Building Schools Should Cost Less
We've said much over the years about how Kentucky's prevailing wage laws create complex and artificial wages levels that are fantastically uncompetitive.
A new group, the Kentucky Opportunity Coalition has joined the chorus of voices pointing out how much these laws are costing Kentucky taxpayers. From a recent release:
In a 2004 Memorandum developed by the Kentucky Department of Education's Facilities Management Division, it was reported that from 1999 to 2004, Kentucky's prevailing wage requirement unnecessarily inflated the cost of school construction by more than $480 million. The amount of unmet need for schools in the most deplorable condition is around $500 million. It is conceivable that if SB 145 was currently the law, nearly every child in Kentucky would be attending an adequate school. In addition, these returns can be realized without one additional dollar being invested!
We'll say it again:
If our leaders in Frankfort were really concerned about growing the economy, we would be having a serious discussion about getting rid of prevailing wage.
