Pennsylvania Businesses Urge Lawmakers to Focus on 2021 Economy, Not 2020 Election

July 21, 2021, Philadelphia PA — A week after President Joe Biden visited Philadelphia and spoke on voting rights, business leaders announced a new effort to mobilize the Pennsylvania business community to address economic issues, pandemic recovery, and the protection of voting rights.

The partnership is co-organized by Business for America, a national, nonpartisan, business organization that mobilizes businesses around civic engagement, election security, and voting rights, and the West Philadelphia Corridor Collaborative, one of the largest business associations in Philadelphia.

The campaign, named Back to Business, calls on state legislators to prioritize key economic issues created by the pandemic rather than spending more time investigating the results of the 2020 election, using taxpayer money on an unnecessary audit, and promoting legislation that will restrict voting access in the commonwealth. 

“The pandemic isn’t over,” stated Jabari Jones, president of the West Philadelphia Corridor Collaborative. “Businesses and residents are still suffering. Pennsylvania’s economic recovery and ability to address the pandemic continues to suffer due to excessive partisanship in the state legislature. The PA State Senate estimated that there are nearly a quarter of a million homeowners at risk of losing their homes due to past-due mortgages. We encourage the legislature to redirect its efforts away from a costly and partisan audit of the 2020 election and towards ensuring the Keystone State’s economy regains its previous strength.”

The Back to Business campaign kicks off with a new business coalition letter addressed to House and Senate leadership in Harrisburg. It invites businesses of all sizes throughout the state to sign on. The letter specifically highlights economic issues that have been delayed due to partisanship, including financial relief for businesses and support for thousands of residents facing foreclosure, evictions, utility shut-offs, and unemployment. The letter calls upon the legislature to work together on a bipartisan basis to focus on economic recovery and ensure that all citizens can exercise their constitutional right to vote. 

Richard Eidlin, national policy director of Business for America noted that, “Business leaders throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania feel responsible for the interests of their employees, customers, communities, and economy. This includes making sure that everyone can vote without burdensome restrictions. Not only is voting a fundamental, constitutional right; it is also essential to a well-functioning government and healthy business climate.”

Companies and business organizations can learn more about the Back to Business campaign and sign on to the business coalition letter at www.bfa.us/pa.