by Christin Brown | January 8, 2014 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Jan. 8, 2014 – A just-finished report on violence prevention in Pennsylvania should be acted upon as soon as the legislature returns to session Jan. 13, state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione said today in a letter to a key lawmaker.
The “Report of the Advisory Committee on Violence Prevention” listed 44 recommendations in its 295-page report.
Tartaglione said one of the panel’s important suggestions is to require gun owners to promptly report lost or stolen firearms.
The Philadelphia Democrat has proposed two bills to shut down the illicit ownership of found or stolen firearms. Her first measure, Senate Bill 810, would require weapon owners to report lost or stolen guns within 24 hours of their disappearance. Senate Bill 811 would require people who sell or transfer firearms in Philadelphia to register those transactions with state police.
“This is not a problem isolated to larger cities, but is widespread in cities of all sizes, economies and demographics throughout the state,” Tartaglione said in a letter to Sen. Stewart Greenleaf, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and the author of a resolution that brought the study of violence in the commonwealth.
“I believe, as do the members of the Joint State Government Commission, that requiring a 24-hour reporting requirement for lost or stolen firearms is a necessary public duty that we can no longer ignore. As such, I am requesting your assistance in the movement of S.B. 810 from the Judiciary Committee,” she wrote.
The Joint State Government Commission’s report on violence in Pennsylvania was ordered by the adoption nearly a year ago of Senate Resolution 6 “to conduct a thorough and comprehensive analysis of violent crime and mass shootings, as well as other topics related to those issues.”
The report calls its 44 recommendations “realistic policy and statutory steps that can improve prevention and augment responsiveness to sudden, sensational outbursts of violence in schools and other public gathering places, ensuring safer schools and preventing those persons most likely to act out violently from doing so.”
Recommendation #20 would “add a new provision to the Uniform Firearms Act to require prompt reporting of lost or stolen firearms.”
The committee confirmed that it is difficult to quantify the number of lost and stolen guns from private individuals. However, under U.S. law, federal firearms licensees are required to report the theft or loss of any firearm to the ATF within 48 hours.
In 2012, Pennsylvania was the leader in the number of lost or stolen firearms from federal firearms licensees at 1,502. That was nearly 10 percent of all lost or stolen firearms in that category in the country, the study says. Texas, Maryland and New York were the other top states.
“Not only is the intent of SB 810 a direct recommendation of the report released by the Joint State Government Commission’s Advisory Committee on Violence Prevention, but also, this legislation serves as a critical step in making the commonwealth a safer place for everyone who visits, works in and lives here,” Tartaglione said.
To read the committee’s full report, click here.
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by Christin Brown | December 24, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Dec. 24, 2013 – Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione said today the state’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program has invested a total of $7 million to help the expansion of the St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children and make improvements at Fox Chase Cancer Center.
St. Christopher’s is receiving $3 million while Fox Chase is getting $4 million.
“RACP is designed to support the improvement of Pennsylvania’s economic, cultural, civic and historic projects, and these latest investments are important holiday gifts,” Tartaglione said. “These new investments not only will help to create jobs, but they will lead to a better quality of life as the people who receive care at St. Christopher’s and Fox Chase will benefit.”
The RACP grants were part of a group of 58 awards announced Monday by the Pennsylvania Office of the Budget.
The total dollar amount for all projects is $133 million. Collectively they are expected to create or sustain some 45,000 jobs in 24 counties, including Philadelphia, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery.
Projects are selected based upon their job-creation potential, their economic impact, as well as their viability and construction readiness.
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by Christin Brown | December 17, 2013 | News Releases
PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 17, 2013 – With thousands of Pennsylvanians buying the most popular Christmas gifts and planning family get-togethers by plane, train and automobile, state Sens. Christine M. Tartaglione and Vincent Hughes today said too many people will not be able to afford an average holiday because they earn a poverty-level minimum wage.
The Democratic lawmakers said the time is now to begin to increase Pennsylvania’s minimum wage to $9/hour.
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“A hardworking minimum wage earner has to work 64 hours to cover the costs of traveling to be with loved ones for the holiday,” Sen. Tartaglione, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Labor & Industry Committee, said. “And that is only if they don’t have to buy food, pay the rent, or cover utilities. But nearly all of them do.”
“It costs about $50 to provide an average Christmas dinner, according to the American Farm Bureau,” Senate Democratic Appropriations Committee Chairman Hughes said. “A minimum wage worker has to work an entire day to be able to pay for that but chances are good they will not even consider doing so due to the demands on their cash.”
Tartaglione has sponsored Senate Bill 858 to raise Pennsylvania’s minimum wage from $7.25/hour to $9/hour by 2015. She has also crafted legislation to increase the minimum hourly rate for tipped employees to 70 percent of the regular minimum wage. The tipped minimum has been $2.83/hour since 1999.
“As a wheelchair attendant working for a subcontractor at the airport I get paid $5.25 per hour plus tips, which usually averages out to little more than the minimum wage,” said John Stewart, a wheelchair attendant at Philadelphia International Airport who participated in today’s press conference. “While my wages stay the same, the cost of food, transportation, rent, clothing and medicine keeps going up making it more difficult to get by.”
