PA Voters Would Get Time Off To Cast Ballots Under Pending Bill

HARRISBURG, PA — Election Day could become a government holiday in Pennsylvania and private sector workers would get two hours of unpaid time off to vote under a bill proposed by Sen. John Kane.

Kane, a Chester County Democrat, wants to see primary and general Election Day become a state and municipal holiday and allow counties and school districts to make those days a legal holiday as well.

Employers who fail to provide unpaid leave to vote would face a $1,000 fine under the impending measure.

"Pennsylvanians holding jobs with rigid schedules, long commutes, and lengthy workdays often face limited opportunities to vote, and long lines at their polling places in the short window they have to do so," Kane wrote in a recent memo to his brethren senators. "Consequently, these employees miss out on the opportunity to make their voices heard in our elections. It’s time to make voting easier and more accessible for Pennsylvania’s working population."

In June, the Brookings Institution issued a report calling for Election Day to become a national holiday. The Washington, D.C.-based think tank noted that democracies that have such a holiday have higher turnout than the United States. Australia, for example, typically has a turnout in the 90 percent range.

"Making Election Day a holiday would not necessarily involve adding a new holiday, which employers might resist—particularly following the addition of Juneteenth as a national holiday," the report stated. "Instead, lawmakers could simply move nearby Veterans’ Day to Election Day, emphasizing that voting is both a service to the country and a celebration of the rights and freedoms for which our service members fight."

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