Chesterton Tribune

 

 

County Council opposes common wage repeal, favors Sunday library hours

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By JEFF SCHULTZ

The Porter County Council on Tuesday joined the growing opposition towards Indiana House Bill 1019 that seeks to repeal the state’s common construction wage act.

The Council voted 6-0 on a resolution encouraging state lawmakers to stop the passage of HB 1019, contending that the bill would reduce incomes of employed construction workers.

Reading aloud the resolution that he introduced, Council member Jeremy Rivas, D-2nd, said the Common Construction Wage Act was passed by a majority of Republican lawmakers in 1935 to protect workers’ wages. Repealing the act would set the base threshold at minimum wage, Rivas said.

“I don’t think that’s going to help our community,” he said.

The Act currently applies to public construction projects that are paid for by state or local governments such as schools, government buildings and public roads estimated to be in excess of $350,000 in costs.

Rivas’ resolution refers to testimony given in the statehouse last week by construction companies and academic experts contending that the ramifications of the bill would eliminate funding for training and apprenticeship programs and would “open the door to low paying, out of state construction companies.”

“Testimony by elected officials of governmental units indicated this bill would hurt residents of their communities, make it harder to evaluate bids for projects and make it harder to keep the economic development benefits of construction projects in their community,” Rivas read from the resolution.

The Indiana House of Representatives on Monday voted 55-41 in favor HB 1019, and will be heard later by the state senate for a vote. Voting in opposition to the bill were all three of Duneland’s state representatives -- Rep. Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, Rep. Chuck Moseley, D-Portage, and Rep. Soliday, R-Valparaiso. Soliday was one of 13 Republicans who dissented against the measure.

Moseley, at the Porter County Retired Teachers legislative forum on Saturday, referred to bill as “the single most harmful piece of legislation in 25 years.” Proponents of the bill have argued repealing the common wage act would make Indiana more competitive for business and save local government units money by having companies compete for the lowest bid.

Rivas said County government has benefited since the Act was in place 80 years ago, giving as an example the new Porter County Jail. The Act could still serve the County well as it moves forward with a new Animal Shelter, he said.

“It’s investing in human capital,” he said.

Council president Dan Whitten, D-at large, said the resolution will be sent to all state lawmakers representing Porter County.

PCPLS eying Sunday hours

Meanwhile, another resolution was passed unanimously by the Council, this time to support the Porter County Public Library System’s current proposal to establish Sunday afternoon hours for at least two of its branches.

Currently, all five branches of the PCPLS are closed all day on Sundays. Whitten said library officials have told him there is a strong demand from patrons to have libraries open then.

The resolution mentions that several Northwest Indiana communities have their public libraries open on Sunday, including the Westchester Public Library in Chesterton, which is a separate entity from the PCPLS.

The resolution does not state which branches of PCPLS would be open Sunday. Whitten said that is at the discretion of its board of trustees.

RDA appointment

In another vote of approval, the Council voted 6-0 in support of the Commissioners’ decision to appoint Chris Campbell of Valparaiso as the County’s representative to the Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority board.

The Commissioners had only a few applicants who met the qualifications, Whitten said, and agreed, along with Council member Jim Biggs, R-1st, that Campbell, who works as a Senior Vice-President for Centier Bank, is well-suited for the role.

Absent from the meeting Tuesday was Council member Robert Poparad, D-at large.

 

 

Posted 2/25/2015

 
 

 

 

 

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