Stewart said he is making less annually than he was 30 years ago. He emphasized he is seeking a minimum wage increase that keeps pace with the cost of living.
“If ever there is a time to truly be compassionate about the plight of women and men who are working their fingers to the bone and are earning little in return, it is now,” Tartaglione said. “And John Stewart is a good example of why.”
“For Pennsylvania’s minimum wage workers, the holidays are the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future – rolled into one repeating nightmare – every year,” Hughes said. “They don’t get to wake-up from their nightmare, as Ebenezer Scrooge does, to enjoy the holidays and truly revel in the joy of giving. They can’t afford it.”
The senators urged lawmakers to quickly consider and adopt SB 858 and SB 1099 to provide a more solid step for minimum wage earners.
President Obama called for Congress to adopt a minimum age increase this month, the lawmakers said. Also, 10 other states, including Ohio, have upped their base hourly wage and also tied future increases to inflation.
“Unfortunately, Pennsylvania is mired with a belief, spawned and massaged by Gov. Tom Corbett and some leading Republicans, that corporations will not be able to afford adding another $1.75/hour to the state’s minimum wage rate,” Tartaglione said. “Why? Those same corporations can afford skyrocketing bonuses.”
“Businesses cannot afford to not increase the minimum wage,” Hughes said. “Employees are more productive if they don’t have to worry about life issues. Having to work multiple minimum wage jobs – because they are the only jobs many adults can find – is a problem for everyone and is a major worry.
“Even Scrooge would pay more than Pennsylvania’s $7.25/hour minimum,” Hughes said.
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by Christin Brown | December 10, 2013 | News Releases
Harrisburg – December 10, 2013 – In advance of the governor’s planned mid-year budget briefing, state Senate Democrats today announced details of a plan to generate more than $1 billion in budget savings and revenues they say can be used to make key investments, avoid deep cuts or tax increases in dealing with a projected $839 million budget deficit.
“Senate Democrats have identified ample revenues to not only deal with the significant budget deficit that has developed under Gov. Tom Corbett’s watch, but we’ve also found resources to fund key job creation initiatives, education investments and safety net repairs that are needed as a result of short-sighted administration policies,” Sen. Jay Costa (D-Allegheny), the Senate Democratic leader said.
In a November budget status report, the Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) reported that Pennsylvania was facing a structural deficit of $839 million.
At today’s news conference in the state Capitol, Costa detailed the Senate Democratic $1.091 billion savings and revenue plan. The plan includes the following features and fiscal benefits:
- Expanded Medicaid — $400 million;
- Escheat Reform — $150 million;
- Wine and Spirits Modernization — $125 million;
- Charter School Reform — $85.5 million;
- Capital Stock and Franchise tax phase-out freeze — $75 million;
- Multi-state claims processing for SSP/SSI – $75 million;
- Enhanced tax collection — $55 million;
- Medicaid Managed Care — $50 million;
- Tobacco products tax — $36 million;
- Vendor discount elimination — $40 million.
Senate Democratic Whip Sen. Anthony H. Williams (D-Philadelphia) said Pennsylvanians should not accept the recurring rhetoric from the Corbett administration that they have to cut and slash each and every year due to a revenue shortfall.
“Every year we have heard the same tune from the governor that his hands are tied because revenues are soft and the job market is flat,” Williams said. “For the last three years, Senate Democrats have put forth plans outlining how we can generate budget savings and additional revenues to make key investments without severe cuts.
“The song the governor keeps singing about his budget woes is stale and taxpayers are tired of it. The fact is we need a new more aggressive approach,” he said.
Senate Democratic Appropriations Chair Sen. Vincent J. Hughes (D-Philadelphia) said the reason Pennsylvania keeps having budget deficits and scrambling for money each year is the Corbett administration does not have a comprehensive and coherent job creation strategy.
“Under the governor’s leadership, we’ve gone from eighth in job creation to near last among all states, dead last among all our neighboring states and last among all big states,” Hughes said. “We have a Corbett jobs deficit of 166,000 on top of a Corbett budget deficit of $839 million.
“The reason we can’t move forward is that the Corbett corporate tax cuts of over $1 billion, combined with a lack of attention to the needs of everyday Pennsylvanians in job creation, education and safety net protections, weigh us down.”
Senate Democrats also continued to lament the $1 billion in cuts in education funding authored by the Corbett administrations several years ago. The Democrats said this policy has been counterproductive and costly to the average taxpayers because the state simply shifted the burden.
“We can devise a better approach to budgeting and revenue generation that will not result in our local taxpayers paying more in property taxes and children losing opportunities in school,” Costa said. “The Senate Democratic plan provides a path that is responsible and deals with the Corbett budget deficit.”
In addition to the budget and savings plan, Senate Democrats said they would soon announce their budget priorities for the upcoming fiscal year.
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by Christin Brown | December 9, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Dec. 9, 2013 – Gov. Tom Corbett’s revelation that he is against raising the minimum wage because he is worried about its affect on the economy is another example of how this governor is only worried about the rich, the state’s leading minimum wage advocate, Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione said today.
