Dean tells Jenkintown audience she backs a path to $15 minimum wage and targeted help for small businesses

During a Q&A at a forum hosted by Jenkintown School District, Representative Madeline Dean said she supports raising the federal minimum wage toward $15 an hour while working with small businesses to manage that transition.

"I have long believed that the $7.25 minimum wage is inadequate," Dean said, acknowledging that some small businesses "say, I can't sustain workers at that level." She said an incremental approach would be acceptable: "If it were to come up incrementally, sure. Anything to get us off the mark of $7.25."

Dean pointed to federal responses to the COVID-19 pandemic as examples of government partnering with small businesses and families. She cited the American Rescue Plan and Paycheck Protection Program as programs that helped sustain businesses and get money to families during economic shocks.

On broader price pressures, Dean criticized corporate pricing behavior, saying some companies raised prices during supply-chain disruptions and have not rolled profits down for consumers. She said economists' estimates show that broad tariffs could increase an average family's costs by about $4,000 per year and argued for policies that would curb what she called ‘‘false profit taking.''

Dean also noted recent federal action on health care and inflation control, referencing the Inflation Reduction Act as a step to make health care more affordable. She asked voters to judge candidates by their words and records and framed economic policy as central to the upcoming election.

No legislative measures were introduced at the forum; Dean discussed policy preferences and priorities for future congressional action.