Neighbor News
No Pay for Legislators Until Full Budget Passes
Joe Ciresi, candidate for state rep in the 146th, renews call for legislators to forgo pay until a deal is completed.
As Pennsylvania’s budget boondoggle continues into month eight, I am convinced that putting a temporary freeze on legislators’ paychecks is the best option to get both sides back to the negotiation table.
If your company failed to perform one of its core functions for eight months, would you or your co-workers get paid? I doubt it. With an average annual salary of $85,340, state senators and representatives in Pennsylvania are the second-highest paid lawmakers in the United States (after California). In Harrisburg, they earn more than twice the state’s median income.
Find out what's happening in Limerick-Royersford-Spring Cityfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Therefore, they can miss a pay period or two until a complete budget is signed. My opponent, Rep. Tom Quigley, continues to collect his monthly salary while schools and social service agencies face drastic decisions. They should share in the pain, as senators Andy Dinniman (D-19th) and John Rafferty (R-44th) have already done.
Find out what's happening in Limerick-Royersford-Spring Cityfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
In the Spring-Ford Area School District - and across this state - administrators are trying to put together a budget for the following school year, 2016-17, while state funding for the current school year is not even known. Districts are required by state law to pass a budget on-time.
Gov. Tom Wolf and both parties in the House and Senate need to put aside their differences. The Daily News wrote: “It’s time for GOP legislators to stop acting as if funding schools and services for the people in their districts would be doing Wolf a favor. It is the legislators’ obligation as elected officials to provide needed services for all Pennsylvanians.”
You might recall that Wolf and Senate Republicans had a deal months ago, which fell apart after Republicans in the House reneged on it.
My challenge to Quigley and all members of the House and Senate is this: forgo your paycheck until a deal is done.
######
Ciresi, a resident of Limerick with his wife and son, has served as a Spring-Ford Area School Board director for 10 years. For the last 14 years, he has worked as the Director of Sales and Promotions at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.