“Corporations have been making record profits on the backs of hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvania residents who have not had a pay raise in nearly five years,” Tartaglione said. “Meanwhile, countless executives have enjoyed increases and bonuses every year that have equaled far more than $1.75/hour.
“Why does this governor think giving hardworking men and women another $70 a week is going to hurt the economy? The answer is woven in all of the other actions he’s taken since his election. Whether it is his historic $1 billion cut in basic education funding, his Scrooge-like welfare cuts, or his lack of investments in job creation programs to get people back to work, this governor has proven time and again that he doesn’t believe the people who make this economy run are worth it.”
Corbett told the Wilkes-Barre Times-Leader on Friday that he “always worries about changing the dynamic when we’re starting to come out of the (recession).”
“To many unemployed Pennsylvanians – and even our neighbors who have found work but are working three minimum-wage jobs to try and make ends meet – the Great Recession continues,” Tartaglione, the Democratic chair of the Senate Labor & Industry Committee said today.
“Multi-billion dollar corporations are paying their employees poverty-level wages and it is flat wrong,” she said.
Tartaglione sponsored Senate Bill 858 to raise Pennsylvania’s minimum wage from $7.25/hour to $9/hour by 2015. She has also crafted legislation to increase the minimum hourly rate for tipped employees to 70 percent of the regular minimum wage. The tipped minimum has been $2.83/hour since 1999.
“How many more holidays are our dedicated and committed workers going to have to suffer through wondering if they’re going to have enough money to buy food and pay their rent, let alone by a present for a loved one?” Tartaglione asked. “This Scrooge mentality has got to go.”
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by Christin Brown | December 3, 2013 | News Releases
PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 3, 2013 – Eligible residents who need help stretching their budgets have less than a month left to apply for property tax or rent rebates, state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione said today.
“Pennsylvania’s property tax/rent rebate program can really help low-income residents who need assistance,” Tartaglione said. “This can make the difference for someone trying to decide if their money should buy food or medicine or go to pay a vital monthly bill, like heat. Don’t wait to apply.”
The deadline for applying for this annual reimbursement was June 30 but the state pushed it to Dec. 31.
To qualify, homeowners or renters must be:
- At least 65 years old OR
- 50 years old and a widow or widower OR
- At least 18 years old and disabled OR
- Permanently disabled during the claim year, which would be 2012.
If a homeowner or renter earns less than $8,000/year, they can receive the maximum $650 rebate. Homeowners who make between $18,001 and $35,000 can receive up to $250, while the minimum eligibility for renters is a $500 rebate for those making between $8,001 and $15,000. Proof of age and income are required.
Interested homeowners and renters may call Sen. Tartaglione’s district office for help in submitting their applications, if needed. Applications may also be submitted through the Department of Revenue’s website: www.revenue.state.pa.us.
It costs nothing to apply.
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by Christin Brown | November 25, 2013 | News Releases
Philadelphia – November 25, 2013 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione will begin distributing more than 1,500 Thanksgiving turkeys to needy families in the 2nd Senate District at 1 p.m. today at her 1061 Bridge Street district office.
Tartaglione will travel throughout the district delivering turkeys this week. Your coverage is invited.
by Christin Brown | November 25, 2013 | News Releases
Harrisburg – November 25, 2013 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today urged students to take some time to research often overlooked college scholarship opportunities.
“You don’t have to be able to dunk a basketball or graduate at the top of your class to get help with college tuition,” she said. “There are numerous opportunities for students with focused interests or a record of volunteer work.”
Scholarships can be awarded to students who demonstrate or show high-achievement in areas such as academics, athletics, music, art and many other fields. They can be offered by federal or state governments, schools, civic organizations like the Rotary or Lions Clubs, religious institutions, businesses or trade associations and private foundations.
Students should ask school counselors if they are aware of scholarships that may be available, in addition to exploring the free scholarship search engines and databases on the Internet.
“Researching scholarships should be part of every student’s college preparation,” Tartaglione said. “It’s possible to cut years off student loan payments.”
The Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA) produces a career and college-planning website (www.educationplanner.org), which has links to FastWeb, a free national scholarship search engine. Once students complete their profile, the FastWeb search engine provides links to the awards that match their profile. Each award links-out to the application for the scholarship.
by Christin Brown | November 21, 2013 | News Releases
Harrisburg – November 20, 2013 – The transportation funding plan that passed the Senate tonight was the ‘flawed product of a flawed process,” state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione said today.
“Changes to Pennsylvania’s prevailing wage laws have been proposed and debated for years and have failed to reach a majority or even a consensus,” she said. “Leveraging this unpopular idea against the safety of Pennsylvania drivers, who make millions of trips across structurally deficient bridges every day, is pure politics and bad public policy.”
After Senate Republican leaders rebuffed an attempt to amend the House transportation plan to remove the controversial wage language, Tartaglione voted for the critical transportation improvement plan on final passage.
“There is no time to go back to the start on a transportation plan,” she said. “I believe the safety of drivers and the soundness of our economy is at risk if we don’t start rebuilding our long-neglected infrastructure.”
The $2.4 billion package increases spending to $1.7 billion by the fifth year for highway and bridge projects. Another nearly $500 million would be targeted for mass transit and $144 million for multi-modal projects.
