PA Senate Democrats

Fight Inflation and Put Families First

Inflation wasn’t perfect by the end of 2024, but it had been put in check. Less than 100 days into Trump’s term, the Republicans undid all of the progress that it had taken the Democrats four years to accomplish. The country just went through an extended period of inflation largely caused by the post-COVID recovery. The current economic climate – a dipping stock market, dwindling retirement and increased inflation – can be placed entirely on the current administration and Congressional majorities. But we do have state options available to help reduce the pain. It’s time to:

• Fight the Trump tariff policies
• Build more affordable and middle-class housing and provide assistance to update home weatherization and appliance efficiency
• Diversify our energy generation sector so that our utility bills are manageable and are not subject to wild increases due to weather events
• Provide working families an earned income tax credit to put money back in households
• Bring down prescription drug prices and reign in healthcare costs
• Prevent corporate consolidation through strong anti-trust enforcement

Increase the Minimum Wage

Governor Shapiro has proposed an increase to Pennsylvania’s minimum wage to $15 an hour and we stand with him! The adage that a rising tide lifts all ships still holds true. An increase to $15 would directly benefit nearly 1.5 million workers, or 25 percent of Pennsylvania workers. Especially during times of inflation, we must increase the purchasing power of wage- earning Pennsylvanians. Prior to this inflationary period, the minimum wage had lost 35% of its purchasing power compared to 50 years ago and it has only gotten worse

Invest in Mass Transit

Public transit agencies across Pennsylvania have reached critical crossroads. Big and small agencies need additional state assistance. The availability of high-quality public transit provides access to jobs, increases worker productivity, increases transportation system efficiency, and protects family budgets by reducing vehicle and transportation costs. The Senate Democrats are ardent supporters of increasing state funding for regional mass transit systems

Provide Access to Childcare

Providing access to high quality childcare will go a long way to providing parents job opportunities that may be inaccessible otherwise. Our caucus is advocating for an increase of $55 million for childcare employment retention and recruitment efforts in this year’s budget, to provide more access to affordable services, along with reasonable increases in future years to keep pace with increases in the cost of living.

Mandate Earned Sick Leave

Healthy employees are productive employees. We need to ensure that people have time off to take care of themselves and their families. Choosing between a paycheck and going to the doctor shouldn’t be a choice at all. In addition to the benefits for employees, earned sick leave leads to fewer sick days for the overall workforce, less turnover, better use of preventive care, and higher workplace productivity.

Public Sector

OSHA Coverage Not all workers in Pennsylvania are treated equally. Our caucus intends to resolve this inequity. The Occupational Health and Safety Act, commonly referred to as OSHA, covers private sector employees and provides safety and health standards in the workplace and enforcement mechanisms to ensure the law is followed. However, public sector employees in Pennsylvania are not provided the same protections as private sector employees and we want that to change. We intend to change this by providing state level OSHA protections for public sector employees.

Encourage Small and Disadvantaged Business Development and Growth

Small businesses improve the economy from the ground up, create new jobs, and build wealth at the community level. We must foster an environment that provides Pennsylvanians the opportunity to establish small and diverse businesses that in the past have been unattainable. The Senate Democrats are focused on small business loans, access to capital for growth, technical assistance, and employee training support.