Mar. 08, 2016
HARRISBURG– In her role as chairman of the House Labor and Industry Committee, Rep. Mauree Gingrich (R-Lebanon) today issued the following statement:
“As chairman of the House Labor and Industry Committee, I have asked the Independent Fiscal Office (IFO) for a financial analysis of Gov. Tom Wolf’s executive order raising the minimum wage for state employees and those with state contracts. The governor’s order immediately hikes the minimum wage from the federally mandated $7.25 an hour to $10.15, and includes annual cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs).
“The administration’s initiative comes at a price to Pennsylvania taxpayers, and that is why I moved to ensure that such actions cannot be taken without proper scrutiny.
House Bill 826, which would require the IFO to determine the fiscal impact of executive orders, was passed by the House and is now awaiting action in the Senate. It would ensure that the economic impact of executive orders be determined and publicly disclosed before implementation. It is critical that any costs to Pennsylvania taxpayers be open and transparent.
“Additional state spending, without a fully-funded state budget in place, makes the administration’s order concerning, particularly now that schools are on the verge of closing, following the governor’s veto of more than $3 billion in basic education funding.
“Without a full review, we cannot determine the cost of the executive order to taxpayers and we also cannot predict the potential impact it will have on Pennsylvania employers and jobs. Therefore, today I sent a letter to the IFO, asking for a comprehensive fiscal impact analysis of Executive Order 2016-02.”
Representative Mauree Gingrich
101st District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Donna Pinkham
717.260.6452
dpinkham@pahousegop.com
RepGingrich.com