It is expected to create more than 60,000 jobs and create an improved infrastructure that will attract billions in private investment.
The new transportation investment is largely paid for by the removal of the cap on the Oil Company Franchise tax over a three-year period to generate $1.8 billion by FY 2017-18. Fee and fine increases included in the bill would raise hundreds of millions more.
Tartaglione noted that she voted in favor of a similar funding plan, Senate Bill 1, that passed the Senate on an overwhelming, bipartisan vote earlier this year without the prevailing wage changes.
“It’s is good news that help is coming for commuters and public transit riders,” Tartaglione said. “But the process that produced that funding is a sign that difficult decisions will not be made in the future without partisan gamesmanship.”
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by Christin Brown | November 19, 2013 | News Releases
Harrisburg – November 19, 2013 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today joined Senate Democratic colleagues in announcing a series of bills intended to address problems faced by Pennsylvania veterans in their return to civilian life.
“Today’s returning veterans face unique challenges in returning to civilian life after long deployments during a weak recovery from recession,” Tartaglione said. “We have to do more than just thank them for their service.”
Tartaglione, Democratic Chair of the Senate Labor and Industry Committee, discussed the legislation, titled “Saluting PA Veterans,” at a Capitol news conference with Senate Democratic Leader Sen. Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) and Senate Democratic Appropriations Chair Vincent J. Hughes (D-Philadelphia).
Their plan contains measures intended to help returning veterans with education, housing and jobs, in addition to initiatives that provide monetary assistance, counseling services and financial relief for families.
In the package of bills is a Tartaglione-sponsored measure requiring the state Department of Health to provide training for emergency service providers to help them recognize and treat veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder or brain injury.
“This effort will involve virtually every department of government in making sure veterans and their families are understood and not underserved,” Tartaglione said.
Pennsylvania is home to nearly 1 million veterans, more than 100,000 of them having served in Iraq or Afghanistan since 2001. The unemployment rate among recently returning veterans is above the rate of the civilian population, despite their military training.
The Salute Pa Veterans Plan also includes:
- $40 million in bonds to provide payments to veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars
- A pilot peer-to-peer counseling program for veterans to address post traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, military sexual trauma, and rising rates of suicide
- $20 million for veterans’ housing projects, and veteran preference in public housing
- Housing assistance grants to homeless or imminently homeless veterans and help with down payments or closing-costs for veterans buying homes;
- Increased funding for Veterans Emergency Assistance Program, along with extended deadlines, and expanded maximum Military Family Relief Assistance
- Increased veterans’ preference points for civil service examinations, from 10 to 15
- Priority for subsidized child care to veterans and families of active duty military
- Expanded eligibility for veterans in the disabled veterans tax exemption statute (i.e., exempting 50% of Social Security and Railroad Retirement Benefits from the calculation)
- A task force to study health-care issues unique to women veterans, including accessibility and quality of care
- A call on the U.S. Congress to increase funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs
Senate Democrats had previously introduced several legislative items within the context of their PA Works plan. These have been incorporated into the Saluting Pa Veterans plan. These initiatives include:
Development of a training program to help veterans start small businesses; creation of a $5 million veteran-owned businesses loan guarantee; new tax credits for hiring unemployed veterans; new standards to incorporate education and training in the military into education credits to help expedite the obtaining of a degree; doubling of tuition assistance and increasing the years the assistance is provided.
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by Christin Brown | November 18, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Nov. 18, 2013 – The state Senate today unanimously passed a resolution sponsored by Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione marking Dec. 3 as “International Day of Persons with Disabilities.”
Started in 1982 by the United Nations, the day is recognized around the world.
“This day of recognition has helped raise understanding and awareness throughout the world,” Tartaglione said. “Here in the U.S. and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, we have come a long way over the past few decades in accommodating persons with disabilities.”
According to organizers, who estimate that 15 percent of the world’s population lives with some form of disability, the major focus of the day is “practical and concrete action to include disability in all aspects of development, as well as to further the participation of persons with disabilities in social life and development on the basis of equality.”
The theme of this year’s International Day of Persons with Disabilities is: “Break barriers, open doors: for an inclusive society for all”.
The United Nations recently concluded high level meetings intended to draft a plan to ensure that development throughout the world includes persons with disabilities to help further the goal of full and equal participation of persons with disabilities in society.
“I hope that we will continue looking for new and better ways for all citizens to fully participate in every aspect of the political, social, economic and cultural life in this state,” Tartaglione said.
by Christin Brown | November 14, 2013 | News Releases
The following statement was offered today by Senator Christine M. Tartaglione in support of Auditor General DePasquale’s recent audit that discovered mismanagement of a Department of Public Welfare contract for home care workers:
Auditor General Eugene DePasquale today issued a report detailing gaping holes in the monitoring of home care workers payroll contracts. As a result of the problems, the auditor general said that 1,500 Pennsylvanians were impacted negatively by the transition to other providers, costing Pennsylvania in excess of $7 million.
“Today’s audit report was eye-opening and reinforced the concerns that Senate Democrats have raised about this very issue for months. The audit concluded there was gross mismanagement, lack of oversight and little accountability related to payroll providers who were responsible for compensating home health care aides for their hard work and attention to Pennsylvanians living with a disability.
