Information on the rally
A rally against legislation that would change how union dues are collected for public employees is taking place in York this afternoon.
It’s taking place at Cherry Lane off the first block of West Market Street in York, beginning around 1 p.m.
Organizers are protesting House Bill 1507, which includes some local GOP co-sponsors: state Reps. Will Tallman, Stan Saylor, Seth Grove, Ron Miller and Mike Regan.
Here is how the prime sponsor the legislation, state Rep. Bryan Cutler, has described it:
“Currently, public employee unions can collect dues directly out of paychecks with no questions asked. A portion of that money is spent on political activity, and there is a clear issue with any portion of public funds being used to collect money for political gains,” Cutler said. “For me, the entire bill is about one fundamental question: Should government stop collecting political money?”
House Bill 1507 does not change the relationship or requirement between the individual union members and their union. Members would still be responsible for their dues or fair share fees, the Commonwealth would simply no longer collect and distribute them. Additionally, the individual members could still donate as much money as they wish to the political campaign committees. However, as with the dues, the members, not the government, will be responsible for sending it in.
