The Pennsylvania House State Government Committee on a 14-10 vote advanced House Bill 1507 to the floor, today, June 23, taking the first step towards ending the taxpayer collection of government union campaign contributions and political money.
The legislation, called Paycheck Protection, would close a loophole that allows government unions, and only government unions, the ability to use taxpayer-funded payroll services to collect money used for political action committees and other purely political purposes.
“I applaud the House State Government Committee’s determination to restore fairness and accountability to a process that harms both taxpayers and public employees like teachers,” said Matthew J. Brouillette, president and CEO of the Commonwealth Foundation. “Teachers like Keith Williams, who testified before the committee, now have hope that their voices will no longer be co-opted by union executives who abuse taxpayer resources and teachers’ paychecks to advance their own political agendas.”
Other public school teachers are joining Williams in boldly speaking out to end government unions’ special privilege to collect political money using taxpayer resources.
In a television ad campaign, Susan Hancock, a 40-year teaching veteran and union member, argues that, “[teachers’ unions] use our money for political causes that we don’t agree with.”
She wants Paycheck Protection to get her voice back and hold her union leaders more accountable.
The ad can be seen at www.cfpolicy.org/voices
Full-page newspapers ads—which ran in 14 newspapers around the state on Sunday—feature Robin Fought, an 18-year public school teacher, who asks, “Do you think it’s right to force people to fund a politician they disagree with?”
“Paycheck Protection would restore fundamental fairness to the political system and empower teachers with a bigger say in how their money is spent on political activity,” said Brouillette, a former high school and middle school teacher. “When union leaders have to get their dues and campaign contributions directly from teachers—rather than having it automatically deducted from their paychecks—we will empower teachers to hold their unions more accountable.”