“I have spent my entire career fighting for the rights and protecting the health and safety of our most vulnerable citizens. The audit reinforces our belief that the Corbett Administration has failed hard-working families who have suffered financial and emotional stress due to their lack of supervision.
“I will work with my Senate Democratic colleagues to devise legislative or administrative solutions to ensure that home health care workers don’t fall victim again.”
by Christin Brown | October 21, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Oct. 21, 2013 – The state Senate has unanimously passed a resolution marking “Brachial Plexus Injury Awareness Week in Pennsylvania,” state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione announced today.
“With greater knowledge and awareness of this type of injury, I hope we will be able to reduce the number of brachial plexus injuries that occur in the future,” Tartaglione said. “I hope individuals will obtain the medical assistance they need to live more satisfying, productive lives.”
Injuries to the brachial plexus are caused by severe trauma to the group of nerves that run from the shoulder to the fingertips. Frequent causes are vehicle-related collisions, certain medical procedures and complications during childbirth. As many as five percent of all newborns suffer a brachial plexus injury, according to medical experts.
“Unfortunately, many individuals do not recognize the symptoms or medical conditions associated with brachial plexus injuries and, as a result, they fail to receive a prompt diagnosis and treatment,” Tartaglione said.
Tartaglione’s resolution marks Oct. 20 through Oct. 26 as “Brachial Plexus Awareness Week.”
For more information on brachial plexus injury, click here.
by Christin Brown | September 17, 2013 | News Releases
PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 17, 2013 — At a news conference in Philadelphia’s City Hall today, state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione announced new legislation aimed at restoring the buying power of Pennsylvania’s minimum wage.
Tartaglione, the Democratic chair of the Labor and Industry Committee was joined by Democratic Appropriations Chair Sen. Vincent J. Hughes and local labor leaders in a push to join other states that have created minimum wages that resist the erosion of inflation.
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“Pennsylvania isn’t keeping up with the times or with its neighbors,” Tartaglione said. “Right now, there are too many adults working full-time, but living below the poverty line in this state.”
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Tartaglione was the prime sponsor of legislation that was signed into law in 2006, boosting the state minimum wage from $5.35 an hour to $7.15. The federal minimum wage was increased to the current $7.25 an hour in 2009.
“Creating a minimum wage that accounts for inflation will prevent thousands of working families from sinking below the federal poverty line as they wait for action from the legislature,” Hughes said. “A stagnant minimum wage hurts families and puts increased pressure on already overburdened social services.”
Earlier this year, Tartaglione introduced legislation that would tie Pennsylvania’s minimum wage to the consumer price index, allowing it to rise annually in small increments. One of the bills announced today (Senate Bill 858) would raise the minimum wage to $9.00 per hour by 2015 to account for years of inflation, while the other (Senate Bill 1099) would boost the minimum wage for tipped employees, which has remained unchanged at $2.83 an hour for 15 years, to 70 percent of the regular minimum wage.
“Both bills will raise these wages in increments to ensure employers are not financially overburdened,” Tartaglione said. “And both bills will help employees earn more livable wages.”
Hughes noted that 10 states have already adjusted their minimum wages for inflation. Most were accomplished through overwhelming voter approval in statewide referenda.
“We know that there is strong support among all Pennsylvanians for wages that keep families out of poverty,” he said. “The task ahead is to impress that support on the General Assembly.”
New York’s minimum wage will rise to $9 an hour by 2015 under legislation enacted earlier this year, and New Jersey voters will go to the polls this fall to decide whether to raise that state’s minimum wage. A Rutgers-Eagleton poll of New Jersey voters showed 76 percent support for the increase.
“With so much focus on minimum wage right now, this may be the year Pennsylvania’s workers finally get their raises,” Tartaglione said.
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by Christin Brown | September 13, 2013 | News Releases
WHO:
State Senator Christine Tartaglione, Democratic Chair of Senate Labor and Industry Committee
State Senator Vincent Hughes, Democratic Chair of Senate Appropriations Committee
Elizabeth McLroy, Secretary-Treasurer of Philadelphia AFL-CIO
Mark Price, Labor Economist at Keystone Research Center
Kathy Black, President of the Coalition of Labor Union Women
John Dodds, Executive Director of the Philadelphia Unemployment Project
WHAT: Senator Tartaglione will announce the introduction of new legislation to increase Pennsylvania’s minimum wage from $7.25 to $9.00. She will be joined by Sen. Hughes and advocates who support the bill.
Pennsylvania’s minimum wage is currently set at $7.25 for most hourly employees, which is required by federal law. Eighteen states have passed minimum wage rates above the federal level. Pennsylvania lawmakers have not increased the state minimum wage since 2006.
WHEN: Tuesday, September 17th @ 2pm
WHERE: Philadelphia City Hall, Mayor’s Reception Room (Room 202)
CONTACT: Please contact Ben Waxman via e-mail: bwaxman@pasenate.com or 717-787-7112 for more information
by Christin Brown | September 3, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, Sept. 3, 2013 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione joined thousands of local workers and their families yesterday in a rain-drenched parade held to celebrate Labor Day and to show solid support for working families.
