It’s harmful for minorities, entry-level workers and small businesses. It’s illegal and has a troubling, discriminatory history.
And it will cost the city nearly $100 million.
Despite all that, the Phoenix City Council pushed through, yet again, another counterproductive and unconstitutional “prevailing wage” ordinance.
Remarkably, the latest mandate is even worse than the last one.
Phoenix passed it with little review
On Jan. 9, by a 6–3 vote, the City Council passed an ordinance restricting private businesses from bidding or working on municipal public works contracts unless they pay well above market rates, based on complicated formulas issued by the federal government.
The ordinance also saddles these businesses with burdensome paperwork and notice requirements, and it imposes heavy fines and other penalties, even for minor or accidental violations.
What’s even more remarkable, however, is that this is virtually the same ordinance the Phoenix City Council passed last March, with barely 24 hours’ notice and against the advice of the city attorney (who admitted on the record that her team hadn’t had a chance to review the ordinance and that “there might be some legal issues” with it) and the city manager (who publicly stated that the ordinance would cost the city upward of $93 million in the coming year).