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File #: 2144-05    Version: Name: A Resolution of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, supporting the initiative currently pending before the General Assembly to raise Pennsylvania's minimum wage from its current level of $5.15 per hour to $6.15 per hour in January 2006,
Type: Resolution Status: Approved
File created: 9/20/2005 In control: County Council
On agenda: Final action: 9/20/2005
Title: A Resolution of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, supporting the initiative currently pending before the General Assembly to raise Pennsylvania's minimum wage from its current level of $5.15 per hour to $6.15 per hour in January 2006, and again to $7.15 in January of 2007, and further calling upon the Governor and General Assembly to take steps to foster economic growth in the Commonwealth, including the reduction of the corporate net income tax, elimination of the cap on the net operating loss carry-forward, and the elimination of the capital stock and franchise tax.
Sponsors: Rich Fitzgerald, Joan Cleary, John DeFazio, Brenda Frazier, C.L. Jabbour, Chuck Martoni, Rich Nerone, William Robinson
Attachments: 1. 38-05-RE to Gov, State Senate & Reps.htm, 2. 38-05-RE.pdf
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A Resolution of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, supporting the initiative currently pending before the General Assembly to raise Pennsylvania's minimum wage from its current level of $5.15 per hour to $6.15 per hour in January 2006, and again to $7.15 in January of 2007, and further calling upon the Governor and General Assembly to take steps to foster economic growth in the Commonwealth, including the reduction of the corporate net income tax, elimination of the cap on the net operating loss carry-forward, and the elimination of the capital stock and franchise tax.
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WHEREAS, the federal minimum wage has not been raised from $5.15 per hour since 1997; and

WHEREAS, an individual earning only $5.15 per hour can work a 40 hour week and take home only $10,712 per year, an amount which is only 22% of the median income of all Americans, and which would place that individual two thousand dollars below the poverty level if he or she has only one child; and

WHEREAS, for an individual with only one child, at least $6.17 per hour must be earned in order to reach the Federal Poverty Level, and for an individual with two children this need increases to at least $7.36 per hour; and

WHEREAS, approximately 20,000 workers in Allegheny County currently earn less than $6.15 per hour; and

WHEREAS, seventeen states and the District of Columbia have already increased their minimum wage rates in order to provide for the needs of their residents, with new rates set as high as $7.35; and

WHEREAS, states in the mid-Atlantic and Midwest regions have been particularly active in raising their minimum wage rates, with New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota all having set rates that exceed the federally mandated minimum wage; and

WHEREAS, a healthy economic climate in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is absolutely essential for the future economic health of Allegheny County; and

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