Rather than detract from the event, Tartaglione said, the morning downpour served as a fitting symbol for the day.
“A lot of these people I’ve known for more than 20 years,” she said as she rolled her wheelchair along South Columbus Boulevard. “They don’t want fair–weather friends. They want to know that you’ll be there no matter what. It was great to see entire families, even toddlers, squeezed together under one umbrella, marching in the rain for the dignity of hard work.”
Before the Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO’s 26th annual Tri-State Labor Day Parade, Tartaglione served ice cream outside the Sheet Metal Workers Local 19 Union Hall to draw attention to Pennsylvania’s stagnant minimum wage, which has not changed since her 2006 legislation raised it in steps to $7.15 by 2007.
“Allowing the minimum wage to be eroded by inflation has pushed thousands of working families into poverty and added pressure on social services,” she said. “A fairly adjusted minimum wage lowers the poverty rate and saves money for every taxpayer in Pennsylvania.”
In every legislative session since 2007, Tartaglione has introduced legislation that would apply an inflation index to Pennsylvania’s minimum wage – as ten states have already done. With that bill stuck in committee, she added a bill that would simply raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour.
“Ten years ago we started out with heavy opposition and we were able to make the case for fair wages,” she said. “It’s going to happen again.”
Despite challenges on many fronts, organized labor is determined to stand up against the legislative majority and Gov. Tom Corbett in their efforts to resolve budget difficulties on the backs of working families, Tartaglione said.
“They try to tell you that a Philadelphia teacher makes too much money but Shell Oil needs government help,” she said. “They’re not even trying to make sense anymore.”
Tartaglione said she is working on legislation that would add tipped workers to the minimum wage adjustments and will be discussing a legislative strategy on her effort at a news conference Sept. 17.
by Christin Brown | August 22, 2013 | News Releases
PHILADELPHIA, Aug. 18, 2013 – The following statement was offered today by Senator Christine M. Tartaglione, Democratic Chair of the Senate Labor and Industry Committee, in support of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers and Philadelphia Coalition Advocating for Public Schools rally advocating for Full, Fair Funding for our Schools:
“It has been said that ‘It takes a village to raise a child.’
I truly believe that.
Our village is our parents, our community and most importantly the teachers in our schools.
Children deserve the best teachers we can give them, and an equal opportunity at a bright future
It is unfair to children, parents and teachers to balance the school budget on the backs of the teachers.
These teachers are the ones that have the most daily contact with our children – we should want to offer the most competitive salaries and benefits, in order to attract the most talented teachers.
We should want the smartest, brightest, and best teachers to stay in Philadelphia.
Funding education properly now will create a stronger city and Commonwealth, and will save our community money in the future.
Our funding system is broken and in need of serious repair. Concessions from employees will not fix this, finding various things to tax at various times will not fix this. It needs a major overhaul and that is where the attention and effort needs to be focused
These children are our job creators for our future.
They will start businesses, dream up new ideas, cure our illnesses when we are old and aging, and move us toward reaching our full potential as a community.
We sabotage our own futures if we do not provide proper education for our children now.”
by Christin Brown | August 21, 2013 | News Releases
PHILADELPHIA, August 21, 2013 – Hundreds of residents from the neighborhood surrounding Wissinoming Park turned out yesterday for a community picnic organized by state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione.
The event was the first in the Northeast Philadelphia neighborhood after years of popular events in Norris Square Park.
“State funding cuts are presenting difficult challenges for local schools and families,” Tartaglione said. “The neighborhood picnics bring together local residents and volunteers from community organizations to help get children ready for school.”
Sen. Tartaglione distributed more than 700 backpacks to young students at her Community Picnic in Wissinoming Park this week.
More than 700 donated back packs were distributed to young students who were also treated to hot dogs, water ice and face painting.
The event comes on the heels of the Norris Square community event which has been held for eight consecutive years.
“The Norris Square picnic has a tremendous turnout each year, but not every family has the ability to get there,” Tartaglione said. “So we decided to expand the outreach to help other families who are getting ready for school.
Like the prior events, the Wissinoming Park picnic involved coordinating numerous sponsors and community partners who donated service and supplies.
“One good thing that came out of the recession was a network of local people and organizations who take pride in helping others,” Tartaglione said. “I think we can continue to build on it to make better communities.
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by Christin Brown | August 9, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, August 9, 2013 – Thousands of constituents from the neighborhoods surrounding Norris Square Park attended state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione’s annual community festival yesterday.
By coordinating numerous sponsors and community partners, Tartaglione was able to personally distribute more than 1,500 backpacks stuffed with back-to-school supplies such as pencils, notebooks and erasers.
Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione (right) talks about the upcoming school year with constituents at her annual community festival on Thursday, Aug. 8, 2013.
“This event has grown every year and it’s become a tradition in this neighborhood,” Tartaglione said. “With budget cuts to schools across the state and especially in Philadelphia, our community partners were willing to do everything they could to help local children get a head start in school.”
The event also featured free hot dogs, popcorn and water ice, along with family services such as fingerprinting and safety programs.
Eight years ago, when the first community picnic was held in Norris Square Park, 500 children received backpacks that were donated by local organizations.
