Maybe SEPTA Will Get Its Funding After All
The good news? “Gov. Tom Corbett’s hopes for a major legislative win came roaring back to life Tuesday, as the state House voted 104-95 to give key preliminary approval to a multi-pronged, $2.4 billion transportation funding program,” the Patriot-News reports. (We don’t care about Corbett’s hopes, but we do care about transportation funding.)
“But no one was lighting victory cigars Tuesday night. That’s because the House plan contains a key change that has not passed muster in the state Senate yet: a modest, albeit once-in-a-generation reform to Pennsylvania’s prevailing wage statute.The bill raises the cost threshold at which the law’s minimum wage requirements kick in for transportation construction projects from an outdated $25,000 at present, to $100,000 going forward.” The question is: Is that union-busting enough or too union-busting for the Senate to accept? We’ll find out soon.
Oh, the bad news: Today’s big headline on the front page of Metro is about how the House shot down the transportation bill. Which was true Monday night, but not on Tuesday night. Somebody should probably tell the Metro’s readers.
