The House Economic Matters Committee today heard legislation (HB 430) to require employers under a State service contract worth more then $100,000 to pay an hourly wage of at least $11.95 per hour to their employees.

The Chamber opposes this bill because it undermines the purpose of competitive bidding for contracts, which should be to obtain the best service at the lowest price. Passage of this legislation could also put smaller businesses at a competitive disadvantage in bidding for state contracts.

If a qualified company is willing to provide that State a service at a certain price, why should the State insist on paying more, especially at a time when the State faces a projected budget deficit in the neighborhood of $1.5 billion. There are four pay grades of state employees who don’t make $11.95 per hour, yet State and local governments have been exempted from this bill.

To read the Chamber’s complete position statement, click here (pdf).