“The growth has been tremendous,” Tartaglione said. “It’s one of the biggest events of the summer in the region and outstanding community organizations help make it possible and help make it free to the local families.”
Among the volunteers for the event were more than a dozen Philadelphia Police Explorer Cadets who stuffed hundreds of backpacks before the event and helped organize the crowds gathered to receive backpacks.
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by Christin Brown | July 16, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, July 16, 2013 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today urged Gov. Tom Corbett to quickly sign the state Fiscal Code passed by the House yesterday, more than two weeks after the budget deadline.
In a letter sent today, Tartaglione told Corbett “the wheels of productivity that drive agencies, departments and organizations in this state will remain at a standstill and individuals will not be served effectively by their government until this bill is enacted.
As such, providing your signature to this legislation should be your highest priority at this time.”
Passage of the Fiscal Code (Senate Bill 591), one of a group of bills that make up the annual state budget, was delayed after House Republican leaders inserted a provision encouraging the General Assembly to pass a law allowing “payday” lending in Pennsylvania.
Removing the provision sent the bill back to the House for a concurrence vote that took place yesterday.
Among the bills important provisions are funding for a State Police cadet class and emergency fiscal relief for Philadelphia schools.
“The school district requires this money to prepare for the upcoming school year—that is, to prevent further school closures and staff furloughs, to provide adequate academic staff for the student population, to ensure students have supplies and resources to gain a quality education,” the letter said. “These funds will allow such preparation to begin and will lift a heavy burden from the shoulders of many parents who are pondering the academic futures of their children.”
by Christin Brown | July 1, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, June 30, 2013 — State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today voted against a Republican-backed budget plan that continues more than two years of economic backsliding and education failure.
“Pennsylvania has been sitting in the ditch watching the rest of the country drive past and the administration’s plan to get us moving is simply more of the same,” she said. “We’ve heard the same trite sound bites for two years but the facts are hard to ignore. This cynical and political approach to budgeting is not working.”
Two years after cutting $1 billion from Pennsylvania’s schools, the budget passed by the Senate today restores a meager $130 million, while dozens of schools teeter on the brink of bankruptcy.
“The plan to help Philadelphia schools will only serve to make sure that the schools will continue to operate on a razor’s edge for the foreseeable future,” Tartaglione said. “We need real leadership to resolve crises, not preserve them,”
Tartaglione was among the supporters of an alternate budget plan that included $212 million more for education, $125 million more for job creation along with support for small cities facing economic distress.
When they offered the plan several weeks ago, Senate Democrats said it would use funds generated from liquor modernization, savings created by expanding Medicaid, and a one-year hold on the phase-out of the Capital Stock and Franchise Tax to produce the revenue needed to invest in the state’s economy.
Some senators have seen the wisdom of that plan and Medicaid expansion passed the Senate on Saturday, while the budget plan that passed also contains a freeze on the Capitol Stock and Franchise Tax.
At Tartaglione’s request, the plan nearly doubles funding for assistive technology devices that help get Pennsylvanians with disabilities back into the workforce.
Tartaglione said the plan also includes funding for three new classes of state troopers and increases for the state court system.
“As long as we keep ignoring our failing education system, we have to make sure we train new police and expand our court system,” Tartaglione said. “That’s the bottom line with this budget.”
by Christin Brown | June 18, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, June 18, 2013 – State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today released the following statement regarding Sen. McIlhinney’s liquor proposal:
“I am grateful to Sen. McIlhinney for taking the time and making the effort to listen to a broad range of opinions on the short-sighted House liquor privatization bill. Unfortunately, the result appears to be a bill that tries to be everything to everybody, and in that attempt serves to only delay massive job losses and only temporarily slow down the big-box liquor frenzy the House bill would produce.
Over a slightly longer period of time, the result would be the same and Pennsylvania taxpayers wouldn’t even see the overstated revenue in the House plan. In a few years, beer distributors, small grocers, locally owned convenience stores and specialty wine shops will have gone the way of the stationary store and the corner hardware store: replaced by large corporations with no community connection and responsible only to shareholders.
It was a terrible thing when this happened to small Pennsylvania retailers selling paper clips or hand tools. But when the sale of a commodity as dangerous as liquor is turned over to large corporations, a minimum-wage workforce and a profit-over-all philosophy, the result will be worse than just the loss of local businesses.
With a stubbornly high unemployment rate, schools laying off thousands of employees, and the nation’s largest inventory of unsafe bridges, it’s hard to imagine that making liquor easier to buy is a priority.
The Senate should consider a streamlined modernization plan and get back to the real job of putting Pennsylvanians back to work rebuilding our long-ignored infrastructure.”
by Christin Brown | June 3, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, June 3, 2013 — State Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione today joined her Democratic colleagues in support of a budget alternative that improves funding for schools, social services and job creation while holding the line on broad-based taxes.
“Governor Corbett and House Republicans want Pennsylvanians to believe that the weakest among us must continue to suffer in order to balance a budget,” Tartaglione said. “The plan we presented today shows that by properly aligning priorities and using strategies that work, we can grow our economy through targeted investment while balancing the budget.
Tartaglione said the Democratic plan includes $212 million more for education, $125 million more for job creation along with support for small cities facing economic distress.
