Should Public Resources be Used to Collect Political Money?

My letter to the editor in the Carlisle Sentinel attempts to cut through all the rhetoric and ad hominem attacks by getting straight to the point regarding the debate over paycheck protection: Should taxpayer resources be used to collection union political money?

Union boss David Fillman’s recent op-ed against paycheck protection is chock-full of buzzwords, boogeymen, and scare tactics.  I won’t address any of his red herrings, but instead actually address the issue: Should public resources be used to collect political money? 

Paycheck protection laws have nothing to do with workers’ ability to join a union, they simply prevent taxpayer resources from being used to collect political money. 

In 2012, Pennsylvania government unions spent more than $4.9 million from members’ dues on lobbying and politics (like an ad by Fillman’s union with a giant pig vacuuming money from grandma’s purse).  Our government—the state, local government, and school districts—collect the dues that fund these lobbying and political ads from workers’ paychecks, then send checks to union bosses.

These same government union bosses gave nearly $4 million in campaign contributions via their PACs to candidates.  What might shock most voters is that even these campaign contributions were collected for union leaders using public payroll systems at taxpayer expense.

Should public resources be used to collect political money?  That’s all this legislation is about.