advocates argue the moment has arrived to raise the minimum wage. Writing to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Stephen DeLuca of Philadelphia pointed out that the Uniform Tax Provision of the Pennsylvania Constitution prohibits graduated tax rates for different levels of income.
Under this constitutional rule, a worker earning $7.25 an hour pays the exact same wage tax rate as an individual making $100 an hour. Similarly, a commercial office building valued at $50 million is taxed at the exact same real estate rate as a residential home worth $50,000.
Because low-wage earners and lower-income homeowners cannot absorb higher tax burdens, tax rates for the highest earners remain effectively capped at what the poorest residents can afford.
Lawmakers have begun moving to alter this framework. Elizabeth Fiedler and Morgan Cephas have introduced legislation in the state House, while Tim Kearney has sponsored a parallel measure in the Senate, to remove the Uniform Tax Provision from the commonwealth’s constitution.