Senate Democrats would use policy changes to produce a spending plan that overcomes budget challenges such as the estimated $360 million revenue deficit, caucus leaders said at a news conference today. Their budget alternative uses funds generated from liquor modernization, savings created by expanding Medicaid, and a one-year hold on the phase-out of the Capital Stock and Franchise Tax to produce the revenue needed to invest in the state’s economy.
“This budget gives the administration a clear choice between favoring corporations or supporting the working families of Pennsylvania,” Tartaglione said. “It ends the false choices and the dire predictions of the far right wing and provides a shared-pain approach.”
At Tartaglione’s request, the plan nearly doubles funding for assistive technology devices that help get Pennsylvanians with disabilities back into the workforce and fully restores the New Choices/ New Options program, which helps train displaced homemakers for new careers.
Tartaglione said the plan also includes $9 million to train 300 State Troopers and $8 million to combat gang violence, illegal firearms and drugs. The proposal also includes $39 million in new funds for distressed schools, an additional $50 million for Accountability Block Grants and other classroom assistance for a total of $150 million plus $84 million for a Charter Development Program.
by Christin Brown | April 30, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, April 30, 2013 — Gov. Corbett’s contention that drug use is responsible for Pennsylvania’s high unemployment rate is disturbing, but not the most troubling part of his interview on PAMatters.com, state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione said today.
“The governor’s disdain for the unemployed and the thousands of families affected is long-held and already well-known,” Tartaglione said. “But the rest of the interview showed a state executive with a poor grasp on Pennsylvania economics and a propensity to freely make statements unburdened by facts.”
Among the glaring misstatements of fact Corbett made in the interview is the contention that “we now have more people working than ever before.”
“There are, in fact, more unemployed Pennsylvanians today than there were the day the governor was inaugurated,” Tartaglione said. “And the size of the labor force is still more than 100,000 short of its peak during the Rendell administration. These are numbers that are easy to obtain by anyone with a computer. It’s stunning.”
In one of the interview’s more eye-opening moments, Corbett questioned the accuracy of the U.S. Labor Department’s employment calculations, saying he recently learned how the unemployment rate is calculated.
Addressing criticism that Pennsylvania has fallen from the top ten to the bottom five among states in job creation, Corbett didn’t dispute the figures.
“What I dispute is the use of statistics,” he said. Corbett went on to misattribute the quotation about “lies, damn lies and statistics” to Mark Twain, who had actually misattributed it himself in a 1906 magazine article.
Corbett also claimed that Pennsylvania’s stubbornly high unemployment rate is due to more people re-entering the workforce after having given up.
Figures released by U.S. Department of Labor this week indicate the opposite, with two consecutive monthly drops in the size of the labor force.
Before making his statement that prospective employees failing drug tests was a chief reason for high unemployment, Corbett also blamed poorly trained Pennsylvania workers who are unable to take advantage of opportunities in the gas drilling industry.
The governor suggested workers need more training through vocational schools and community colleges.
“Year after year the governor has proposed cuts in funding for the types of training he’s suggesting, including for community colleges, which haven’t received a state funding increase since before the gas boom began,” Tartaglione said. “You can’t just talk the talk, you have to walk the walk.”
Tartaglione said Pennsylvania’s 512,000 unemployed should worry that the Corbett administration has not only pushed for cuts in benefits and created havoc in unemployment call centers, but he’s seemingly out of touch with Pennsylvania’s economy.
“The governor needs to look at the statistics and admit they are real. When our chief executive compares the unemployment rate to a ‘damn lie,’ then there is no hope for policy change from the top.”
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by Christin Brown | April 15, 2013 | News Releases
HARRISBURG, April 15, 2013 – With the deadline for filing tax returns looming, state Sen. Christine M. Tartaglione decried the Corbett administration’s strategy of relief for large corporations along with increased scrutiny for individuals.
“When the administration talks about tax relief, they’re talking about big business,” Tartaglione said. “Over the past two years individuals have seen a crack down on sales taxes for online purchases, but there has been no effort to investigate corporate tax shell games. Individuals are paying more in school and municipal taxes to fund business tax breaks. That’s not the kind of tax reform people are looking for.”
Tartaglione said two events leading up to today’s tax deadline should give individuals cause for concern. In a published report today, a Department of Revenue spokesperson said state tax officials can get information about individuals’ “purchase behavior” to enforce sales tax obligations.
“The idea that the department would gather information on consumer purchases while it hasn’t taken action against any companies over the use of Delaware subsidiaries is disturbing,” she said. “Other states have sued and won. Maryland collected nearly $300 million, but Pennsylvania would rather look at its citizens ‘purchasing behavior.’”
Last week, Revenue Secretary Dan Meuser testified before the House Finance Committee on the details of Gov. Corbett’s tax-reform plan, a plan geared entirely toward cutting business taxes.
“We’ve already cut $800 billion from corporate tax liability and our job creation numbers are in the tank. This hyper-focus on greasing the wheels of industry and getting no jobs in return is terrible public policy,” Tartaglione said. “Tax reform should include closing loopholes and providing adequate school funding to prevent higher local taxes.”
